Written by guest author Bridget Ryan, Let There Be Light International Solar Intern

My name is Bridget Ryan and I’ve spent my summer working with Let There Be Light International (LTBLI) in Buffalo, NY as a solar intern! I’m entering my third year at McGill University in Montreal where I am majoring in international development. When I heard about LTBLI and the vast impact it has made, I knew I wanted to be involved. 

My internship with the LTBLI Team has allowed me to learn about the extreme energy poverty people face across the world. Lack of electricity not only causes impairment to education, heath, and productivity but also forces people to turn to highly polluting light sources such as kerosene. Solar lights have resounding effects on households that positively impact communities and generations to come. Being a part of LTBLI has given me hope and shown me how much change the LTBLI Team was able to make by gathering a small group of determined individuals from all over the world to create LTBLI. 

With climate change becoming ever dire, LTBLI’s newly founded Shine on Students (S.O.S) initiative is a great way to encourage youth involvement and outreach. Students often don’t realize they have the capacity to make real change happen and S.O.S is giving young people across the country the opportunity and ideas to do so.

 As I pursue my studies in international development, I hope to continue to work with groups like Let There Be Light International. I’m passionate about climate change, youth outreach, and changing lives with something as simple as a small solar light.

Bridget will continue to work with LTBLI as our Student Solar Ambassador for 2019-2020. She will serve as a campus-based student advisor to the SOS team and to new members of the SOS Climate Change Initiative. LTBLI’s Student Solar Ambassadors are selected by Let There Be Light International to work as an integral part of the social media team and to be outreach educators in their school communities. Contact us at [email protected] for more information or to reach out to our Student Solar Ambassador.