Hello I am part of the Ghana Energy team and we are working with Kpanashe, Health Care Center in Northern Ghana.  Ghana has been experiencing a three year long power outage crisis that has negatively affected their health care system. The prolonged power crisis has led to the rationing of power. Doctors and nurses rely on flashlights and cell phones to provide light during operating procedures. The term used to describe these erratic power outages is Dumsor. The ultimate cause of the power outages is a shortage of power supply. A 2015 United Nations Foundation study concluded that the main energy needs of health facilities in Ghana are lighting, refrigeration, water pumping, information and communications technology.  After researching various technologies my team plans to implement the Next STAR (Stationary or Transportable Available Resource) unit that is mainly comprised of six solar photovoltaic panels and two sets of four absorbed glass mat batteries at the center.  This unit will supply up to 4.5 kWh/day to meet lighting and refrigeration needs.  Our primary goal is to increase the quality of their health care capacities.  At the moment we are currently reaching out to foundations to obtain grants and funding for capital and maintenance cost.

For my STS research I have discussed human dependency on the electrical power grid.  Countries such as the U.S, Ghana, and Greece were assessed to analyze how socioeconomic status plays a role in the electrical power grid dependency.  It has been realized that the continual use of grid energy has mentally disabled society from function without it.  Regardless of the location the electrical power grid continues to be a necessity for daily life.  Though it can be seen that societies are dependent on the grid, they cannot pass the grid on as a minor piece of technology.  Currently the EPG has reached a point where it is the pinnacle of civilization that is a catalyst for prosperity.  Disregarding a technology’s purpose will lead technological developments astray and depending on the technology could be catastrophic for living conditions such as an outdated, faulty, or inadequate electrical power grid. Society is dependent on the grid because it has made itself dependent on the grid and it could be very difficult to change this fact.  Future generations should be prepared to understand the grid’s importance yet not regard this technology as the only way for life.