Marianne Walpert and her organization, TanzSolar, are helping to spread solar LED lights in rural Tanzania to enable villagers to read, study and work, eliminating kerosene lanterns and improving health while reducing CO2 emissions.
TanzSolar believes in a world where everyone can afford to live and work in a clean, well-lighted environment using modern technology and renewable power.
Their mission is to reduce poverty and improve the quality of life for people throughout Tanzania through the promotion of affordable technology powered by renewable energy, distributed to communities not served by an electricity grid.
Check out TanzSolar's website here.
And also visit their page on Global Giving, where you can learn more about the project, share the information with friends on Facebook, Twitter, etc., and donate to the very worthwhile venture that TanzSolar has undertaken in one of the most rural areas on the planet.
You can help!
Monday, August 9, 2010
Friday, August 6, 2010
Solar Cooking in Africa - A Remarkable Technology Transfer
A poignant and articulate video by my friend and colleague, Pat McArdle.
I am proud to have been a part of a number of these solar cooking efforts in Africa!
I am proud to have been a part of a number of these solar cooking efforts in Africa!
Monday, August 2, 2010
How to Travel Outside your Comfort Zone
Does travel always equal going outside your comfort zone?
Particularly among those of us who travel extensively, there’s a temptation to draw the equivalence. While travel can present opportunities to escape the familiar, to experiment with new behaviors, and to subject yourself to vulnerability and emotional risk, it does not mean that once the backpack is strapped on, you have automatically departed your comfort zone.
We are not referring to Amazing Race-like stunts, or bungee jumping, skydiving or other extreme thrill-seeking travel feats. Instead, we are referring to the comfort zone of the cultural and interpersonal variety and the sorts of uncelebrated travel achievements of human interaction that push mental boundaries. This comfort zone is about overcoming fears of people and cultures different than our own – by doing more than just visiting ruins, churches and temples, mixing it up with the front desk staff of the hostel, and staring out the window of a spiffy tour bus while making grand philosophical projections about the life streaming by outside.
It’s about getting lost – sometimes physically, often times emotionally – and placing yourself in situations whose challenges spit you out on the other side – altered, slightly different, and just possibly a better person.
We’ve met travelers who would like to push themselves beyond the limits of what they know and understand, but they don’t know how to get started. We offer a few ideas on how to begin.
After this, you’re on your own. That’s when the real fun happens.
See the entire article here, on Uncornered Market.
Uncornered Market: Filed Under: Personal Growth, Travel by Daniel Noll and Audrey Scott
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
Solar Ovens: Hey, Hey Good Lookin', Whatcha Got Cooking?
Consumers increasingly seek greener energy sources while dreading the costs associated with special roof panels or windmills. Solar ovens represent one of the cheapest and easiest ways to go green. Box cookers, also known as solar ovens, often present no greater investment in time or money than a cardboard box, an old window, aluminum foil and a can of black paint.History
In 1767, French-Swiss scientist Horace de Saussure created a solar box cooker that achieved temperatures of almost 190 degree Fahrenheit, according to a history of solar cookers compiled by the University of Vermont. Over the next 200 years, scientists and amateur inventors continued to make innovations on the design. In the 1970s, interest in the solar cookers reignited, especially after solar cooking advocates Barbara Kerr and Sherry Cole developed an easily-made version which could be constructed from simple household materials. Today, charitable organizations like Solar Cookers International work with Third World countries to promote solar cooking and to establish the practice in refugee camps and impoverished regions.
Solar Power Systems Find A Professional Solar Energy Installer For Any Type Of System www.CleanEnergyAuthority.com
Function
The simplest solar cookers feature a shallow, medium-sized wooden or cardboard box and a transparent covering. The oven works best if painted black on its exterior, because black best absorbs and retains the sun's rays. A reflective material, such as aluminum foil, lines the inside of the box to capture more sunlight, while the exterior works best if insulated. A box-within-a-box system can provide insulation, especially if you stuff the gap between the two boxes with newspaper. For optimum heat retention, some solar cookers are insulated with non-toxic materials and filled with air pockets, while others use angled reflective flaps to direct more sunlight to the solar oven.
Benefits
SCI points out that solar ovens preserve nutrients due to the lower cooking temperatures. Food rarely burns or dries out in the solar ovens, because their temperatures don't exceed 195 degrees Fahrenheit. Additionally, solar ovens help users conserve electricity, gas, wood or charcoal by forgoing the stove, oven, microwave or grill. SCI considers solar cookers safer than campfire or grills, because they eliminate the danger of structure fires or cooking, as well as the possibility of smoke irritating the eyes or lungs. At their most basic, solar cookers are relatively inexpensive, especially if self-assembled. Because of their low cost and simplicity, third-world countries increasingly utilize the cookers, which can pasteurize water and safely cook food. Finally, during days or months of adequate sunlight, solar cookers can be utilized during power outages.
