Health
Solution by: Solar Ear
Solar-Powered Hearing Aids with Open Source Design These unpatented low-cost hearing aids come with long-lasting rechargeable solar batteries that can make the technology accessible to millions of hearing-impaired individuals across the developing world.
SOCIAL Access to hearing aids helps tackle the social exclusion that hearing impairment causes.
THE TRIPLE BOTTOM LINE
ENVIRONMENTAL Replacing disposable zinc-air batteries with rechargeable solar-powered alternatives greatly reduces battery waste.
ECONOMIC At under $100, Solar Ear hearing aids cost a fraction of the price of conventional models, and remove barriers to employment for those impacted.
Solar Ear is a Brazilian social business that manufactures, assembles, and distributes digital hearing aids with solar battery chargers based on a technology that is shared freely. The batteries, costing only $0.50 more than disposable alternatives, last up to three years as opposed to approximately one week. They are also compatible with 95% of hearing aids on the market, greatly reducing reliance on expensive and polluting zinc-air batteries. Through its integrated approach encompassing detection, research, education, equipment, and therapy, Solar Ear has developed a holistic solution to hearing loss. Moreover, by employing young deaf people in the manufacturing process, the company is also working to transform the way society views the skills of people with disabilities. WHY A SUSTAINIA100 SOLUTION? The World Health Organization estimates that 360 million people suffer from hearing loss globally.1 In developing countries, approximately 32 million hearing aids are needed annually, yet only around 750,000 are provided. 2 Solar Ear’s approach is designed to meet this gap in supply, as it shares its technology, business model, and program protocols for free to like-minded social businesses. It is also developing a smartphone app designed to make screening accessible to millions.
DEVELOPED IN ...
BOTSWANA, BRAZIL, CHINA, FRANCE, GERMANY, USA, CANADA
DEPLOYED IN ...
46 COUNTRIES INCLUDING SWAZILAND, ARGENTINA, AND PALESTINE
1
WHO. “Deafness and Hearing Loss.” Fact Sheet. Online: www.who.int
2 American Academy of Audiology. “Global Hearing Loss and Related Issues.” February 2010. Online: www.audiology.org
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SUSTAINIA100
These affordable hearing aids with solar battery chargers make the technology far more accessible.