News you send

[Editor's note: "News you send" is compiled by Tom Sponheim, Solar Cookers International's information exchange specialist. E-mail your news items to info@solarcookers.org or mail to Ramón Coyle, Solar Cookers International, 1919 21st Street #101, Sacramento, California 95811-6827, USA. We want to hear from you — especially if your program is growing or if your work has not been featured in the Solar Cooker Review before. Please include your contact information. Submissions are subject to editing if printed.]

AFRICA

Darfur refugees keep on cookin'

By Derk Rijks, project leader

In Iridimi refugee camp in Chad about 17000 refugees from Darfur, Sudan have found temporary shelter. This camp is situated in a semi desert region at 15° N, where rainfall is irregular and usually less than 120 millimeters per year. As a result, the land is seasonally and sparsely covered with grasses. Shrubs and trees only grow on the edges of wadis — dry riverbeds that carry water a few days a year.

While firewood for cooking was sufficient for the few small, dispersed villages located along the wadis, it was not nearly enough for a sudden influx of thousands of refugees. After Iridimi camp was established, the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) imported a limited supply of firewood, so women roamed the countryside for more. Indigenous villagers saw this as a threat to their own supply. With more than 330 sunny days each year in the camp, it seemed to me that solar cookers could provide some relief.

We decided to use solar CooKits due to their ease of use and potential for local manufacture and maintenance by refugees. After conducting a series of well-received demonstrations, we formulated a project outline and sought funding for materials and remuneration of trainers and refugee helpers. Chadian citizens Marie-Rose Neloum and Gilhoube Patallet led trainings, managed supplies and funds, and provided general support.

After a short period of hesitation, the Iridimi women were convinced that the sun could cook. They embraced solar cooking wholeheartedly. Even most men are now happy with the new techniques, though the final decision clearly rests with the women! Virtually all of their traditional meals can be made with solar cookers.

During normal security conditions about 1000 CooKits are produced each month by a rotation of 20 "artisans," two from each camp zone. A workshop was built for this purpose. Forty refugee women are trained as auxiliary trainers, and in groups of two they teach six women each week how to solar cook. There are more than 4500 women in the camp, of which over 2500 have received training. Once trained, the women each receive two to three CooKits and pots, depending on family size.

The project has suffered twice from a slow-down in activity because of security concerns. The daily meal strategy adopted by UNHCR is as follows: breakfast, cooked on improved woodstoves with UNHCR-distributed firewood; lunch, cooked in solar cookers; and dinner, cooked in solar cookers and/or heat-retention cookers (also known as "hay baskets," these are insulated enclosures in which is set a pot of food that has been brought to a boil, allowing it to continue to cook after being removed from its heat source.) The heat-retention cookers are woven by the refugee women, using materials that are brought in from other parts of the country.

Refugee-defined benefits from solar cooking include:

• "We keep clean, do not have tears in our eyes and have no running noses from smoke"
• "We do not have to go and look for firewood in far away places where we do not want to go (for safety reasons)"
• "There is no fire danger for our children or our tents"
• "We can use the saved firewood collection time to do handiwork (for sale and buying extra food or milk), to be with our children, or to learn from the classes taught in the camp"

At one point, in our absence, an independent subcontractor with UNHCR decided arbitrarily and without consultation to halt solar cooking trainings because the majority of the older women had been trained. There was a camp-wide protest that was immediately resolved upon our return. Now, training is guaranteed for those 15 years and older, though we do not check ages and are happy to train younger girls pretending to be 15! Women in many other regional refugee camps have expressed great interest in having their own solar cooking projects, and
UNHCR has given its support to the idea.

Contact Derk Rijks by e-mail: rijks.agrometeo@wanadoo.fr

Editor's note: Last month, Rijks, Neloum and Patallet received the 2007 Prize for Humanity, presented by the Immortal Chaplains Foundation. The award honors those who "risked all to protect others of a different faith or ethnic origin." The award was presented in Long Beach, California (USA) by Oscar-nominated actor Don Cheadle, known for his activism on behalf of the victims of the Darfur crisis. For more information about the Immortal Chaplains Foundation visit its Web site: www.immortalchaplains.org.

Message from the Executive Director

By Patrick Widner, SCI executive director

Recently I attended a workshop that included a discussion about another Superpower on earth, this one made up of
nongovernmental organizations, community-based organizations and individuals that focus on equality for humanity, social
justice and the environment. Another way of looking at this positive force is as an immune system for what ails the planet.

This Superpower concept manifested itself at an event honoring Derk Rijks, Marie-Rose Neloum, and Gilhoube Patallet. (See
"Darfur refugees keep on cookin'.") All of them were recognized by the Immortal Chaplains Foundation as recipients of the
2007 Prize for Humanity for their work in the Iridimi refugee camp in Chad. Paul and Tatiana Rusesabagina of "Hotel Rwanda"
fame were present, and Desmond Tutu and Jane Goodall sent special taped messages for the event.