Read more: http://www.livestrong.com/article/133034-information-solar-ovens/#ixzz0syaz73Ys
About this Author
Melissa Jordan-Reilly has been a writer for 20 years, both as a newspaper reporter and as an editor of nonprofit newsletters. Among the publications in which she has published are, "The Winsted Journal," "Taconic" and "Compass Magazine." A graduate of the University of Connecticut, Jordan-Reilly also pursues sustainable agriculture techniques and tends a market garden at her Northwestern Connecticut home.Article reviewed by Tad Cronn
Last updated on: 05/27/10
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Simple Solutions to Global Hunger: GRA's Global Awareness Festival in Ojai: July 24th, 2010
Global Resource Alliance (GRA), a small So Cal nonprofit dedicated to bringing sustainable solutions to the Mara region of Tanzania, puts on an awareness festival in Ojai, CA at the end of July, promoting the debut of their upcoming documentary:
To be released in its entirety at the festival at the end of July, From the Mara Soil, is a documentary about simple solutions to global hunger, poverty and disease produced by Steve Schrenzel and Global Resource Alliance. Don't miss the debut screening, live music and delicious vegan tamale dinner on July 24th at Meditation Mount in Ojai, Ca! Event details to come.
I have worked on solar cooking projects with GRA in northern TZ, and have been impressed by the dedication and tenacity of their employees, members and volunteers.
Go to www.globalresourcealliance.org for more information.
To be released in its entirety at the festival at the end of July, From the Mara Soil, is a documentary about simple solutions to global hunger, poverty and disease produced by Steve Schrenzel and Global Resource Alliance. Don't miss the debut screening, live music and delicious vegan tamale dinner on July 24th at Meditation Mount in Ojai, Ca! Event details to come.
I have worked on solar cooking projects with GRA in northern TZ, and have been impressed by the dedication and tenacity of their employees, members and volunteers.
Go to www.globalresourcealliance.org for more information.
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Solafrica Gets the World Cup to Africa's Slums With Solar Energy
Swiss-based, non-profit organization, Solafrica, brought the 2010 World Cup to Nairobi's largest slum by donating a portable solar station, and some much-needed technology.
Kibera--Africa's largest slum with a population of a million--is as manic about World Cup Football as the rest of the continent. But without electricity, not to mention television, watching any of the games has been out of the question.
That is, until Solafrica's latest contribution.
Working closely with the Kibera Community Youth Program and Greenpeace, Solafrica donated the solar power station, along with a television set, to bring people together to celebrate sport. A similar set-up was done in Jericho.
The power station is compact, easy to use, with minimal wiring, and is set up in a public hall that can house up to 1,000 people.
Read more of this story here.
By Harry Tournemille on June 22, 2010
Solar Energy: www.energyboom.com
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Vote for Pat McArdle's book "Farishta" by 6/2/10 !!
Vote for solar cooking advocate Pat McArdle's new book "Farishta" on the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award (under General Fiction) by June 2nd.
Pat says:
Amazon and Penguin Books announced on May 25 that my novel Farishta (Dari for 'angel') is one of three finalists out of 5000 entries in the General Fiction category of their annual writing competition.
I need as many votes as possible on the website below before 11:29 pm on June 2 to win a publishing contract for my novel Farishta. It was inspired by the year I spent with a British Army unit in northern Afghanistan. The main character is a mid-career Foreign Service officer, who has never recovered psychologically from the loss of her husband in the ‘83 Beirut embassy bombing. Her career is in free-fall and her last chance at promotion is an assignment to Afghanistan, which she is reluctant to accept.
Pat says:
Amazon and Penguin Books announced on May 25 that my novel Farishta (Dari for 'angel') is one of three finalists out of 5000 entries in the General Fiction category of their annual writing competition.
I need as many votes as possible on the website below before 11:29 pm on June 2 to win a publishing contract for my novel Farishta. It was inspired by the year I spent with a British Army unit in northern Afghanistan. The main character is a mid-career Foreign Service officer, who has never recovered psychologically from the loss of her husband in the ‘83 Beirut embassy bombing. Her career is in free-fall and her last chance at promotion is an assignment to Afghanistan, which she is reluctant to accept.
Thursday, May 13, 2010
Saturday, February 13, 2010
'Saving lives' in Kenya with solar-powered lights - CNN.com
'Saving lives' with solar-powered lights - CNN.com
Nairobi, Kenya (CNN) -- The villagers' faces light up as Evans Wadongo arrives. Men, women and children sing and gather around as he shows how his invention -- a solar-powered LED lantern -- will soon light up their homes.
Nairobi, Kenya (CNN) -- The villagers' faces light up as Evans Wadongo arrives. Men, women and children sing and gather around as he shows how his invention -- a solar-powered LED lantern -- will soon light up their homes.
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Solar Solutions for Haiti
Donors are gearing up to send cell phones, streetlights, water purification systems and even audio Bibles to earthquake-hit Haiti. The bad news is that the country’s power infrastructure is on the ropes, but the good news is that these particular gadgets are solar-powered. Haiti happens to be one of the countries in the world best-suited for solar power.
In the long run, that just might help the country survive. But in the short run, even solar power isn't immune to earthquakes. Over the past week, the people and the pieces of equipment that make the technology work have literally been pulled out of the rubble in Port-au-Prince and its environs....
See the full article @ the link above.
