“Everybody can be great...because anybody can serve. You don't have to have a college degree to serve. You don't have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love.” - Martin Luther King Jr.
Akon is not only a man with great, talented musical abilities, but he is also a selfless man who strives to give back to the world one step at a time. Akon recently launched a Solar Academy, which is apart of his charity, Akon Lighting Africa. The goal of the academy is to provide 600 million people in rural communities in Africa with electricity.
Aliaune Thiam aka Akon was born on April 16th, 1973 in St. Louis, Missouri. Akon is a Senegalese-American who is known for making his mark in the music industry as an artist, song-writer, and record producer. Akon has decided to put his music on the back burner, as he focuses on giving back to the world, starting with the motherland aka Africa.
Did you know that Africa has 320 days of sunshine year round? With all of that sunlight, the continent has an opportunity to cut costs and save energy by utilizing the sun for personal usage and necessities such as electricity and heating. Where does the Solar Academy come into play? The academy, which is an institution apart of Akon's charity, Akon Lighting Africa, is set to open in Bamako, the capital of Mali, this summer. The academy will not only provide many homes electricity, but it will provide employment opportunities for years to come. The academy plans to teach African engineers and entrepreneurs how to install and maintain solar-powered electricity systems.
"We expect the Africans who graduate from this center to devise new, innovative, technical solutions. With this Academy, we can capitalize on Akon Lighting Africa and go further." -Thione Niang, co-founder of Akon Lighting Africa
(Photo: Akon's official Twitter account)
CONVERSATION