Solar King

The award, which was first presented in 1980 for "outstanding vision and work on behalf of our planet and its people" was confered this year to 145 laureates from 61 countries in the Second Chamber of the Swedish Parliament on December 05.

For future generations

"When I had my baby daughter, I realized that in a couple of decades, when the oil runs out, I will leave this world, but my daughter will have to face a world of cold homes and a polluted environment. Will she then, one day, point at my gravestone and say ‘It is all because you used up the oil'?"

Words spoken by Huang Ming, also known as China's "Solar King," on the day of the Right Livelihood Award ceremony. The award is also known as the "Alternative Nobel Prize" and Huang Ming received this year's Honorary Award.

Overseas, hardly anyone has heard of Dezhou in eastern China. The city of five million inhabitants is home to Huang Ming's solar company. The 53-year-old former petroleum engineer sees himself as a trailblazer on China's path to a green future. For over 15 years he has been manufacturing solar-powered water heaters, which provide warm water in an environmentally-friendly way to millions of households.

Huang Ming says his company has made a big contribution because "this solar heating system has already saved 20 or 30 million tons of coal."

Simple technology, big effect

The technology used in solar thermal water heaters is relatively simple. Energy from the sun is captured in double-walled glass tubes on the roof and then used to heat up water stored in the tanks.

Huang built his first water heater after reading a book on solar technology in the 1990s. The first one he gave to a relative and it proved to be a hit; more and more people lined up to get one. Within just a few years, he turned his workshop into a worldwide leading company with 9,000 employees.

Huang Ming believes people should take their own initiative instead of waiting for the government to create "green" legislation.

"The only way to substitute renewable energy for conventional energy is commercialization worldwide. Every company in this field should learn to survive in the market," says Huang.

Living green

In China, where 70 percent of energy needs are met by coal, around 100 million households now have solar-powered water heaters on their roofs. But for Huang Ming, this is not enough. He wants to get the people of China to live green. He has had some success convincing politicians to invest in renewable energy in Dezhou, which has a large air-polluting factory base.

Huang Ming's company slogan is "blue sky and white cloud." Huang says he created it 15 years ago with future generations in mind. "We should use solar green (technologies) to build a green life. That was my dream, that was my vision. That will be my dream, my responsibility."

The water heaters have made Huang Ming rich. The entrepreneur has now also become politically active. As a representative in the People's Congress, he has played a pivotal role in China's policy for renewable energy. His dream is that, one day, Dezhou will become the solar capital of the world and thus a role model for other cities in China.

Author: Ruth Kirchner / sb
Editor: Gregg Benzow