In the long run, that just might help the country survive. But in the short run, even solar power isn't immune to earthquakes. Over the past week, the people and the pieces of equipment that make the technology work have literally been pulled out of the rubble in Port-au-Prince and its environs....
See the full article @ the link above.
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Chad Solar Cooking Project Evaluation
In October of 2009, as I was finishing up my last East Africa tour for SCI and was vacationing in Ireland, I got a phone call requesting my participation in a solar cooking evaluation in Chad for a local nonprofit called TchadSolaire. It was a chance I couldn't pass up, and I gladly jumped a plane to Brussels to get my visa & necessary paperwork sorted out. A few days later I was on a plane to Chad with 5 other evaluators, each chosen for their relative experience in solar cooking around the globe. For three weeks we collaborated, accumulated statistics and held interviews with refugees in the camp. In the end, the six of us were able to put together an unbiased and accurate synopsis of the solar cooking project in the Touloum Refugee Camp, which you can find on my website under the Work tab, if interested.
Aerial view of the refugee camp from the small UN commuter plane.
The 'town' of Iriba, which is not so much a town as an outcrop of the refugee camp itself, housing mainly military and government workers, along with a smattering of local people.
Military is required to escort anyone traveling the 15K or so to the refugee camp due to random renegade thieves. (AFTER I returned to the States I learned that Eastern Chad is one of the most dangerous places in the world... I might have been a little more freaked out by the daily precautions had I known).
A caravan of about 30 cars consisting mainly of development workers, medical personnel and military, follows each other out every day at 8am, & comes back @ 4 or 5p. The terrain is awful, and we got stuck in the sand more than once. I never believed how sandy central Africa was until I experienced it first hand ~ the sand is so light & fine that it seems to get into everything, & when it's windy it's worse than going out in the rain. Hence the clothing, but isn't it gorgeous?!
A shot of the camp from the 'HQ' building ~ rather than the tents and squalor you see in the news and movies, the Touloum Refugee Camp is more like a large village with closely built housing and neighborhoods... while people live more closely together than they would outside the camp, every home seems to have ample space and very big courtyards, with regular huts rather than tents, and areas are kept very neat. Really it just seemed like a big, organized village, with happy kids running around, an outdoor market and everyone doing their job.
The Headquarters for the TchadSolaire workers, this is where the trainers are trained, where refugee workers make solar cookers, and meetings are held about ways to move forward.
Refugee workers constructing solar cookers out of materials imported by TchadSolaire.
A refugee worker drinking water as she tends the solar cookers in front of HQ.
Pat McArdle, one of the project evaluators and Derk Rijks, head of TchadSolaire, discuss solar cooking techniques and strategies.
As everywhere else in thre rural areas of Africa, women walk many miles everyday to collect firewood for cooking and treating water.
Normally the methods of cooking leave a lot to be desired, with indoor kitchens emitting smoke from firewood directly into the lungs of the cooks, and normally their children as well. Indoor air pollution is the leading causes of lung disease in Africa.
But aside from the respiratory problems induced by cooking with wood, women and girls often face the possibility of attack, rape or even death when they venture outside the camp to gather wood, which is a necessity despite the wood rations provided by UNHCR each week.
Cooking with a solar cooker reduces the amount of wood that needs to be gathered each week, and significantly improves the respiratory health and safety of the women and young girls who live in the camp.
While solar cooking takes about twice as long as conventional methods, this woman can engage in other activities like making crafts to sell in the market, rather than spending hours each day looking for firewood and risking her life in the process.
Kids begin helping their mothers gather firewood and water early in life, and they are also at risk when forced to leave the camp.
We spent the majority of our days during the three weeks in the camp, interviewing women who regularly engage in solar cooking, and gathering their opinions on the benefits and procedures.
A woman makes tea from a solar cooker for our visit.
Each of the evaluators was assigned an interpreter, who interpreted the villagers' Arabic into French for us, and sometimes it was necessary to get an interpreter for the interpreter when a villager spoke only their local language from Sudan. Due to the language barriers, we kept the interviews as simple as possible to avoid losing sentiment in translation.
Most of the people we interviewed were very nice and forthcoming with their opinions on the solar cooking project, allowing us to produce what I hope is an accurate an unbiased account of the procedures and effectiveness of the solar cookers in the camp.
Pat McArdle, Marie-Rose Neloum (TchadSolaire's second in command) and myself.
An impressive display of most of the solar cookers in the camp, put out for a grand celebration for us and TchadSolaire just before we left.
Video of the scope of solar cookers at the celebration.
A solar cooked feast, fed to the men first, of course. As you can imagine, there was plenty of food for the entire camp.
The Group ~ evaluators, TchadSolaire staff, and refugee workers at the Touloum Refugee Camp.
Aerial view of the refugee camp from the small UN commuter plane.
The 'town' of Iriba, which is not so much a town as an outcrop of the refugee camp itself, housing mainly military and government workers, along with a smattering of local people.
Military is required to escort anyone traveling the 15K or so to the refugee camp due to random renegade thieves. (AFTER I returned to the States I learned that Eastern Chad is one of the most dangerous places in the world... I might have been a little more freaked out by the daily precautions had I known).
