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When we think of our most basic human needs, we often think of food, water, and shelter. But when architecture graduate students Anna Stork and Andrea Sreshta were asked to design a product to assist post-earthquake relief efforts in Haiti, they considered the dangerous conditions at night in the tent cities and turned their attention to another critical need: Light.
Now everyone’s getting the bright idea: hikers in Yosemite, backpackers in Whistler, and emergency workers in Nepal alike use LuminAID to light their way. Even the reality investment show ABC’s Shark Tank saw the LuminAID vision irresistible, and invited Anna and Andrea on the show for a chance to premiere their product on primetime.
After the Haiti Earthquake, design students Anna and Andrea invent an idea for an inflatable solar light that packs flat.
Anna and Andrea make the first 50 prototypes for testing by hand.
- Anna and Andrea file LuminAID’s first utility patent as students of Columbia University.
- Anna and Andrea travel to village projects in India to field test initial prototypes.
- The first version of the LuminAID light is launched on a crowdfunding campaign on IndieGoGo and raises 500% of its initial funding goal.
- 1000 LuminAID solar lanterns are distributed in Haiti as part of the Give Light, Get Light program after Hurricane Isaac.
- A second utility patent is filed for the LuminAID design (which has since been filed internationally).
- CNN's Start Small, Think Big features LuminAID solar lanterns.Chicago Booth’s Social New Venture Challenge awards first place and $25K to LuminAID’s budding start-up.
- The LuminAID lantern is featured as one of the “Top Technology Trends 2013” onThe Today Show.
- $100K is awarded to LuminAID for the Early Stage Prize at the Clean Energy Challenge in Chicago, hosted by the Clean Energy Trust.
- 20,000+ LuminAID lights are supplied to international NGOs including Shelterbox and Doctors Without Borders.
- Employees No. 1 and 2 are welcomed to the LuminAID Team.
- Anna and Andrea are named Toyota Mothers of Invention at the Women In the World Summit in New York.
- The LuminAID Team celebrates the milestone of 10,000 lights donated by customers through our Give Light, Get Light program to charitable projects in more than 50 countries.
- LuminAID is featured on Season 6 of ABC's Shark Tank and receives offers from all 5 Sharks.
- Mark Cuban closes a deal with LuminAID, becoming the company’s first investor.
- 3,000+ LuminAID lights were distributed as part of our Give Light Nepal campaign.
- In recognition of their small business design, Chase awards LuminAID a $100K Mission Main Street Grant.
- Fedex recognizes LuminAID in their Small Business Grant Contest with an award of $15,000.
- The Pitch For Good competition sponsored by Tom's and Inc. Magazine awards LuminAID a $50K grant.
- Adventurers for Change and LuminAID partner to help distribute solar lights to families devastated by the Nepal earthquake.
- A Kickstarter for a dual solar phone charger + lantern in the spirit of previous LuminAID ultra-compact gear is fully funded in under 8 hours. The PackLite Max 2-in-1 Phone Charger is born. The campaign earns over $250K, nearly 4000 backers, and over 3000 solar lanterns are donated to Syrian refugees.
- LuminAID partners with multiple disaster relief agencies including Convoy of Hope to distribute solar phone charger and lanterns in the Caribbean after a disastrous hurricane season. Thousands of solar lanterns and chargers go to Puerto Rico in particular. Co-founders Anna and Andrea visit the island to deliver aid directly to families without power.
Keep up-to-date on LuminAID and Mercy Corps' response to Hurricane Florence in North Carolina, and send a solar phone charger to a family in need.
