In countries as well-developed as the USA, there is an assumption that everyone in every location enjoys similar utilities and modern conveniences. Not so.

Let’s meet the team behind a programme to bring electricity to remote dwellers of the Navajo Nation around Arizona and Colorado in North America. Navajo Nation tribe member Camille Keith is passionate about sustainable technology, and also in bringing the advantages of it to her tribe:

Yáʼátʼééh   Greetings, Hello

Yeii Tachinii nishłí, Tábą́ąha báshíshchíín, Todichiinii dashicheii, Honaghaani dashinálí; I am a tribal member of the Navajo Nation.

“I am a first-generation non-traditional graduate from Fort Lewis College (FLC) in Durango, Colorado holding a Bachelor of Science degree in Engineering majoring in Energy and Certification in Geographic Information Systems.

“I co-lead the FLC’s Village Aid Solar Initiative – a student-led organisation which focuses on partnering with Native American communities to provide residential off-grid solar energy for families in need.

Navajo Tradition

“I grew up living a remote lifestyle on the Navajo Nation, in a small tribal community called Shą́ą́’tóhí which means “Sunshine Springs” – in English it is known as Shonto. It’s located in Northern Arizona.

“We lacked access to basic needs and housing, electricity or running water. Each day we hauled or gathered our resources: water, firewood, food, essentials. We did not have access to fresh produce at times because we did not have a refrigerator.

In the spring we planted corn, beans and squash in our fields in Shonto canyon. At harvest we made traditional foods to provide fresh, healthy meals for our families. We feared getting ill or being injured because the nearest hospital was more than an hour away.”

As I grew older I began to question why so many Navajo families endure high rates of diabetes, heart disease, mental illness and substance disorders?  I began to understand the contributing factors: living in poverty, lack of access to electricity, water, healthcare, food insecurity, poor housing infrastructure and other detrimental environmental factors all affect our health. These realisations sparked my interest and passion in bringing  sustainable energy to my nation.

Victron Ambassador

Because of her passion and enthusiasm to learn about the advantages and convenience our products can bring to off-grid communities, Camille accepted an offer to join the Victron Ambassador team. Her work includes demonstrating how to build residential solar power installations to those for whom the technology is entirely new.

Training Days

In order to set high standards, and to maximise reliability and safety, a series of Training Days have been organised during which tribal members, as  well as College Students – tomorrow’s engineers – get hands on learning.

The training days are organised by Victron’s N. America Event Manager Saul Charlesworth who coordinates training programmes, trade shows, ‘vanlife’ gatherings, the annual Distributor Meeting – as well as these hands-on trainings. He says:

Training and education is very important to Victron. Our products are feature-rich, and attendees learn about product-applications as well as the correct installation procedures. In the case of the training in Durango, Colorado, we had a number of engineering students – who are the future – as well as members of the Navajo Nation who have received a power system for their home. They were keen to learn how to operate, maintain and get the most out of the Victron components included in their system. 

This training aligned with an annual ‘Ambassador Weekend’ where our team of North American Ambassadors come together, along with some Victron staff, to share ideas and look ahead to plan the coming year. Consequently there was an immense amount of experience, knowledge and skill on hand!

FLC Village Aid Solar Initiative hosted the Victron Ambassador weekend training for off-grid PV. It was an opportunity for FLC students, staff and community members to learn how to wire inverters; testing; configuration; commissioning and to discover the remote monitoring features of internet based platform Victron Remote Management.

Electricity – for the first time

Out of the 68,100 residential homes on the Navajo Nation, approximately 14,000 still do not have access to electricity – affecting about 45,000 Navajo (Diné) people.

Camille says: I graduated in 2022 and the following year was given the opportunity to help establish the Village Aid Project – Solar Initiative which I now co-lead. Partnering with Native American communities we provide renewable energy access for families in need. These off-grid PV residential solar systems range from 1.5 – 2.3 kW.

They provide power for refrigeration, lighting, charging appliances, boiling water, cooking with electric stoves, running medical equipment and internet access. Most families are beyond grateful to receive their off-grid solar systems. It’s such an impactful experience to hear and see the changes it makes for the families we’ve served. Speaking in Navajo, power recipient Mable Wardlaw says: 

“The grandmas long ago used to say to me, whenever you get help, with relation and respect, you thank everyone who has helped you. I express my relations to you all as my grandchildren and sincerely thank you for your efforts in helping me. I buy many batteries for my flashlight because they burn out quickly. I also buy food from the grocery store, but the fresh food goes bad quickly. I can now buy food, and it won’t go bad quickly and I can light up my home now. Thank you all, my children, for traveling this far to help me. I am very thankful that now I can light up my home and have a refrigerator to store my food.”

Curtis Greyeyes says: “Seeing electricity come alive for the first time in my home was really ecstatic to see. I’m very grateful.” 

And Betty John, who is a Community Health Representative says: “A lot of our people as you know are diabetic, and their medication must be kept refrigerated. They now get to buy fresh food and meat too because now they have refrigeration. They also get to charge their hearing aids and have outside lighting”. 

Off-grid power systems

The systems built during training were designed to be simple, easy to deploy, reliable and low maintenance for off-grid use. Along with all necessary cabling, fuses and accessories, each system included:

• • MultiPlus 24/3000/70-50 120V VE.Bus
  • VE Panel 3kVA 120/240 NA Primary 24/48VDC Among other versatile uses, the VE Panel simplifies wiring during assembly, includes input/output breakers, and makes for a really neat power installation when installed ‘on view’ in the home.
  • SmartSolar MPPT 250/100-Tr VE.Can
  • Ekrano GX
  • SmartShunt 500A/50mV
  • VE.Bus BMS V2
  • LiFePO4 Battery 25,6V/200Ah Smart-a

A balanced and sustainable world

Camille says: I joined the Victron Ambassador team because it aligns with my passion and vision of helping make the world ‘hozhó  (balanced) through sustainable energy. The team also allows me to build relationships and partnerships with technical experts, installers & communities throughout the world.

Being a Victron ambassador also shapes me to be a leader and provides professional growth; knowledge sharing, and expands my thinking skills.

My grandparents, family and community elders prayed and visioned my path to be a leader for my people and it is such a great feeling to experience that their prayers are heard. I have been provided many great opportunities to help my people and the world overcome challenges.