The Rolex Awards for Enterprise are designed to fill a void Rolex thought was missing in corporate philanthropy. The idea from the outset was to offer support to people with pioneering efforts addressing major issues with an impact on the quality of the world or the quality of life for humanity. The idea was to help those who wouldn’t likely have access to traditional funding but who responded to a real need in original and innovative ways.
Wijaya Godakumbura is a perfect example of why Rolex created the program. In his capacity as a medical professional in Sri Lanka, he dealt firsthand with many people hurt and disfigured by unstable, home-made lamps. Household accidents leading to severe burns were commonplace prior to electrification. Makeshift lamps provided light but they also caused disfiguring burns and, too often, death.
According to Rolex.org (which is a great site to browse when you have time) Dr.
Godakumbura said, “Where is the sense in preventing disease if we do not also seek to prevent injury that is equally destructive of people’s lives?”
Safe Bottle Lamps are small devices with two flat sides and a metal screw cap. They are far more stable and sturdier than typical lamps. Almost a million of the safe lamps were delivered to poor families in Sir Lanka, serving as a crucial stopgap measure while electricity slowly became available to the majority of homes there.
This solution is still very needed in other places that have yet to feel the effects of electrification. Dr. Godakumbura shares his design in order to let his work carry over well past Sir Lanka. The way Rolex would put it is that the good doctor is making sure his work is perpetual.
Read this next: