Food Fun Family

A family lifestyle blog about food, family, entertainment, travel and family-friendly products.

  • Home
  • Food
    • All Recipes
    • Main Dishes
    • Desserts
    • Side Dishes
    • Vegetarian dishes
    • Delicious Dishes Recipe Party
    • Recipe Round Ups
    • 15 Minute Suppers
    • Recipe Box
  • Family
    • Tips for Moms
    • Family life
    • Holidays & Celebrations
    • Savvy Living
  • Creative Life
    • Crafts + projects
    • DIY Bath & Body Products
    • Printables and Activity Sheets
    • Photography Tutorials
    • Give Me Your Best Shot – Photostory Friday
  • Travel
  • Entertainment
    • Giveaways
    • Book Club
    • Movies
    • Printables and Activity Sheets
    • Blog prompts
  • About
    • Contact Me
    • Privacy Policy
    • Advertise
    • Site Map – Find Your Way Around
  • Lollidale Goats
    • Our Does
You are here: Home / That's life! / Brighter Lives for Refugees #IKEABrighterLives

Brighter Lives for Refugees #IKEABrighterLives

Sunday, February 9, 2014 by Lolli 6 Comments

 

This past week brought some pretty major storms through our area. Ice covered everything – the roads, the walkways, and the trees. As beautiful as the ice-encased trees are to look at, they almost always mean one thing: trees are going to fall and the power is going to go out.

Storms knock out our power a few times a year. Usually, the power is restored within a few hours and we’re back to our normal routine. When the power is out during the day, the house gets cold and we have to get creative about the food we eat (we try to avoid opening the fridge and there’s no way to cook anything)…but the kids look at it as an adventure. When the power is out at night, things get a little more tricky. We pull out the flashlights and lanterns and turn on the kerosene heater, which provides both heat and light. And we get by until the power comes back on again.

Next Tuesday and Wednesday, my family and I will be participating in challenge. On night one, we will not use any light source (and yes that includes no cell phone or computer use). On night two, we will have the use of one solar-powered LED lantern. Sure, we’ll still have a working heater and fridge. But a night without any lights during the winter when it gets dark at 5:30? It’s going to be tough. I’ll be reporting back after our experience next week to let you know how it went. I’m particularly interested to see how my kids react. No TV, no iPods, no light when they use the bathroom…

IKEA-Brighter-Lives-for-Refugees

The biggest question, of course, is WHY. Why are we taking the one night without light challenge? It’s all about offering a brighter future for some families across the world…and for teaching my kids about Brighter Lives for Refugees.

Brighter Lives for Refugees

The Brighter Lives for Refugees campaign will help to provide solar street lights, indoor solar lanterns, and other renewable energy technologies such as fuel efficient cooking stoves in UNHCR refugee camps in countries including Ethiopia, Chad, Bangladesh and Jordan. In addition the campaign will also fund improved primary education.

Ethiopia 2013, Dollo Ado, Refugees

IKEA will donate one euro (or USD $1.37) to the UN refugee agency UNHCR for every IKEA LEDARE – LED light bulb sold during the campaign period, from February 3 through March 29, 2014. Additional information can be found here.

What a Difference a Light Can Make

Why solar lights? How much of a difference will a few lights make?

Dollo Ado, Refugees

  • The absence or lack of light after sunset can have a devastating effect on safety and security for those living in refugee camps. Simple activities such as visiting the toilet, collecting water or returning to the shelter from elsewhere can become difficult and dangerous, particularly for women and girls.
  • The improvements funded by the campaign will make each refugee camp a safer and more suitable home for refugee children and their families.
  • Solar street lights can improve safety in refugee camps by reducing the risk of crime, sexual and gender-based violence.
  • Solar lanterns help girls and boys in refugee camps study after dark, improving results in school.
  • Solar street lights help improve life in a refugee camp, enabling more community gatherings and social activities.
  • Solar lanterns allow refugees to continue important income-generating activities such as weaving or sewing during the dark hours.
  • Solar lanterns enable refugees to run their small shops and kiosks into the evening, increasing prospects of generating a sustainable income.

kids

Key Facts About LED Lighting

  • LED lighting consumes 85% less energy than incandescent bulbs and can last up to 20 times longer.
  • If one million people changed one bulb each into LED, this would in terms of CO2 emissions correspond to taking almost 6,700 cars off the road, or planting 17 million trees per year.
  • The total annual cost saving (including purchase price and energy consumption cost) of switching one incandescent 40W bulb to a corresponding LED bulb, is approximately $6.25 (5.3 Euro) on average.
  • LED bulbs use substantially less power than incandescents or CFLs. Replacing existing lighting with LEDs can save between 50% and 90% of lighting energy costs.
  • LED replacements are already available for many bulb types and can fit virtually all of your existing lamps.

I can’t wait to share our experience this coming week as we go a whole night without lights. Join me on Thursday, February 13 at 5:00pm PT/ 8:00pm ET. Yes, there will be prizes (Seven $50 Amex Gift Cards, Five portable solar lanterns and One $150 Amex Gift Card Grand Prize). RSVP here. Feel free to RT the tweet below and meet me at the party!

Share how you live sustainably at @IKEAUSANews Twitter Party! 2/13 5pmPT https://t.co/teRtFwarnP #IKEABrighterLives

— Lolli Franklin (@1momof5) February 8, 2014

 

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls Collective and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

© 2014, Food Fun Family. All rights reserved.

About Lolli

Lolli has written 3740 post in this blog.

I became a mom in 1996, and in 2005 I had my fifth. Yes, 5 kids. In 2007, this blog was born (my 6th baby that will never grow up) and I've been sharing recipes, photography tricks, parenting tips, and everything in between. (Formerly Better in Bulk)

  • View all posts by Lolli →
  • Blog
  • Twitter
  • Facebook

Filed Under: That's life! Tagged With: Social Good, Twitter party

« The Swiffer Sweep & Trap #NewFromSwiffer
Slow Cooker Butter Chicken and Naan »

Comments

  1. Christine @ Mama Papa Barn says

    Friday, February 14, 2014 at 5:24 pm

    I live and love IKEA!! How did I miss this posting opportunity? I never saw it come across the clever girls newsletter..

  2. Kate, aka guavalicious says

    Tuesday, February 11, 2014 at 4:22 pm

    We always purchase a solar lamp when we’re there. They are great for having around the house for power failures and I love knowing I am “giving” one to someone else. Really excited to hear about the LED campaign!

  3. Raijean says

    Tuesday, February 11, 2014 at 3:06 pm

    I’ve been hearing some great things about this campaign! Love it!

  4. Michelle says

    Tuesday, February 11, 2014 at 2:59 pm

    This gives me even more reason to love Ikea. I love that the campaign will also fund education.

  5. Jeannette says

    Tuesday, February 11, 2014 at 1:41 pm

    My mom just got back from India and her trip was sobering. You really don’t realize what a difference there is! This is a wonderful campaign and I love that it’s shedding light on an important issue!

  6. Lindsey G. says

    Tuesday, February 11, 2014 at 1:17 pm

    WOW! Thank YOU for sharing and to IKEA for making this wonderful campaign. I can’t wait to read how it is for you!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

  • Facebook
  • Google+
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter

Copyright © 2025 · Foodie Pro Theme by Shay Bocks · Built on the Genesis Framework · Powered by WordPress

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish.Accept Read More
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.

Necessary Always Enabled

Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.

Non-necessary

Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.