Roughly 300,000 homes in El Salvador are not connected to the country’s electric grid. And one by one, Suministros Eléctricos y Electrónicos (SEESA), an electrical services company based in San Salvador, is trying to power up these homes with solar technology. In doing so, SEESA is improving people’s health and the climate by displacing the kerosene lanterns that many of these homes would otherwise use to light up the night.

Through these activities, SEESA has already prevented roughly 5,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions, roughly 200 tons of which have been sold as offsets on the American Carbon Registry.

SEESA’s efforts are aided by E+Co, a U.S.-based non-profit organization that supports clean energy enterprises in developing countries. E+Co has provided SEESA with $220,000 in loans to enable the company to grow, and has used its own knowledge of distributed electricity to advise SEESA in its expansion plans.

Displacing kerosene lamps and wood fires has benefits beyond reducing carbon emissions. Kerosene, when burned, pollutes the air and poses a fire hazard. Moreover, electricity can do more than just light rooms: it can power radios, televisions, refrigerators, and even Internet terminals. These technologies have the capacity to improve education, increase access to medicine and food, and provide myriad other goods and services.