SoLight Design: The Light Warrior

Alice Min Soo Chun is an architect who is used to overseeing large-scale projects, but her greatest design is an item that weighs just over two ounces. After the catastrophic 2010 earthquake that hit Haiti, the Columbia University professor set out to invent something that could be used to help the victims who were left in the dark. The effort eventually culminated with the launch of Solight Design, a New York-based startup known for its origami-inspired "SolarPuff" lantern. Made out of a sturdy, waterproof cloth that folds flat and pops open to emit light from its solar-powered LEDs, SolarPuffs have be sent around the globe to aid impoverished areas. Solight officially took off in 2015 with a KickStarter program that yielded unprecedented results. Alice also went on to win numerous awards including the US Patent Award for Humanity and her products have been exhibited at MOMA, the Modern Museum of Art in New York City. She is also featured in "The Book of Gutsy Women" by Hillary Clinton. And she's still inventing! With the current pandemic still disrupting everyday life, Alice is hard at  work devising a new type of mask that can help prevent the spread of Covid-19.