Energy poverty is a major obstacle for social and economic development. Imagine: farmers without water pumps, tailors without electric sewing machines, and families’ daily exposure to kerosene fumes from their cooking stoves and lamps. However, more than 600 million people in Africa and 1.2 billion people around the world still lack access to reliable, clean, and affordable energy.

Trine helps to bring solar energy solutions to low-income households in Africa. These solutions are reliable, environmentally friendly, and cause no harm to people’s health. Trine’s crowdfunding platform connects investors across the world to help fund Trine’s local energy partners to distribute, lease, and install solar house systems for thousands of poor households. Families pay for their electricity on a pay-as-you-go basis and will pay-off the leasing cost at affordable rates over three years, at which point they will own the solar equipment.