The Process

We began the design workshops through discussion on solar energy (facilitated by Elizabeth Kilakoi, an Olorgesailie local who speaks both English and Maa). We talked about what scale of energy generation was possible and what the women would like to see as additions to their homesteads.

The women enjoyed looking through the Land Art Generator publications and the imaginative ways that solar power installations can be designed as art. After talking about how the design ideas that they bring to the Idia'Dega design collaboration could be translated to solar designs, Regina began sketching an idea for a solar artwork. Sketching caught on like wildfire and soon all of the artisans were drawing their ideas. The sketches led to conversations about the themes and symbols that were shared amongst many of the women. Representations of the sun, trees, animals, and other geometric shapes flowed forth from the paper.

By the end of the week long workshop multiple designs were chosen to move forward to implementation. They included wearable solutions as well as more infrastructural scales for homesteads.
All designs are deeply reflective of the aesthetic and cultural needs of the women and their families.

The NEED

• Currently there is limited access to electricity, water, and sustainable heating/cooking methods.
• A lack of access to lighting at night limits in-home learning.
• The local population is experiencing increasingly difficult economic and social pressures on land and resources.
• The artisans require the ability to communicate with international partners, which means the need to charge cell phones.
• This access to communication tools increases creative and revenue building projects.
• Sustainable financial models that place the Maasai women at the table of the 21st century global economy.

The GOAL

Utilizing local materials with renewable energy technologies provided by the partnership as the sculptural media, Maasai women are designing functional art objects that reflect their culture and vision for the future.

At scales ranging between 100 Wp and 5 kWp the collective output of the sculptural design-build effort will provide sustainable electricity to power individual homes, a freshwater pump, and even wearable solar power designed to meet the needs of the Maasai culture as a part of the Idia'Dega fashion collaborative. Other potential benefits include providing a solar cooking apparatus as a part of some of the installations.

This approach to rural electrification for the Maasai is taken with a long-term vision for generating a sustainable economy for the local community. The design outcomes will not only be implemented locally and build knowledge capacity, but will also be marketed to a global audience, providing a continuous income for the Maasai designers as the prototypes installed in Olorgesailie are produced by OMWA for an expanding global market.

The story

In the winter of 2015, we were contacted by Tereneh Mosley, the founder of Idia’Dega, who has been working since 2013 with Maasai Women Artisans in Olorgesailie—a remote location in South Rift Valley of Kenya where Maasai are starting to feel the pressures on land use from the outside world. One of those pressures is renewable energy infrastructure for the national grid. With excellent insolation, the land around Oloresailie is already being tapped for solar energy projects, but none of the new energy infrastructure is being planned to serve the modest needs of the local community. Rather it is being installed to serve the national grid for use in cities like Nairobi.

The work of Idia’Dega in sustainable fashion has shown that it is possible to design new products collaboratively with the Olorgesailie Maasai Women Artisans (OMWA) and other indigenous groups through processes that elevate local communities and empower them to create their own economic future on the global stage. Through her conversations with OMWA, Tereneh learned that modest electrification is something that is a pressing need—contributing to security, education, communication and creative /revenue building projects.  Nearly everyone goes without light after sunset and the only way to charge cellphones is to walk an hour or more in each direction and pay someone in the nearest grid-tied village.

Building on the strong relationships and design model that Tereneh has established, Idia’Dega and Land Art Generator have therefore embarked on a collaboration with OMWA to design culturally and aesthetically relevant solar infrastructure for off-grid Maasai homesteads. On return from our first round of design workshops we are excited to report that the ideas that resulted far exceeded our expectations. Along the translation from fashion to energy infrastructure, the group quickly realized that incorporating modest photovoltaic areas into belts, bags, bracelets, and fabrics that Maasai women and men wear during the daylight hours would be a great way to provide access to electricity at all times. In addition, small-scale solar shade structures and “banda” ornaments will provide immediate access for use within the homestead.

While it is most important that we provide Olorgesalie with the first products of their design efforts and meet their immediate need for electricity, we will soon thereafter be offering the designs for sale to the general public. We’re certain that everyone will want to own Maasai solar wearables and residential-scale products, and the proceeds from sales will go back to the people of Olorgesailie, helping to pay for student fees and for everyday needs for food, clothing, healthcare, and shelter that often go unmet today. Access to electricity will also help OMWA nurture their creative practice and offer the ability to connect and collaborate with other artisans around the world.

There is clearly a large overlap between renewable energy projects and indigenous peoples’ territories in Kenya. As such, the renewable energy corporations have a responsibility to respect the rights of these communities in line with international and national human rights instruments. The UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights place the responsibility on business enterprises to respect the rights of communities when undertaking projects on their lands and territories. Renewable energy projects in Kenya must therefore be designed and implemented in ways that protect and advance the rights of indigenous peoples.

Renewable Energy Projects and the Rights of Marginalised/Indigenous Communities in Kenya
IWGIA — Report #21, November 2015