A caravan of about 30 cars consisting mainly of development workers, medical personnel and military, follows each other out every day at 8am, & comes back @ 4 or 5p. The terrain is awful, and we got stuck in the sand more than once. I never believed how sandy central Africa was until I experienced it first hand ~ the sand is so light & fine that it seems to get into everything, & when it's windy it's worse than going out in the rain. Hence the clothing, but isn't it gorgeous?!
A shot of the camp from the 'HQ' building ~ rather than the tents and squalor you see in the news and movies, the Touloum Refugee Camp is more like a large village with closely built housing and neighborhoods... while people live more closely together than they would outside the camp, every home seems to have ample space and very big courtyards, with regular huts rather than tents, and areas are kept very neat. Really it just seemed like a big, organized village, with happy kids running around, an outdoor market and everyone doing their job.
The Headquarters for the TchadSolaire workers, this is where the trainers are trained, where refugee workers make solar cookers, and meetings are held about ways to move forward.
Refugee workers constructing solar cookers out of materials imported by TchadSolaire.
A refugee worker drinking water as she tends the solar cookers in front of HQ.
Pat McArdle, one of the project evaluators and Derk Rijks, head of TchadSolaire, discuss solar cooking techniques and strategies.
As everywhere else in thre rural areas of Africa, women walk many miles everyday to collect firewood for cooking and treating water.
Normally the methods of cooking leave a lot to be desired, with indoor kitchens emitting smoke from firewood directly into the lungs of the cooks, and normally their children as well. Indoor air pollution is the leading causes of lung disease in Africa.
But aside from the respiratory problems induced by cooking with wood, women and girls often face the possibility of attack, rape or even death when they venture outside the camp to gather wood, which is a necessity despite the wood rations provided by UNHCR each week.
Cooking with a solar cooker reduces the amount of wood that needs to be gathered each week, and significantly improves the respiratory health and safety of the women and young girls who live in the camp.
While solar cooking takes about twice as long as conventional methods, this woman can engage in other activities like making crafts to sell in the market, rather than spending hours each day looking for firewood and risking her life in the process.
Kids begin helping their mothers gather firewood and water early in life, and they are also at risk when forced to leave the camp.
We spent the majority of our days during the three weeks in the camp, interviewing women who regularly engage in solar cooking, and gathering their opinions on the benefits and procedures.
A woman makes tea from a solar cooker for our visit.
Each of the evaluators was assigned an interpreter, who interpreted the villagers' Arabic into French for us, and sometimes it was necessary to get an interpreter for the interpreter when a villager spoke only their local language from Sudan. Due to the language barriers, we kept the interviews as simple as possible to avoid losing sentiment in translation.
Most of the people we interviewed were very nice and forthcoming with their opinions on the solar cooking project, allowing us to produce what I hope is an accurate an unbiased account of the procedures and effectiveness of the solar cookers in the camp.
Pat McArdle, Marie-Rose Neloum (TchadSolaire's second in command) and myself.
An impressive display of most of the solar cookers in the camp, put out for a grand celebration for us and TchadSolaire just before we left.
Video of the scope of solar cookers at the celebration.
A solar cooked feast, fed to the men first, of course. As you can imagine, there was plenty of food for the entire camp.
The Group ~ evaluators, TchadSolaire staff, and refugee workers at the Touloum Refugee Camp.
Friday, September 25, 2009
Follow-Up Workshop in Musuma, TZ: Fall 2009
Together with Margaret Owino, SCI's East Africa Director, I arranged a follow-up workshop for the 30+ participants of the previous two solar cooking trainings in Musoma, TZ. Fostering a partnership with Global Resource Alliance (GRA), we are working to bring a sustainable solar cooking program to this Tanzanian region of Lake Victoria. The workshop participants are dedicated and enthusiastic, working in numerous diverse regions in the area and under a variety of vocations. It was a pleasure working with them again, and with a home base provided at GRA to obtain additional materials and training, I have no doubt that solar cooking will spread well in this area.
The wall outside the TanzSolar compound. I try to ensure that TanzSolar and SCI work together as often as possible to supplement shared, respective solar technologies and programs.
Workshop participants preparing food to solar cook. These folks are experts by now, and this workshop is simply to answer questions and brainstorm training methods and income generating activities.
Team putting the food into the plastic bag to retain the heat absorbed by the black pot.
Placing the pot & bag into the solar cooker.
A man making a cake in Africa?! Will wonders never cease...
The facilitators ~ myself and Margaret Owino of SCI's East Africa Office in Nairobi.
Sergio Velasquez, a local independent development worker who has more energy than all of us put together.
Omena ~ tiny fish. Totally grody.
Getting the food out of the solar cookers for lunch after a long morning in the workshop.
A feast of solar cooked food.
Happy participants enjoying their solar cooked food.
The wall outside the TanzSolar compound. I try to ensure that TanzSolar and SCI work together as often as possible to supplement shared, respective solar technologies and programs.
Workshop participants preparing food to solar cook. These folks are experts by now, and this workshop is simply to answer questions and brainstorm training methods and income generating activities.
