{{Short description|Education non-profit organization}}
'''SolarSPELL''' is an educational initiative with nonprofit status based at Arizona State University.<ref name=":3">{{Cite journal |last1=Bauer |first1=Carrie |last2=Gallagher |first2=Matthew J |date=2020-06-01 |title=Education for Humanity: higher education for refugees in resource-constrained environments through innovative technology |url=https://academic.oup.com/jrs/article-abstract/33/2/416/5861713?redirectedFrom=fulltext |journal=Journal of Refugee Studies |volume=33 |issue=2 |pages=416–436 |doi=10.1093/jrs/feaa040 |issn=0951-6328|url-access=subscription }}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite journal |last=Paget |first=Emily |date=2024-03-23 |title=Online Skills in an Offline Environment: Creating Information Literacy Tutorials for the SolarSPELL Offline Digital Library |url=https://jl4d.org/index.php/ejl4d/article/view/1006/1007 |journal=Journal of Learning for Development |language=en |volume=11 |issue=1 |pages=165–171 |doi=10.56059/jl4d.v11i1.1006 |issn=2311-1550|doi-access=free }}</ref> SolarSPELL, which stands for Solar Powered Educational Learning Library, is a portable, solar-powered digital library system. It stores curated educational resources and acts as an offline Wi-Fi hotspot, allowing users to access its content without the need for internet connectivity.<ref name=":0" /> alt=SolarSPELL Logo|thumb|368x368px|SolarSPELL logo
As of 2024, SolarSPELL has distributed nearly 600 libraries in 15 countries globally and trained almost a thousand individuals on how to use the digital library technology.<ref name=":1">{{Cite book |last=Saad |first=Nichole |url=https://policycommons.net/artifacts/17130689/the-power-of-offline-internet/18019391/ |title=The Power of Offline Internet: Beyond the Binary of Connectivity |date=2024-10-15 |publisher=Offline Internet Consortium |language=en}}</ref>
== History == SolarSPELL was co-founded by Laura Hosman, a professor at Arizona State University (ASU), and Bruce Baikie<ref name=":4">{{Cite web |date=2024-10-08 |title=ASU-developed SolarSPELL libraries deployed to help communities in Arizona {{!}} ASU News |url=https://news.asu.edu/20241008-science-and-technology-asudeveloped-solarspell-libraries-deployed-help-communities-arizona |access-date=2025-08-07 |website=news.asu.edu |language=en}}</ref> in 2015.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last=Ro |first=Christine |title=What A Solar-Powered, Portable Library Looks Like |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/christinero/2021/12/30/what-a-solar-powered-portable-library-looks-like/ |access-date=2025-04-10 |website=Forbes |language=en}}</ref> Hosman's students were involved in the creation and testing of multiple iterations of the SolarSPELL device.<ref name=":3" /> alt=Dr. Laura Hosman and Bruce Baikie, co-founders of SolarSPELL, receive the award for "Best in Show" at the 2025 South by Southwest Innovation Awards.|thumb|306x306px|Dr. Laura Hosman and Bruce Baikie, co-founders of SolarSPELL, receive the award for "Best in Show" at the 2025 South by Southwest Innovation Awards. In March 2025, the ASU SolarSPELL Initiative was named "Best in Show" at the 2025 South by Southwest Innovation Awards.<ref name=":5">{{Cite web |last=Boehm |first=Jessica |date=2025-05-01 |title=ASU solar-powered libraries aid Arizona, Africa and beyond |url=https://www.axios.com/local/phoenix/2025/05/01/asu-solarspell-libraries-global-impact |access-date=2025-08-07 |website=Axios |language=en}}</ref> SolarSPELL was also named one of TIME's Best Inventions of 2025 <ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Klein |first=Jessica |title=SolarSPELL: The Best Inventions of 2025 |url=https://time.com/collections/best-inventions-2025/7318502/solarspell/?filters=social-impact |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251010123413/https://time.com/collections/best-inventions-2025/7318502/solarspell/?filters=social-impact |archive-date=2025-10-10 |access-date=2025-10-17 |magazine=TIME |language=en}}</ref>. Additionally, SolarSPELL won the 2025 QS Reimagine Education Award, worth $25,000 (USD). This award had over 1,650 submissions across twenty-one categories, and only two winners were selected.<ref>{{Cite web |title=QS Reimagine Education Award Winners 2025 {{!}} QS |url=https://www.qs.com/insights/reimagine-education-award-winners-2025 |access-date=2026-01-13 |website=www.qs.com |language=en}}</ref> Finally, at Arizona State University, SolarSPELL won the 2025 President's Award for Principled Innovation.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-12-12 |title=ASU employees earn recognition for their work on real-world solutions {{!}} ASU News |url=https://news.asu.edu/20251212-university-news-asu-employees-earn-recognition-their-work-realworld-solutions |access-date=2026-01-13 |website=news.asu.edu |language=en}}</ref>
alt=The solar-powered digital library device called SolarSPELL.|thumb|319x319px|The solar-powered digital library device called SolarSPELL.
== Hardware == The SolarSPELL digital library device consists of a waterproof case, a solar panel, a lithium-ion battery, a voltage regulator, USB cords, a Raspberry Pi, and an SD card. The SD card stores pre-selected educational content for the users to access.<ref name=":2" />
== Projects == The SolarSPELL library is used in 15 countries in Africa, the Middle East, the Pacific Islands, and North America.<ref name=":0" /> As of 2024, SolarSPELL has deployed 597 digital libraries and trained over 960 individuals how to use the technology.<ref name=":1" /> They are estimated to have reached over 300,000 people with the contents of their digital libraries.<ref name=":0" /> They have also been developing different versions of the library content in various languages including Arabic and Kurdish.<ref name=":4" /> alt=Elementary students in Lesotho access content on the SolarSPELL digital library through their respective tablet.|thumb|343x343px|Elementary students in Lesotho access content on the SolarSPELL digital library through their respective tablet. The SolarSPELL library is used by students and teachers in classrooms that may struggle with access to resources. In one study, after a SolarSPELL was used in a 10th grade biology class at Simon Sanchez High School in Guam, there was significant improvement in learning and education for the high schoolers, including for youth with special needs. The use of SolarSPELL in this class resulted in higher-than-average biology test scores and a reduction in student disruptive behavior in class.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Pacheco |first=John Arby G. |date=February 2020 |title=Education for Sustainable Development: Education as if our Islands Matter |url=https://www.uog.edu/_resources/files/schools-and-colleges/school-of-education/micronesian-educator/Micronesian_Educator_Vol_30.pdf#page=39 |journal=Micronesian Educator |volume=28 |pages=39–48 |via=University of Guam}}</ref>
The digital library is also used, locally, in Arizona by the Hopi Nation and the Phoenix Fire Department. These organizations access health and medical resources on the digital libraries.<ref name=":5" />
SolarSPELL has collaborated with non-profit and governmental organizations worldwide, including the Peace Corps, Voice of America, and more.<ref name=":2" />
== References ==
{{reflist}}
== External links ==
* [https://solarspell.org/ SolarSPELL official website]
Category:Arizona State University