Soma Bags makes backpacks equipped with solar panels that power a light, enabling children in rural Tanzania to read even when the sun goes down.

His company, Soma Bags , makes school bags with built-in solar panels that charge a reading light. The idea began as a small project using old cement bags, a sewing machine, and a solar panel.

But sifting through all the available options on the market — power stations that are lunchbox-sized to luggage-sized, solar panels that can pack in a backpack to multiple eight-foot long panels you ...

But now, James’ company, Soma Bags, is providing a solution: backpacks equipped with solar panels that charge a reading light. What started as a small-scale project with some discarded cement ...