Team putting the food into the plastic bag to retain the heat absorbed by the black pot.
Placing the pot & bag into the solar cooker.
A man making a cake in Africa?! Will wonders never cease...
The facilitators ~ myself and Margaret Owino of SCI's East Africa Office in Nairobi.
Sergio Velasquez, a local independent development worker who has more energy than all of us put together.
Omena ~ tiny fish. Totally grody.
Getting the food out of the solar cookers for lunch after a long morning in the workshop.
A feast of solar cooked food.
Happy participants enjoying their solar cooked food.
Friday, September 18, 2009
New SCI Offices in Kenya
The new offices in Kakamega and Kisumu in Kenya are positioned in popular areas where many passers-by pop in to see what's cookin' outside and check out our new products, like the Nova Solar Lantern that now charges cell phones as well as lighting up a room.
Kakamega is a trek to get to, but once there it opens up into a beautiful, green utopia in the lush hills of Western Kenya. There is a vibrant modernity to this town, and our Kakamega officers are excited by the liberal atmosphere of their new home, and the positive reactions to alternative energies that they've received.
Various alternative cooking technologies available at the office, located in a convenient spot in town.
Simon & Julius in front of the Kakamega office.
Simon's cute son.
Simon in front of his garden.
Dinner at a schwank restaurant.
SCI office in Kisumu.
Solar cookers, fuel-efficient stoves & solar lanterns available at the Kisumu office.
Lunch on the lake with Elijah and Eric.
You can't beat the fish on Lake Vic!
Beautiful Lake Victoria.
Kakamega is a trek to get to, but once there it opens up into a beautiful, green utopia in the lush hills of Western Kenya. There is a vibrant modernity to this town, and our Kakamega officers are excited by the liberal atmosphere of their new home, and the positive reactions to alternative energies that they've received.
Various alternative cooking technologies available at the office, located in a convenient spot in town.
Simon & Julius in front of the Kakamega office.
Simon's cute son.
Simon in front of his garden.
Dinner at a schwank restaurant.
SCI office in Kisumu.
Solar cookers, fuel-efficient stoves & solar lanterns available at the Kisumu office.
Lunch on the lake with Elijah and Eric.
You can't beat the fish on Lake Vic!
Beautiful Lake Victoria.
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Follow-Up Plans for UG & TZ
One of the most important aspects of development work is not the introduction of a new technology or a progressive concept to a community in need, but the regular follow-up of methods to ensure progress and a sustainable outcome. I am currently working with SCI and collaborating partners in Uganda and Tanzania to implement follow-up workshops on safe water and solar integrated cooking.
In Uganda this September, together with Solar Connect Association (SCA), I will drive the 15 hours north on bumpy, dusty roads, past the Nile River and back to the tiny village of Obia on the border of Congo, where SCI worked with Mary Lou and 13-year old Max Ozimek last summer to develop the first solar integrated cooking workshop in this area. During the initial training, in addition to teaching the 36 participants how to use and make solar cookers, hay baskets and fuel-efficient stoves, we also gathered water samples from six major water sources, tested the water with the Portable Microbiology Laboratory (PML) and presented our results to the class during the 4-day workshop. As you can imagine, most of the water sources showed a high enough level of contamination of E.coli to warrant the use of solar water pasteurization ~ an essential component of the workshop’s curriculum using a CooKit and a Water Pasteurization Indicator (WAPI). The exciting part is that, in the months following the workshop last summer, the participants got together and created the Obia Solar Cooking Group (OBSG), taking their own initiative to train others in the community how to build solar cookers and use them to cook food and pasteurize water. This follow-up workshop in September will capitalize on the skills this group has mastered; brush up on any procedures or concepts that need work, and brainstorm ways to make the OSCG successful, independent and sustainable for the future.
In Tanzania, a similar follow-up workshop will take place in the northern village of Musoma, located on the shores of Lake Victoria. I am working together with SCI, Global Resource Alliance (GRA) and TanzSolar in Musoma to provide a refresher course to the 35 men and women who participated in the initial solar integrated cooking and safe water workshop that took place in January of this year. The three organizations will work to ensure that the original participants are proficient at making solar cookers, painting pots with locally-found blackboard paint, using and promoting simple solar lanterns, organizing outreach workshops, developing income-generating activities and creating community-appropriate methods for sustainability. The advantage of having two locally-based, community-minded organizations located in Musoma allows SCI the ability to collaboratively support the participants as they work towards promoting solar integrated cooking and water pasteurization in the area.
