The end result of many months of dedicated efforts to plan and deliver a complete solar power (PV) system to our research camp in Mongolia came online last week! An array of solar panels with a capacity of 2.38 Kilowatts is now providing electricity for lighting and electrical outlets to the gers (yurts) that make up the research camp.
But the system is not only powering camp, it is also providing electricity to a community center adjacent to the research camp. So the local community will be able to benefit directly from the new system as well.
Koustubh Sharma, Regional Biologist for the Trust, was already able to take advantage of the new system to present classroom training at the community center to visiting conservationists. There is tremendous potential for the system to provide power for the work of snow leopard research, training, and community meetings in the area for years to come.
The project would not have been possible without the support of Stephen Gold at the WCN Solar Power Project, who designed the system and generously donated the primary components, and Ben Morlang, a volunteer who led the local staff and workers in the Gobi to bring the system online. Also thanks to Turner Foundation and Cat Life Foundation, their support made shipping the entire system to Mongolia possible.