Netbooks and Solar Power

Until recently, the lack of electricity and the high cost of laptops were almost insurmountable barriers for the many Papua New Guineans who are translating God’s Word in remote areas.

But there's a solution: A four-year, multi-phase program called INSPIRE (Initiative for Netbooks and Solar Power in Remote Environs). It combines netbooks, software, solar power, and training.

The first phase of INSPIRE launched at the SIL center in Ukarumpa, the country’s hub for language work. This initiative will provide:

• a training lab with 24 netbooks and the latest linguistic software
• a special software environment called Balsa (Basic Language Software Appliance) that greatly reduces training costs for new workers to use their computers
• instructors for computer training
• a training module that can be integrated into other translation courses taught in Ukarumpa
• subsidized netbooks and solar power systems for Papua New Guineans who complete the training

After this first phase, the initiative will be expanded to other regional centers, multi-language workshops, and remote villages.