The difference between try & triumph is just a little umph! ~ Marvin Phillips
In Uganda this September, together with Solar Connect Association (SCA), I will drive the 15 hours north on bumpy, dusty roads, past the Nile River and back to the tiny village of Obia on the border of Congo, where SCI worked with Mary Lou and 13-year old Max Ozimek last summer to develop the first solar integrated cooking workshop in this area. During the initial training, in addition to teaching the 36 participants how to use and make solar cookers, hay baskets and fuel-efficient stoves, we also gathered water samples from six major water sources, tested the water with the Portable Microbiology Laboratory (PML) and presented our results to the class during the 4-day workshop. As you can imagine, most of the water sources showed a high enough level of contamination of E.coli to warrant the use of solar water pasteurization ~ an essential component of the workshop’s curriculum using a CooKit and a Water Pasteurization Indicator (WAPI). The exciting part is that, in the months following the workshop last summer, the participants got together and created the Obia Solar Cooking Group (OBSG), taking their own initiative to train others in the community how to build solar cookers and use them to cook food and pasteurize water. This follow-up workshop in September will capitalize on the skills this group has mastered; brush up on any procedures or concepts that need work, and brainstorm ways to make the OSCG successful, independent and sustainable for the future.
In Tanzania, a similar follow-up workshop will take place in the northern village of Musoma, located on the shores of Lake Victoria. I am working together with SCI, Global Resource Alliance (GRA) and TanzSolar in Musoma to provide a refresher course to the 35 men and women who participated in the initial solar integrated cooking and safe water workshop that took place in January of this year. The three organizations will work to ensure that the original participants are proficient at making solar cookers, painting pots with locally-found blackboard paint, using and promoting simple solar lanterns, organizing outreach workshops, developing income-generating activities and creating community-appropriate methods for sustainability. The advantage of having two locally-based, community-minded organizations located in Musoma allows SCI the ability to collaboratively support the participants as they work towards promoting solar integrated cooking and water pasteurization in the area.
The difference between try & triumph is just a little umph! ~ Marvin Phillips
Monday, August 10, 2009
Discovery Channel Show Features Solar Cookers
Living Off the Grid: A Dozen Skills to Get You Through
A new show depicts solar cooking as a tool for living in a post-apocalyptic world:
How Solar Cooking Works
As those appearing in the show “The Colony” know, you don’t need an oven to cook a good meal. All you need is sunlight. The sun’s rays can heat food anywhere from 180 to 400 degrees Fahrenheit (82-204 degrees Celsius). In other words, a solar cooker can kill harmful microbes and make food and water safe for consumption. Read more about his simple technology and how it’s being used.
How to Start a Fire Without a Match
There are many different ways to start a fire without a match and plenty of different methods to make it happen. It all depends on your location and the materials available. HowStuffWorks has a whole slew of cool ideas, using everything from a soda can and chocolate to making a fire plow. See detailed illustrations and instructions in this article.
How to Build a Shelter
We all know that shelter is one of the most basic needs in any survival situation. Yes, it protects us from the elements and wildlife intruders, but perhaps provides psychological comfort, too? In this article from HowStuffWorks, author Chuck Bryant shows the basics of making a shelter using on-hand materials. Read more…
How Emergency Power Systems Work
In this article, learn how emergency power systems can help in almost any situation. Topics include understanding your power needs and goals, working with the resources you have and showing the difference between an inverter and a generator. Read more…
How Hand Powered Generators Work
There's one way to generate electricity that never runs out of power and is easy to carry: a hand-powered generator. It's the “gadget” that can power all your other travel gadgets – but for those living in “The Colony” – it’s essential. Learn how they work, how to use them and even how to make your own. Read more…
If I kill an animal, can I eat it raw?
Let’s envision for a moment that you haven’t eaten for a few days and you don’t have the resources to build a fire to cook an animal you just killed. Can you eat it safely? If not, are there some animals that OK to eat and others that aren’t? Read this HowStuffWorks article to find out.
What’s the universal edibility test?
There are more than 700 varieties of poisonous plants in the United States and Canada alone, so how can you tell which are edible and which are potentially toxic? Use the four steps outlined in the universal edibility test and you may prevent potential disaster. Read more…
How can I tell if a bug is edible?
Ever accidentally swallowed a bug? Some of us might have joked about it (“Mmmm … protein,” you say). But all over the world, people eat insects every day. It’s called entomophagy. In a survival situation, how do you know which bug is edible – nutritious, even -- and which can make you sick? Read on to find out.
5 Ways to Snare Dinner in the Wild
If you are used to being in remote places, you might be pretty adept at recognizing telltale signs of nearby animals. Droppings, tracks by a nearby watering hole, chewed up plants. But we’ve got 5 really cool tricks for snaring dinner, using fairly easy-to-come-by resources. Read on…
How to Find Water in the Wild
To maintain good health, the human body needs a minimum of two quarts of water per day, according to U.S. Military Field Manual 21-76. In a survival situation, that might be tough. There are some basic ways to find, filter, collect and store water, however. We’ve got the answers here.
How to Send Smoke Signals
Let’s put it this way: The Boy Scouts of America still teaches smoke signaling. So if it’s easy enough for a 12-year-old boy to do, you can learn the skill, too, right? Learn how to send specific messages in one-puff, two-puff and three-puff style. Read on…
Top 5 Everyday Items You Can Repurpose in a Survival Scenario
Whether you’re living in “The Colony”, just survived an airplane crash or are caught in a freak winter storm, there are five basic items that might come in handy in a survival situation. The first one on our list? You might be wearing it right now.
