Introducing the Emergency Energy Fund

Over the past few years whenever there is a natural disaster, whether it's an earthquake in Alaska, wildfires in California or hurricane in Puerto Rico, we receive a spike of inquiries from the community.

How is BioLite supporting this situation?

Is there anything we can do to get [insert product] to families in crisis?

Are you taking money for donations to [x community]?

We're grateful for this outpouring of support – and we want to make sure your dollar goes as far as it can.

That's why we spent the last year researching partners and channels that could help us make the most impact in the realm of rapid response. And we are proud today to announce the launch of the Emergency Energy Fund. This new initiative is in partnership with Mercy Corps, a leading global relief organization with the operational expertise to assess, deliver, and deploy our off-grid energy solutions quickly and effectively to affected regions.

What is the Emergency Energy Fund?

Simply put, this fund is an ongoing crowdfunding campaign that proactively collects donations that can be utilized at any moment. By donating to BioLite’s Emergency Energy Fund, you are directly helping families get access to safe and reliable energy to help them cook, charge, and light their way through recovery. When the next disaster strikes, Mercy Corps will identify the products most relevant to aid in recovery and activate a deployment plan.

Where does my money go?

Your dollars will go directly to gear. Mercy Corps covers the cost of their own operations - your donation to the Emergency Energy Fund covers the basic costs of the products being distributed to those in need. Here are a few ways your donations can help:

• $15 provides personal solar lighting to an individual, removing the need for candles or lighting that can die out.
• $30 outfits emergency responders or survivors with hands-free rechargeable headlamps for safe navigation through nighttime or other low light situations.
• $59 equips a recovery tent with a solar home system that offers multi-area lighting, radio for emergency information, and phone charging to stay in communication with loved ones.
• $78 enables communities to access clean-burning biomass cookstoves for emergency water boiling and hot meals without reliance on propane.

How Can I Get Involved?

We've got two ways you can make a difference:

 

1. Head over to our Crowdrise page and donate. As little as $15 can help an individual in crisis access safe personal lighting.
2. Spread the word and share the campaign! The campaign page has easy share buttons you can use, or you can copy and paste the link onto your own Facebook page, twitter, email to friends, etc. So many people are looking for ways to help, thanks for giving them a chance to support this work (and yes, sharing the campaign really does make a difference; you never know who will see it and be motivated to act).

Your donations today help ensure that when a crisis does arise, Mercy Corps can get our off-grid energy gear to people who need it the most and get it there quickly. When the next crisis does occur, we will keep you up to date on these efforts so you can see first hand how your donation is bringing energy to the communities who need it most.

We appreciate your generosity and continued support in helping us bring energy everywhere.

FAQs