Luke Barbagallo’s journey to social enterprise

This article was originally published on RMIT Launchpad.

Luke Barbagallo from Pollinate Energy, a social enterprise that offers life-changing products to Indian communities, was speaking with a man in a Kolkata city slum about one of Pollinate’s solar lanterns. The man was doubtful of the quality of the solar lamp that Luke was showing him, even questioning its ability to work.

Out of the blue, a young woman approached them. She held the same lamp in question, which she had purchased from Pollinate Energy two years earlier, and took over the conversation, sharing how it had improved her life.

In a passionate attempt to prove its quality, she threw the lamp on the ground - hard. It bounced and remained unscathed.

An alternative to kerosene lamps, the solar lanterns that Pollinate Energy distributes through a network of ‘Pollinators’, ends the household reliance on toxic kerosene, which is also an expensive fuel for impoverished families.

Furthermore, pollutants released from burning kerosene increase the risk of respiratory disease, which greatly affects women and children. Families that now have a solar lantern are safe from being burnt by an open flame, are not inhaling toxic fumes, and have sufficient illumination to work and study at night.

It was a moment of serendipity for Luke. When the survey ended, the man asked to buy the product.

Read more here.