With fossil fuels a finite resource and climate change a regular item on the political agenda, it perhaps appropriate that concepts of renewable energy be introduced to the younger generations at the earliest of ages.

One workshop for children taking place at Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF) is doing just that. Titled Solar Vehicles, the session under the fair’s Kids Activities programme is showing how light can be used to power an electric motor vehicle.

The workshop, given by a company called Solar Desk, starts with the children given an unassembled toy vehicle, comprising wheels, motor, body and solar panel, which they are given assistance in putting together using a screwdriver. The completed model is then placed on a flat surface and an illuminated light bulb shone over it. The children can witness their car - which they get to take home with them after the session has closed - start to trundle along, powered solely by the light source.

The founder of Solar Desk and presenter of the workshop, Monal Kabra, is a Master’s degree graduate who wrote her thesis on solar energy. After working for Indian multinational company Mahindra & Mahindra, she started her own company to fulfill her ambition of teaching children about renewable energy. She says that her aim is to help children get to grips with the subject and to demystify its concept.