Nonstop energy supply
Kremsmueller 4 Life helped to ensure that the Doctors Without Borders can really work without borders.
Doctors Without Borders were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1999 for their independent medical emergency help in crisis situations and after catastrophes. After all, since the founding of the organisation in the 1970s, it has determinedly followed one goal: „All the victims of catastrophes, whether their origin be natural or political in nature, have a right to professional help – as quickly and efficiently as possible." This is where Kremsmüller 4 Life came into the picture. The innovative Sunnybags from an Austrian start-up company increase the flexibility of the doctors tremendously. These bags, for satellite phones and notebooks, supply the equipment with energy from solar cells even in the most remote areas.
The first bags are already in use in South Sudan in the heart of Africa. Despite the 22-year civil war having ended six years ago and despite the independence referendum a year ago, peace has still not come to the region. Only a few people have access to adequate medical help. This year, the teams from Doctors Without Borders saw more than 588,000 cases and treated more than 25,900 patients for malnutrition in South Sudan. The serious safety situation limits the freedom of movement of the staff considerably, which makes it all the more important to be well equipped. The innovative Sunnybags are a decisive factor.
But the technology is also suitable for the European sun. Here, devices like MP3 players, navigation systems or mobile phones are charged with them. And the latter, the mobile phones, are simultaneously the origin of the Sunnybag project. Stefan Ponsold, the inventor of the bags, was irritated by the unsatisfactory battery capacity of his smartphone. After countless hours of soldering and stitching, the then student also wrote a business plan right away. And it took off: At the end of 2010, he founded his company Sunnybag in Graz. The young entrepreneur believes „in a future of mobile, intelligent and environment-conscious energy supply."
The first bags are already in use in South Sudan in the heart of Africa. Despite the 22-year civil war having ended six years ago and despite the independence referendum a year ago, peace has still not come to the region. Only a few people have access to adequate medical help. This year, the teams from Doctors Without Borders saw more than 588,000 cases and treated more than 25,900 patients for malnutrition in South Sudan. The serious safety situation limits the freedom of movement of the staff considerably, which makes it all the more important to be well equipped. The innovative Sunnybags are a decisive factor.
But the technology is also suitable for the European sun. Here, devices like MP3 players, navigation systems or mobile phones are charged with them. And the latter, the mobile phones, are simultaneously the origin of the Sunnybag project. Stefan Ponsold, the inventor of the bags, was irritated by the unsatisfactory battery capacity of his smartphone. After countless hours of soldering and stitching, the then student also wrote a business plan right away. And it took off: At the end of 2010, he founded his company Sunnybag in Graz. The young entrepreneur believes „in a future of mobile, intelligent and environment-conscious energy supply."
Innovative social projects can apply for a project grant from the „Kremsmüller 4 Life“ programme. More on this can be found at www.kremsmueller.at/mitmachen.
