A low cost pair of wire and plastic spectacles has won a global innovation award. The one dollar glasses, developed by German Inventor Martin Aufmuth, took the €50,000 first prize in Nairobi on Wednesday 30th October at the Siemens Stiftung’s Empowering People award – a global innovation contest seeking simple and intelligent technology to meet development needs. The award ceremony was held at the Hilton Hotel.
The unbreakable glasses, currently manufactured in Burkina Faso, Rwanda and Bolivia could bring vision to some of the 150 million short-sighted people in the world in most developing countries. The glasses are made of a single strand of wire and two plastic lenses. They can be produced for under US$1 and are sold for between US$3 and US$6. Manufacture of the frame does not require power supply and the project includes a basic training for opticians.
Second prize went to Ugandan electrical engineer, Moses Musaazi, for his sanitary pads made from sunlight and papyrus. The second prize is €30,000. Musaazi’s sanitary napkins Makapads are as simple as they are ingenious. These pads are made from natural material and are therefore biodegradable. They work well in keeping girls in school and their production also created local employment opportunities.
Third prize went to Scottish plumber David Osborne for his Jompy Water Boiler. It cooks food and disinfects water for rural communities in developing countries. The Jompy Water Boiler is a lightweight, inexpensive fire top device that enables households to cook a meal while e heating water at the same time to temperatures high enough to kill waterborne bacteria. This device reduces fuel costs for poor families dramatically as they use the energy more efficiently.
The 3 winners were among 23 finalists who shared the €200,000 purse. The contest received over 800 entries from across the globe.
Rolf Huber, Managing director of the Siemens Stiftung said he believed all finalists’ innovations could help people in developing countries. “By empowering individuals, we can empower communities, with long-term effects. We had 23 winners today, but by embedding solutions in operative projects and business models, we will be able to create many more winners in the world.†he said.
The highlight of the evening was Gregor Schäpers from Mexico winning the Community Prize of €3,000 based on votes for his solar reflectors for baking, cooking and generating steam. The winner for this prize was selected by the growing ’empowering people award’ community which encompasses people from all over the world who are personally engaged in development topics.
Theâ€empowering people award” is much more than a mere contest. Siemens Stiftung set out to look for appropriate low0tech solutions, but is also in the process of compiling all the solutions to make them visible and available to the public. This not applies to all the submitted technologies and not just the 23 winners.