The Colony: Living Off the Grid : Discovery Channel
Posted using ShareThis
A new show depicts solar cooking as a tool for living in a post-apocalyptic world:
How Solar Cooking Works
As those appearing in the show “The Colony” know, you don’t need an oven to cook a good meal. All you need is sunlight. The sun’s rays can heat food anywhere from 180 to 400 degrees Fahrenheit (82-204 degrees Celsius). In other words, a solar cooker can kill harmful microbes and make food and water safe for consumption. Read more about his simple technology and how it’s being used.
How to Start a Fire Without a Match
There are many different ways to start a fire without a match and plenty of different methods to make it happen. It all depends on your location and the materials available. HowStuffWorks has a whole slew of cool ideas, using everything from a soda can and chocolate to making a fire plow. See detailed illustrations and instructions in this article.
How to Build a Shelter
We all know that shelter is one of the most basic needs in any survival situation. Yes, it protects us from the elements and wildlife intruders, but perhaps provides psychological comfort, too? In this article from HowStuffWorks, author Chuck Bryant shows the basics of making a shelter using on-hand materials. Read more…
How Emergency Power Systems Work
In this article, learn how emergency power systems can help in almost any situation. Topics include understanding your power needs and goals, working with the resources you have and showing the difference between an inverter and a generator. Read more…
How Hand Powered Generators Work
There's one way to generate electricity that never runs out of power and is easy to carry: a hand-powered generator. It's the “gadget” that can power all your other travel gadgets – but for those living in “The Colony” – it’s essential. Learn how they work, how to use them and even how to make your own. Read more…
If I kill an animal, can I eat it raw?
Let’s envision for a moment that you haven’t eaten for a few days and you don’t have the resources to build a fire to cook an animal you just killed. Can you eat it safely? If not, are there some animals that OK to eat and others that aren’t? Read this HowStuffWorks article to find out.
What’s the universal edibility test?
There are more than 700 varieties of poisonous plants in the United States and Canada alone, so how can you tell which are edible and which are potentially toxic? Use the four steps outlined in the universal edibility test and you may prevent potential disaster. Read more…
How can I tell if a bug is edible?
Ever accidentally swallowed a bug? Some of us might have joked about it (“Mmmm … protein,” you say). But all over the world, people eat insects every day. It’s called entomophagy. In a survival situation, how do you know which bug is edible – nutritious, even -- and which can make you sick? Read on to find out.
5 Ways to Snare Dinner in the Wild
If you are used to being in remote places, you might be pretty adept at recognizing telltale signs of nearby animals. Droppings, tracks by a nearby watering hole, chewed up plants. But we’ve got 5 really cool tricks for snaring dinner, using fairly easy-to-come-by resources. Read on…
How to Find Water in the Wild
To maintain good health, the human body needs a minimum of two quarts of water per day, according to U.S. Military Field Manual 21-76. In a survival situation, that might be tough. There are some basic ways to find, filter, collect and store water, however. We’ve got the answers here.
How to Send Smoke Signals
Let’s put it this way: The Boy Scouts of America still teaches smoke signaling. So if it’s easy enough for a 12-year-old boy to do, you can learn the skill, too, right? Learn how to send specific messages in one-puff, two-puff and three-puff style. Read on…
Top 5 Everyday Items You Can Repurpose in a Survival Scenario
Whether you’re living in “The Colony”, just survived an airplane crash or are caught in a freak winter storm, there are five basic items that might come in handy in a survival situation. The first one on our list? You might be wearing it right now.
The Colony: Living Off the Grid : Discovery Channel
Posted using ShareThis
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
SCI Featured in Lift Up Africa Newsletter
Olika Solar Cooking Distribution
Helping Maasai women in Southern Kenya
Since July 2005, Solar Cookers International (EA) has been working with women's groups in Kajiado to promote the use of solar cooking as a means to help poor women save their meager resources for other pressing needs. The women are generally Maasai women with their new CooKits, a small, portable type solar cookerwidows or single parents who need group support to move forward with their lives. Many are engaged in petty trade like selling vegetables, beads, milk and eggs.
(Me with the Maasai Women's Group & 2 local Peace Corps Volunteers in Kajiado, Kenya)
Several groups devised a way to purchase solar cooking materials for each member. Thus far, some have been able to purchase CooKits--a small, individual solar cooker. (See photo) However, this system is slow and many women are still waiting to receive the materials they need to either begin or fully realize the maximum benefit from solar cooking.
Because the purchasing process has dragged on for three years, SCI approached Lift Up Africa (LUA). They asked SCI to partner with several of these groups so the women could more quickly enhance their energy savings, thus improving their living standards.
On May 22, 2009 the first of these partnership distributions took place in Oloika. At the distribution event, SCI's Stella Odaba informed the women that through Lift Up Africa (LUA) they would now receive donations of the equipment they still needed, including hay basket fireless cookers.
Although the weather was a bit cloudy, some CooKits were set up to demonstrate pasteurizing water using the WAPI (water pasturization indicator.) The use of the fireless cookers was also demonstrated. While the members watched and timed the process, some rice was simmered for 5 minutes. Then the rice was transferred to the hay basket. Half an hour later a member went to check and found it cooked.
