A group of University of Belgrade students have the right idea when it comes to sustainability and technology. Designed for The City Square in Obrenovac, this awesome public cell phone charging station is completely solar powered! Dubbed the Strawberry Energy, the project was conceived, designed and installed solely by the students, and has already been recognized as an important addition to the city.
The “Strawberry Tree” charging station was initially supported by the Business Technology Incubator of Technical Faculties Belgrade, but was realized privately by the students of Strawberry Energy. The team has created varying shapes and sizes of the charging stations to adapt to locations on streets, parks or squares. With the notion of our modern dependence on smart phones- for personal and business use – the Strawberry Tree solves the common problem of being stuck far from home with a drained device battery. The stations themselves also provide a public resting place with a wrap around bench located beneath a solar panel-sheltered top.
The project not only solves a power problem with clean energy, but also brings attention to the power of solar energy itself. By having the public interact with a useful solar-powered station, there is a priceless opportunity to educate a wide audience on renewable energy, ecology and energy-efficiency.
We hope that other cities — with both the resources, and smart phone-obsessed citizens — will follow suit and install the unobtrusive stations in their parks and streets as well.