Google Donates 3,000 Solar Chargers to International Medical Corps

June 7th, 2010 by Zachary Shahan

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Despite not having a lot of other modern conveniences or even necessities, the developing world does have its share of cell phones. However, electricity is not always so easy to find. Google.org, Google.com’s philanthropic sister, has decided to help International Medical Corps (IMC) workers in such countries by donating 3,000 solar chargers to IMC. IMC is an international relief organization that works throughout the developing world.

“The Solio Solar Chargers receive power from the sun via small, foldable, solar panels, but can also take power from a USB port, or function as an optional wall charger. They can supply power to a range of over 3,200 mobile devices, including cameras and GPS systems – as well as phones – and hold a charge for up to a year,” IMC reports.

The total value of the donation is reportedly $216,000.

“Mobile phones are ubiquitous in the developing world today, but electricity is not,” said Nancy Aossey, President and CEO of International Medical Corps. “We are extremely grateful to Google for these solar chargers, which will greatly enhance communications for our field staff, especially those working in remote areas.”

Google makes yet another step in promoting solar and other clean energy around the world.

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Image Credit 1: imjustcreative via flickr under a CC license

Image Credit 2 & 3: HardwareSphere

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Tags: cell phone charger, cell phones, cell phones chargers, developing world, Google, Google.com, Google.org, IMC, International Medical Corps, phone chargers

About the Author

Zachary Shahan spends most of his time here on CleanTechnica as the director/chief editor. Otherwise, he's probably enthusiastically fulfilling his duties as the director/editor of Solar Love, EV Obsession, Planetsave, or Bikocity. Zach is recognized globally as a solar energy, electric car, and wind energy expert. If you would like him to speak at a related conference or event, connect with him via social media. You can connect with Zach on any popular social networking site you like. Links to all of his main social media profiles are on ZacharyShahan.com.

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Portable solar chargers are a great way to charge up your gadgets.
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I have long been a fan of Google and the work they do in various sectors. Something like this though shows that even though they are a financial powerhouse they have not forgotten about the little guys. Well done Google, keep up the good work!