Melanie C is giving her support to a project that aims to bring clean energy to places without electricity through the power of music.
SPARK is a percussion shaker that converts the energy from playing it into electricity. The project is being led by Sudha Kheterpal, percussionist for Faithless.
“SPARK enables people to generate electricity so that they can plug in a light or charge up a mobile phone, simply through having a music jam,” writes Sudha. "In places like Kenya, where 75% of the population live without access to electricity, having the ability to read at night or charge up a mobile phone gives people the chance of a better education and also access to services like the revolutionary mobile phone banking system, M-PESA.
“I’ve tested the prototype with a number of different communities in Kenya and have proven it is incredibly useful to people. Children, teachers and village elders have all embraced it.
“I’ve been the percussionist with the band Faithless for 15 years, and I’ve often wondered whether the huge amounts of energy produced from playing at gigs could be harnessed and used. I passionately believe we need to look at how to harness alternative sources of renewable energy that are good for people and the planet.
“At it’s heart this is a project about inter-dependence and togetherness; an invitation for all of us to rise up as guardians of nature and bring power to those who need it. For me, this project is also about connecting people and bringing them together through music. Through the joy of playing music we can create something really useful, changing the world one beat and one shake at a time.”
The Kickstarter campaign needs to raise £50,000 by Thursday, July 10. To find out more and give your support, click here.
