By — Fred de Sam Lazaro Fred de Sam Lazaro Leave your feedback Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/illac-diazliter-of-light Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Profile: Illac Diaz Brings Clean, Cheap Light into Filipino Homes World Oct 17, 2012 2:55 PM EDT Photo of Illac Diaz by Fred de Sam Lazaro/PBS NewsHour Filipino Illac Diaz began a project called Liter of Light to do two things in his home country: provide light to those who need it and recycle otherwise useless trash. The project uses empty one liter soft drink bottles in numerous ways, most commonly filling them with water and a little bleach and fitting these into the tin-roofs across the slums of Manila and other places. The refraction brings light into these very dark dwellings, accomplishing electricity savings and re-using tons of plastic that would otherwise go to landfills or worse. I spoke with him recently about his work: The NewsHour’s Agents for Change series highlights individuals helping communities solve problems, build businesses and create jobs. We’ll feature 10 of these social entrepreneurs just starting to make their mark, and we invite your recommendations for others — tweet us @newshourworld and use the hashtag #AgentsforChange. You can also post your recommendations in the below comments section. We're not going anywhere. Stand up for truly independent, trusted news that you can count on! Donate now By — Fred de Sam Lazaro Fred de Sam Lazaro Fred de Sam Lazaro is director of the Under-Told Stories Project at the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota, a program that combines international journalism and teaching. He has served with the PBS NewsHour since 1985 and is a regular contributor and substitute anchor for PBS' Religion and Ethics Newsweekly.
Photo of Illac Diaz by Fred de Sam Lazaro/PBS NewsHour Filipino Illac Diaz began a project called Liter of Light to do two things in his home country: provide light to those who need it and recycle otherwise useless trash. The project uses empty one liter soft drink bottles in numerous ways, most commonly filling them with water and a little bleach and fitting these into the tin-roofs across the slums of Manila and other places. The refraction brings light into these very dark dwellings, accomplishing electricity savings and re-using tons of plastic that would otherwise go to landfills or worse. I spoke with him recently about his work: The NewsHour’s Agents for Change series highlights individuals helping communities solve problems, build businesses and create jobs. We’ll feature 10 of these social entrepreneurs just starting to make their mark, and we invite your recommendations for others — tweet us @newshourworld and use the hashtag #AgentsforChange. You can also post your recommendations in the below comments section. We're not going anywhere. Stand up for truly independent, trusted news that you can count on! Donate now