by Colwyn Elder (@colwynelder) Walking past a typical red London telephone box recently, my five-year-old stopped to ask me what it was. In his world, phones belong in bags or pockets, not boxes, and he found the idea of a phone tied to a box and being fed coins highly amusing.
So we stood in the phone box discussing how many people could fit inside (14, incidentally, is the new world record set in Belfast in 2003) and how Superman used it as his change room. The phone itself was out of order.
I’m a big fan of architect Sir Giles Gilbert Scott’s phone box. It’s been around since the 1920s and, thanks to Her Majesty’s crown sitting squarely and prominently above the door, has become an iconic British symbol. But I walked away wondering exactly how many unused red pillar box phone booths line the streets of London and (Superman aside) what’s to become of them as we increasingly centre our lives upon mobile devices.
Repurposing
My question was answered just a few weeks later, when I discovered that two students from the London School of Economics have found a way to make them relevant again. The renamed solarbox is being painted (ahem) green and transformed into a walk-in, solar-powered phone charger, with a150-watt solar panel on top and a mini/micro-USB and iPhone charger inside. There is also a screen that runs advertising while people charge their phones, making it free to the public.
Brainchild of Kirsty Kenner and Harold Craston, the solarbox is a response to thinking about public space and existing public infrastructure could be better used — essentially “upgrading it as opposed building something new”.
In addition to providing a battery-charging solution for busy Londoners on the move, the duo also hopes to make solar power more accessible, thereby increasing awareness of solar energy as well as developing London’s green agenda.
The idea won them second place in the 2014 Mayor of London’s Low Carbon Entrepreneur of the Year Award as well as the 2014 LSE Emerging Entrepreneur of the Year award, but consumer uptake remains to be seen. The first of six charging kiosks opened in Tottenham Court Road in October and another five are scheduled to open elsewhere in the city in April 2015.
Too quick to assume
There’s a lot to be said for working with existing systems and structures in new ways. We’re often all too quick to assume that new games and new rules need a new playing field. And, while there is merit in starting with a blank sheet of paper, this may result in rendering something obsolete unnecessarily.
The solarbox is a wonderful example of how an existing object can be repurposed according to new needs, thereby maintaining relevance and extending its lifespan. As our smartphone usage continues to increase, so will our demand for a conveniently positioned power boost, and that it supplies clean energy only makes it that much more appealing.
Strategic consultant Colwyn Elder (@colwynelder) brings a global perspective to the issue of sustainability, having lived and worked in London, Tokyo, Amsterdam and Cape Town. She contributes the monthly “Green Sky Thinking” column on sustainability issues to MarkLives.
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