Most Haitians use kerosene and charcoal for lighting and cooking, but both are disproportionately expensive, are bad for human health, and have deforested the island so much that it’s susceptible to catastrophic floods. Daniel Schnitzer believes that Haitians’ lives would improve if they had access to the solar-powered LED lamps he’s bringing as the first project of his nonprofit social enterprise, EarthSpark International. He goes to the island to test the market, believing that customers will pay the higher initial cost when they see the long-term energy savings—the lamps pay for themselves after about three months.

But after he explains the lamps’ advantages to one woman, she says, “Mon cherie, c’est ton cher” (My dear, it’s too expensive). That’s a problem shared by many in the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere. He’s not optimistic about market acceptance.

The 2008 experience teaches Schnitzer a lesson: innovative technology is not enough. To help Haiti and other energy-poor societies, he must make the technology instantly affordable. Today, EarthSpark sells products like solar lamps to its network of over 75 local retailers, develops country-level supply chains to serve them, and provides micro-financing to make the products affordable. And in the Haitian community of Les Anglais, EarthSpark installed a microgrid electrical system that sells pay-as-you-go electricity.

The experience has also guided Schnitzer personally as he pursues his PhD at Carnegie Mellon’s Department of Engineering and Public Policy by researching the comingling of poverty and energy access.

For his efforts with EarthSpark, the graduate student was honored in the energy category of Forbes magazine’s most recent “30 Under 30,” which included 30 “up-and-comers” in 15 categories. In addition to Schnitzer, Forbes also spotlighted four Carnegie Mellon alumni:

  • Lily Liu (DC’05, HNZ’06), Social Entrepreneur category. She is CEO of PublicStuff, a startup that connects citizens with municipalities through mobile-phone apps.
  • Scott Heimendinger (DC’05), Food & Wine category. He is director of applied research and chief evangelist at Modernist Cuisine.
  • Eric Koger (TPR’06, ’07) and Susan Gregg Koger (TPR’06), Art & Style category. The married couple cofounded vintage-inspired online retailer ModCloth.

—Lorelei Laird (DC’01)

Related Links:
Forbes Names CMU Community Members to 30 Under 30