- Eight years since its launch, a solar-powered canoe initiative by the Kara Solar Foundation in Ecuador has expanded to Indigenous coastal communities in Brazil, Peru, Suriname and the Solomon Islands.
- Kara Solar representatives and Indigenous leaders say the project leads to a decrease in gasoline and diesel use that pollute waterways, reduces the need for road expansion and helps communities develop non-extractive income projects.
- By 2030, they hope to expand and support the operation of 10,000 solar-powered boats across the Amazon Basin and build a network of Indigenous-owned and operated recharge stations.
- But access to the required large amount of financing or investment remains a challenge and the project is exploring funding models for communities.
A solar-powered canoe initiative originally launched in Ecuador’s Amazon in 2017 has now expanded to Indigenous coastal communities in Brazil, Peru, Suriname and the Solomon Islands. Researchers say the effort helps communities in tropical regions reduce gasoline and diesel use, avoid road expansion and develop non-extractive income projects like tourism and forestry products businesses.
Ichinki Tentets Tanchim Federico, a leader from the Indigenous Achuar community of Wayusentsa in Ecuador, which recently received a solar-powered canoe, told Mongabay via WhatsApp that the boat has reduced pollution by using engines that don’t release exhaust fumes in the waters and air.
“[They] do not pollute the environment, especially for those who live near rivers,” he said, adding that it has saved Indigenous people the cost of purchasing fuel and oil.
The Kara Solar Foundation, an Indigenous-led team of engineers, communicators, social scientists and solar technicians, created the project after Indigenous Achuar people in the southeastern Ecuadorian Amazon expressed their vision to build a solar-powered boat. Tapiatpia, the first solar canoe, survived an 1,800-kilometer (1,118-mile) journey across several Amazonian rivers and safely returned to Achuar territory in 2017.
Since then, Kara Solar has delivered 12 solar-powered canoes to communities in five countries and built solar recharge stations that double as community energy centers. Six of the canoes were delivered to communities in Ecuador, two in Peru, two in Brazil, one in Suriname and one in the Solomon Islands. It has also trained members of Indigenous communities to operate and manage the systems in their own villages.
“Kara Solar ensures that technical knowledge is cultivated within the communities themselves,” Nantu Canelos, the executive director of Kara Solar and a member of the Achuar community of Sharamentsa, told Mongabay via WhatsApp. “It trains local technicians to maintain and control [the] technology, ensuring that power and the future remain in their hands.”
For many Amazonian communities, rivers are the only means of transportation. Kara Solar prioritized river transport over road construction because roads are one of the main causes of deforestation in the Amazon.
“The roads facilitate entry to industries such as illegal labour, mining and livestock farming, which threaten the territories, culture and ecosystems of indigenous communities,” Canelos said. “The solar canoe project seeks to strengthen river routes as the main form of connectivity, which helps protect the jungle and the autonomy of communities.”
Oliver Utne, co-founder of Kara Solar, told Mongabay via WhatsApp that compared to solar-powered boats, gasoline-powered motors are also much louder, which can impact local hunting and fishing activities.
Alessandro Bezerra Trindade, a researcher and adjunct professor in the Electricity Department at the Federal University of Amazonas, told Mongabay that “adopting boats powered by renewable, clean and noiseless energy would be a magnificent contribution to the environment and to riverside residents.”
Bezerra, who is not involved in this project, said maintenance and sourcing materials are common struggles individuals and companies face when trying to scale projects such as this one, as the technology and equipment are not yet readily available or accessible.
But sources at Kara Solar stated that they plan to expand the project across the Amazon Basin, while making solar-powered canoes accessible and affordable for local communities. The aim is to establish a network of Indigenous-owned and operated recharge stations, located along approximately 400 kilometers (248 miles) of rivers, initially in Ecuador’s Pastaza province and subsequently across other territories in the Amazon.
Motores Amazonas, Kara Solar’s sister company, plans to build a network of local manufacturing units to support the expansion and maintain the systems’ operation. By 2030, they hope to build, deploy and support the operation of 10,000 solar-powered boats.
To expand, Canelos said a large amount of financing is required.
“Projects like this, which seek to generate profound change and protect territories, are not attractive for traditional investment because they are not designed to obtain large gains quickly,” he said. “Therefore, access to funds is one of the biggest obstacles we face.”
According to Utne, the development of solar-powered canoes in rural parts of the Amazon is less costly than gasoline boats. But because the initial cost is high, many communities lack the capital to pay it. He told Mongabay that the challenge now is to develop funding models that allow local boat operators to pay over a period of time, similar to a leasing model.
“The Amazon is one of the few regions in the world without existing wide-scale infrastructure for transportation and electricity,” Utne said. “How it is built will determine the future of Indigenous territories and the fate of the planet.”
Banner image: The Kapawi River, soon to be the first “solar river” in the Amazon, is a lifeline for more than 1,000 Indigenous peoples and is home to endangered pink river dolphins (Inia geoffrensis). Image by Andrés Cornejo.
Electricity day and night: Solar power is changing isolated Amazon communities
Citations
Tercan, Ş. H., Eid, B., Heidenreich, M., Kogler, K., & Akyürek, Ö. (2020). Financial and technical analyses of solar boats as a means of sustainable transportation. Sustainable Production and Consumption, 25, 404–412. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.spc.2020.11.014
Botelho, J., Costa, S. C. P., Ribeiro, J. G., & Souza, C. M. (2022). Mapping Roads in the Brazilian Amazon with Artificial Intelligence and Sentinel-2. Remote Sensing, 14(15), 3625. https://doi.org/10.3390/rs14153625
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