Let There Be Light

By converting empty soft-drink bottles into solar lamps, Illac Diaz has illuminated the lives of people in rural areas around the Philippines and beyond

- Bill Bredesen

Illac Diaz has captured imaginations around the world with his grassroots social enterprise Liter of Light, a Philippines-based organisation that promotes simple DIY technology to help people living in rural areas with limited or no access to electricity create affordable and sustainable solar light.

The 49-year-old MIT and Harvard graduate, whose work has been recognised by the United Nations, is a four-time TEDx speaker, holding audiences rapt as he describes the innovative but curiously straightforward process of converting regular two-litre soft drink bottles into durable and efficient solar lamps.

His organisation today operates in 32 countries, with a staff of 220, and helps provide light to around 1 million people a year. Some of the solar-powered lights can be assembled in just 30 minutes—and last for five years.

The group’s unique mission—along with its savvy Internet marketing—has caught the attention of international celebrities, politicians and corporations, all of whom have been eager to become a part of it. When Liter of Light uploaded a video in 2014 that ultimately racked up some 60 million views, PepsiCo saw an opportunity to ride the wave of positive publicity.

“Pepsi realised we were using their plastic bottles,” Diaz says. “Soft drink bottles are thicker than water bottles, so they work better in these types of lights. Pepsi loved it so much they gave us funds to expand in seven countries.”