Waterlight, The Light Powered By Water

ph. E-Dina Waterlight

UPDATE 2024 They faced some challenges in securing full funding for the production line but are actively working on launching this product. The new version of WaterLight will be more powerful, with a fresh, modern design.

Off-grid communities live autonomously, without reliance on a utility for electricity, gas, or a sewage system or an internet connection, and even today, many still exist. Some of these people have voluntarily chosen to move away from the city and therefore from the services that are provided, while others are part of indigenous groups that have inhabited remote areas for centuries, far from trade routes. These communities, sometimes completely foreign to technology, must find increasingly more solutions to adapt to climate change. WaterLight is one such solution for this context: a wireless light that converts salt water into electricity. A more reliable alternative to solar lamps, whose efficiency depends heavily on weather conditions.

Designed in Colombia by the local start-up E-Dina in collaboration with the Colombian division of the creative agency Wunderman Thompson, WaterLight guarantees instant energy as soon as it is filled with water. The portable device can be filled with 500 milliliters of seawater – or even urine in emergency situations – to emit up to 45 hours of light. Acting as a mini power generator, WaterLight can also be used to charge a mobile phone or other small devices via its integrated USB port. The device works 24 hours a day through ionization, where electrolytes in the saline liquid react with magnesium and copper plates on the interior of the lamp to produce electricity. Although this is a long-established process, E-Dina has developed and patented a way to sustain the chemical reaction over a prolonged period so it can be used to power a light source.

Throughout its life, one light can provide approximately 5,600 hours of energy, which equates to two or three years of use, depending on how often it is needed. The lamp has a cylindrical case made of Urapán wood with a circuit integrated into its base and a perforated cap on top that allows water to flow into the device while the hydrogen gas created during the ionization process can escape. After the salt particles have settled, the lamp can be emptied and refilled again, and the used water can be repurposed for washing or cleaning.

This version of the lamp was designed specifically for the Wayúu people, an indigenous tribe living on the northernmost tip of South America, where Colombia meets Venezuela. For centuries, the Wayúu have occupied the remote, desert landscape of the Guajira peninsula. Although removed from the rest of society, the area is surrounded on all sides by the Caribbean Sea, which offers a plentiful resource to power the WaterLight. Wunderman Thompson worked to integrate the tribe's rich cultural heritage into the lamp's design, with traditional symbols and patterns carved into its wooden casing and the colorful carrier straps woven by local craftswomen using a technique that goes back to pre-colonial times.

Once it reaches the end of its life, Wunderman Thompson claims the lamp can be fully recycled. The goal is to ultimately roll out a simplified, mass-produced version of the WaterLight across the world to supply the 840 million people who currently live without electricity. The team expects the design will be particularly useful in places like Syria, Sierra Leone, and Somalia, which lack a comprehensive power grid but have direct coastline access.