A Light to Erase the Darkness

A non-electric, non-exhaustible, renewable light source that has its roots in the biodiversity of Marco area waters has been invented by a company with strong ties to the island: GRDG Science.

The end product of the Winter Haven-based company’s Project AURA - Advanced Ultraluminous Refuge Aid – is a blanket comprised of fibers that gather and store solar energy and release it at night, providing illumination with an unlimited lifespan.

Global Research and Discovery Group, or GRDG, is a private research and development organization with a humanitarian mission. It’s focused on using biological processes to create advanced technologies that enhance lives, especially in areas where conventional infrastructure and resources are scarce.

GRDG’s research is concentrated in the Everglades and the marine systems of the 10,000 Islands. Its researchers operate from bases in Everglades City and Marco Island due to the area’s biodiversity and complex biological systems.

The Project AURA blanket, also known as a “Glow Blanket,” owes its existence to a manmade version of the phosphorescence - or glow - produced by some aquatic organisms found in nearby waters.

Daryl Thompson, GRDG’s founder and director of scientific initiatives, is responsible for the discovery that culminated in the blanket’s creation. He said Project AURA is the result of a directive handed down several years ago by the former U.S. Assistant Surgeon General Roscoe Moore, the company’s chief scientific advisor.

“He said, ‘Daryl, there are about one billion to two billion people around the globe that do not have sources of light: sub-Saharan Africa, Southeast Asia.’ And he said, ‘We need to create something to solve that light problem.’ We were working on that, and this one stumped me. I mean, how do you make free light without batteries or something like that?”

The aha moment that answered that riddle occurred late at night, about five years ago, when Thompson was returning by boat from conducting research in the 10,000 Islands.

“I looked behind the boat and there was just this big, long blue stream of light,” he said. “I was like, wow, that's how we do this. So, I started researching things in nature that produce light.”

Fireflies are a creature that utilizes bioluminescence, the biochemical emission of light by living organisms. So do microscopic marine organisms and deep-sea fishes, such as those found locally.

Bioluminescence employs a two-part method for energy storage and light production that involves absorbing, storing, and chemically converting solar energy that is then released as a blue-green glow. For aquatic creatures, bioluminescence serves a protective function. The light wards off attacking predators because it exposes them to even larger predators.

GRDG engineers devised crystals that duplicate this process. The crystals are embedded in the fibers of the fabric used to manufacture Glow Blankets.

“A blanket that’s put into the sun for ten minutes will produce light for eight hours at night,” said Thompson. “And it does this every night, and it doesn't deplete itself. Things will deplete themselves, but the chemicals that we're using do not. So, we improved on it. You know, it's a really cool discovery where you find a problem, you're stumped by it, and then you bounce into a solution.”

The blankets were created to enable the World Health Organization, NATO, the United Nations, and UNICEF to provide a free light source for families in developing countries. Thompson said finding a dependable, inexhaustible light source has been one of the top five entries on the WHO wish list.

He’s experienced the dire need for such lighting during a field trip to Honduras. While there, he witnessed the aftermath of a mudslide that destroyed a village.

“The lack of light compounded the tragedy, leaving children terrified in darkness,” he said.

As an important added bonus, the fabric produces a wavelength of light that mosquitoes avoid at night because it negatively affects their desire to feed. According to the WHO, mosquito-borne diseases cause more than 700,000 deaths annually, with malaria responsible for about 600,000 fatalities.

He said Glow Blankets are now being manufactured after completing the necessary testing, approval, and licensing requirements, and will enter the marketplace during the next quarter. GRDG has demonstrated the material for major film and TV studios Paramount, Warner Bros., The Walt Disney Company, Lucasfilm, and Marvel, to showcase its potential.

“We wanted the blanket to tie into major characters that the studios own as a form of market enablement,” explained Thompson. “The better the blankets do in retail directly transfers to more blankets we can scale for humanitarian purposes.”

Those efforts led to a relationship with New York State-based Northwest Group, which manufactures blankets for major retailers, including Walmart. The blankets will be available at Walmart, as well as Target, Kohl's, and on Amazon.com.

Retail sales will enable the blankets to be produced at a price point that’s affordable for organizations, like UNICEF, the UN, and NATO, added Thompson, before adding that, “We created a humanitarian project that's supported by commercialization.”

GRDG is now in discussions with the UN to achieve its goal of having Glow Blankets be available through humanitarian missions worldwide.

Thompson has longstanding ties to Marco, and he considers it to be an adopted hometown. He said the area has been a favorite vacation spot for his family for generations. He’s continued that tradition, as well as conducting research in nearby Fakahatchee Strand State Preserve and other Everglades locales.

The Glow Blanket is just one of the company’s discoveries that owe their existence to research conducted in this area. An example is the plant-based compound, CRST-1, that may enhance the performance of cancer-fighting drugs.

In fact, the company is in discussions with venture capital groups to establish a multi-million-dollar research base of operations on Marco that would serve as a hub for scientific exploration.

“Our sponsors think it's a great idea,” said Thompson. “They're encouraging us to do it. We’ve begun having discussions with different groups on Marco to determine how best we would fit there. We really want to spend some time meeting with community leaders to see how we can shape this and be integral and synergistic with the island and not be disruptive. We’d like to have something that’s kind of organic. I would envision something that looked a lot like the Marco Island Museum, something that kind of blends and fits with the community.”