At the meeting Agnes Osoi, one of the group members, said:
"... solar cookers have been of great help to us....We can pasteurize our drinking water and our children don't suffer from diarrhea because of taking dirty water. FurtherSCI's Faustine Odaba demonstrating the hay basket fireless cookermore, it's safe around the child; I can leave the food to cook while I go to sell my beads in the market without any fears of fire accidents at home. Now with the addition of fireless cookers life will be even simpler for me. I will warm water at night, pour it in the ten liter plastic container then put it in the fireless cooker. In the morning my children have ready breakfast and warm water to bathe before school. I will not be exposed to smoke for so long; I will use firewood only when there's no sun and save some wood."
Other participants chimed in saying:
"The fireless cooker will bring peace in my home; my husband will always find hot food whenever he comes late. I don't have to wake up to light a fire to warm the food for him."
"...I am so excited and grateful to SCI and Lift Up Africa for their support in making our lives better!"
A vote of thanks was given by Esther Sekeyian, the group's chairlady. The women then gave gifts (beaded ornaments) in honor of Lift Up Africa and adorned Ms. Odaba with beaded ornaments, too.
The distribution to the 17 women who attended the event cost $700 (USD). This small grant will help an estimated 150 people.
Information on all of our solar cooking projects is available on LUA's Solar Cooking Wiki.
Please help Lift Up Africa help Africa's vulnerable special needs children! Just let us know you want to support KCCL or a specific KCCL need. Thanks!
Please support Lift Up Africa's critical efforts to
help African people by making a secure on-line
donation.
And because our board pays for all administrative
expenses, 100% of every dollar you contribute goes
directly to help African people.
Please Contribute
Asante (thank you)!
Lift Up Africa is a 501(c)(3) not for
profit organization. Our tax ID is 74-3116756.
Helping Maasai women in Southern Kenya
Since July 2005, Solar Cookers International (EA) has been working with women's groups in Kajiado to promote the use of solar cooking as a means to help poor women save their meager resources for other pressing needs. The women are generally Maasai women with their new CooKits, a small, portable type solar cookerwidows or single parents who need group support to move forward with their lives. Many are engaged in petty trade like selling vegetables, beads, milk and eggs.
(Me with the Maasai Women's Group & 2 local Peace Corps Volunteers in Kajiado, Kenya)
Several groups devised a way to purchase solar cooking materials for each member. Thus far, some have been able to purchase CooKits--a small, individual solar cooker. (See photo) However, this system is slow and many women are still waiting to receive the materials they need to either begin or fully realize the maximum benefit from solar cooking.
Because the purchasing process has dragged on for three years, SCI approached Lift Up Africa (LUA). They asked SCI to partner with several of these groups so the women could more quickly enhance their energy savings, thus improving their living standards.
On May 22, 2009 the first of these partnership distributions took place in Oloika. At the distribution event, SCI's Stella Odaba informed the women that through Lift Up Africa (LUA) they would now receive donations of the equipment they still needed, including hay basket fireless cookers.
Although the weather was a bit cloudy, some CooKits were set up to demonstrate pasteurizing water using the WAPI (water pasturization indicator.) The use of the fireless cookers was also demonstrated. While the members watched and timed the process, some rice was simmered for 5 minutes. Then the rice was transferred to the hay basket. Half an hour later a member went to check and found it cooked.
At the meeting Agnes Osoi, one of the group members, said:
"... solar cookers have been of great help to us....We can pasteurize our drinking water and our children don't suffer from diarrhea because of taking dirty water. FurtherSCI's Faustine Odaba demonstrating the hay basket fireless cookermore, it's safe around the child; I can leave the food to cook while I go to sell my beads in the market without any fears of fire accidents at home. Now with the addition of fireless cookers life will be even simpler for me. I will warm water at night, pour it in the ten liter plastic container then put it in the fireless cooker. In the morning my children have ready breakfast and warm water to bathe before school. I will not be exposed to smoke for so long; I will use firewood only when there's no sun and save some wood."
Other participants chimed in saying:
"The fireless cooker will bring peace in my home; my husband will always find hot food whenever he comes late. I don't have to wake up to light a fire to warm the food for him."
"...I am so excited and grateful to SCI and Lift Up Africa for their support in making our lives better!"
A vote of thanks was given by Esther Sekeyian, the group's chairlady. The women then gave gifts (beaded ornaments) in honor of Lift Up Africa and adorned Ms. Odaba with beaded ornaments, too.
The distribution to the 17 women who attended the event cost $700 (USD). This small grant will help an estimated 150 people.
Information on all of our solar cooking projects is available on LUA's Solar Cooking Wiki.
Please help Lift Up Africa help Africa's vulnerable special needs children! Just let us know you want to support KCCL or a specific KCCL need. Thanks!
Please support Lift Up Africa's critical efforts to
help African people by making a secure on-line
donation.
And because our board pays for all administrative
expenses, 100% of every dollar you contribute goes
directly to help African people.
Please Contribute
Asante (thank you)!
Lift Up Africa is a 501(c)(3) not for
profit organization. Our tax ID is 74-3116756.
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