Our Story
"So far what I've learnt from these classes has really opened my mind to energy this will help me to save money for my business and educate others who dont have any knowledge about energy"
Papa - Renewable Energy Course Attendee
How it all started
Back in 2011, Barnaby spent 14 months volunteering with a sustainable development charity in Ghana. He noticed that access to clean and reliable energy was limiting community development and growth. He became passionate about the use of renewable energy to solve this, returning to the UK to study Renewable Energy.
After graduating from the University of Exeter, he founded Dream Renewables in 2018 to increase awareness of renewable energy amongst Ghana's youth.
He recruited a team of like-minded renewable energy professionals, both through his network in the UK and through links with the University of Energy and Natural Resources in Sunyani, Ghana. Since then, Dream Renewables has grown and has two paid employees and a network of volunteers across Ghana. We run training programmes in 2 locations and are supporting our trainees to complete internships, further education, and develop project ideas.
‘Energy is the golden thread that connects economic growth, increased social equity, and an environment that allows the world to thrive.’ - Ban Ki-Moon, UN Secretary-General
Our Work
Classroom learning
Students getting to grips with energy basics
Practical work
Students putting their learning into practise
Community projects
Trainees repairing a solar panel system at a local school.
Graduation
Students graduating from our programme
We now have years of experience delivering training, education and community-centred renewable energy projects in Ghana. We run practical and hands-on training programmes in solar energy, energy efficiency and clean cooking across Ghana.
Our Training includes a mixture of practical workshops, presentations and demonstrations, with an active exchange of views and opinions encouraged throughout. As part of the courses, students build and test prototype power generation systems and gain a deeper understanding of the scientific principles involved.
Toward the end of the programme, students design a renewable energy system to solve energy-related problems in the local area. For example, one group designed a solar PV system to power a local seamstress. increasing the productivity of the business by 120% with an estimated payback time of 15 months.
After the training, we support our trainees to take these projects further by providing technical and fundraising support. As a result of this, we have built a solar-powered IT lab for a school, a solar-powered lighting system for a health clinic and solar-powered irrigation systems for small-holding farmers. We also work with many partners to provide internship and work experience opportunities for our trainees, providing opportunities for those who are significantly disadvantaged by their location or level of education.
Hear from our trainees
"Before attending this course I thought it would just teach me how to install solar systems, however, when I arrived, I realised it was really nice. They taught us how to manage our energy and perform energy audits, afterwards, we did practicals, and trust me, now I can install a solar system. Also, I urge my lady colleagues out there to engage with courses like this, this is not only for men’"
Vidaus Nuno, Dream Renewables trainee 2021
"Dream Renewables has really helped build my confidence and helped me understand people one way or another, so I would always like to work with them no matter what, I feel it’s a great opportunity for me to develop myself in all areas."
Francesca, Dream Renewables volunteer
“After joining the course for one month, it enlighted me to the world of energy. Upon completion, we went to Bomigo Basic school to pass on our knowledge, and we saw they didn't have any electricity, so with help from Dream Big Ghana Foundation we designed a solar power system for them.”