Bright Horizons in San Jose: How Solar Power Is Transforming Learning and Community Life

In the village of San Jose in Toledo, home to roughly 1,300 residents, every dawn now brings with it a quiet revolution! Thanks to a visionary partnership between Ya’axché Conservation Trust and the European Union, the San Jose RC School has transformed into an even more vibrant hub of learning and community life.

From the earliest planning stages, community voices shaped the project. Local leaders and community residents unearthed panels from an abandoned 10-year-old photovoltaic mini-grid on the school grounds, and together with the Ya’axché’s technical team, through an EU funded initiative, designed a larger, hybrid solar system. By repurposing these panels and redirecting funds toward a robust battery bank and upgraded inverter, the village wired every classroom with LED lights and outlets, and created a dedicated resource center stocked with six laptops donated by the European Union for student and community use.

“We want to make sure that our students are able to be technologically advanced in the learning process and now the teachers and the students are using what you call hands-on activity, visual activity in the classroom. And that is how we are incorporating the use of the solar energy that comes to the school. And not only that, the children themselves are able to have their little own gadgets where they record themselves and present to their class, which enables them to become vocal speakers in the future, to become future leaders of this country and of this community,” says Midonio Cal, Principal of San Jose RC Primary School. His pride is evident as he leads visitors through the now-illuminated corridors and computer lab dubbed “San Jose Resource Centre”.

Once the power switch flipped on, everything changed.

“It's very important for them, since this village doesn't have access to electricity, and the students and the teachers, they don't have access to energy, and now they have the solar, they have energy, they have the power, they can use the computers, they can use lights or charge their phones, charge their laptops, and things like that. So it's very useful for them,” notes Miriam Choc, a certified solar engineer who a few years ago was one of three indigenous Maya women who, thanks to an initiative of Plenty Belize traveled to India for a six months hands on training. Once back home in Belize, Miriam oversaw the system’s installation at the school as an employee and part owner of the woman-led, Belizean employee owned renewable energy company Belize Power Connect Limited.

Students in Standards 4, 5, and 6 are now able to attend regular IT classes, researching homework, practicing typing, writing their own stories and exploring science experiments online without interruption.

“When I'm using a computer, I feel very happy and excited. My favorite thing to do in a computer lab is typing,” shared one student.

Another added, “It’s very awesome here, I like it. What I learn here is going to be useful to me when I go to high school.”

At the helm of this transformation is Juan Mez, the school's IT teacher, whose motivation comes from personal experience.

“I didn't get the opportunity so I learned it the hard way. So as an IT teacher, I try to impart the knowledge that I know so that these students will not face the same situation that I faced when I was in high school. So we are giving them the opportunity right now to learn the basics and to learn even more and to be able to explore on their own. And today, the future of our students and learning depends on technology,”

Beyond formal lessons, the electrified resource centre pulses with life after hours. It is then that the Resource Centre opens up to residents of the community. Young mothers drop in to look up crop-management techniques; elders share histories over video calls with relatives abroad; local artisans collaborate on digital designs to market their handicrafts. This communal heartbeat underscores the project’s ethos: infrastructure isn’t just poles and wires, it’s a bridge to opportunity for women, youth, and indigenous peoples alike.

The EU supports investments in clean and just energy transitions worldwide through its Global Gateway strategy, which focuses on boosting investments in clean energy infrastructure in partner countries, providing support to bridge the energy access gap. In Belize, the EU provides assistance to improve access to modern and sustainable energy and ensure services in rural areas. 

This pilot initiative was part of a wider package of support by the EU to the energy sector in Belize through which a lot more is happening. The EU has invested in training programs for Belizean energy sector professionals, enhancing governance and institutional capacity, it has also supported the deployment of the first electric buses in the country and is working with partners to expand energy access in undeserved rural areas. Community agency is key and an essential element of inclusive development. While the European Union’s support through capacity-building, investment in sustainable energy and reinforcement of public services played a crucial role, it is the contribution and daily experiences of San Jose’s people that truly illustrate success.