Derk Rijks, representative of the Netherlands-based nonprofit KoZon Foundation and an associate of Solar Cookers
International (SCI) and Jewish World Watch, introduced the CooKit to Darfur refugees at Iridimi camp in 2005. Rijks will now expand this work into other camps. His involvement, and that of his African colleagues who were honored, have made a safer life for so many families. I felt honored and humbled to be in the presence of these courageous people.

In reflecting on the above, the symbolism of an Afghan proverb sent by Patricia McArdle — qatra qatra daryaa mesha / drop by drop it becomes a river — is most appropriate when thinking about SCI. We have six volunteers at the office today adding their drops. Three of the volunteers are students packing CooKits and WAPIs and one is a teacher who taught her students to make solar cookers. At the same time, volunteer SCI advocates in New York, Washington, D.C., and Geneva are preparing for the upcoming fourth session of the Human Rights Council at the United Nations. Countless others throughout the world are promoting the use of the sun's energy through teaching and demonstrations of simple technologies for solar cooking and water pasteurization.

Thanks to all of you who have added to the river. Let it rain! Except, when we are solar cooking.


Patrick T. Widner
SCI Executive Director

SCI Association: ready to be heard

Compiled by Bev Blum, SCIA secretariat

The Solar Cookers International Association (SCIA), an umbrella organization of Solar Cookers International (SCI), has grown rapidly since its formation at the 2006 international solar cookers conference last July. SCIA members are now ready to speak with a strong, unified voice on behalf of wider access to solar cooking, solar pasteurizing and solar food processing. Wider access will be accomplished through more partnerships with U.N. agencies, international development and relief organizations, policy makers, businesses, and networks related to women, health and energy.

Ninety-nine individuals and 56 organizations from 32 countries joined the SCIA during 2006, making them founding members. A 17-member steering committee elected David Whitfield, of the Center for Development of Solar Energy (CEDESOL) in Cochabamba, Bolivia, as its chairperson.

While acknowledging that SCIA members have diverse opinions on specific strategies, programs and devices, the steering committee identified a number of statements that are agreed upon:

• In sun-rich areas, solar cookers are improving people's health, economics and environments
• Solar cookers are urgently needed by people in fuel-scarce, sun-rich areas
• Solar cookers complement, but don't replace other cooking methods
• Virtually all foods can be cooked equally or better in one or more types of solar cookers
• Solar cookers are clean and pollution-free; most are also safer than fire, and save time and money
• Solar cookers provide a number of documented benefits for cooking, pasteurizing and food processing across the globe

The Asia and Oceania network will meet in Kathmandu, Nepal on 16-17 April, 2007. Paper submissions are due 15 March. No travel assistance is available, but registration and other costs are modest. For details contact host organization Center for Rural Technology/Nepal by e-mail: asiarwscfp@crtnepal.org. To participate in the Asia and Oceania network, contact Jimmy McGilligan by e-mail: solarnetworkasia@gmail.com.

Latin America and Iberia network member Pedro Serrano, of the El Canelo de Nos organization, has many projects with the U.N. Development Program (UNDP) in Chile, and hopes to garner its support for actions throughout Latin America. To participate in the Latin America and Iberia network, contact Pedro Serrano by e-mail: pedro.serrano@usm.cl.

The Advocacy group, headed by Dr. Sonia Heptonstall of Geneva, has increased communication among top solar cooker advocates in Geneva, New York and Washington, D.C. Group members contributed to meetings of the U.N. Commission on Sustainable Development in New York, and will attend World Health Organization (WHO) meetings in Geneva.

The Solar Food Processing and Conservation group, coordinated by Rolf Behringer of the International Solar Energy Society (ISES), has produced an interesting general information brochure with real-world examples. The brochure is available on-line
at www.solarfood.org in English, Chinese, French, Spanish and German languages. If you have an income-generating solar food project please consider submitting its details on the same Web site.

Education group member Rowena Gerber will be presenting at the 2nd annual Celebration of Teaching and Learning in New York City on 22-23 March. Dubbed the "World's Fair for educators," this year's event will focus on science and global awareness.

Sun Ovens International's Paul Munsen will join Gerber, as will several of her students. Gerber will demonstrate, in her words, "just about every type of solar oven ever made." Former U.S. Vice President Al Gore will also be speaking at the event.

Observable solar cooking communities

Association member (and new SCI board member) Patricia McArdle put out a call for communities worldwide that have 100+ solar cooking families clustered enough that it would be reasonable for them to receive visitors. Thus far, 25 communities in eight countries have been identified. (The two Afghanistan communities have less than 100 families.) Note that five of eight countries are in Asia, where fuel scarcities appeared earliest. For more information, or to add a community, send an e-mail to Bev Blum: association@solarcookers.org.

AFGHANISTAN
- Qalai Badar Khan
- Faizabad
CHINA
- Chengdu, Sichuan
- Lanzhou, Gansu
INDIA
- Andhra Pradesh (state, three villages)
KENYA
- Nyakach, Nyanza
MEXICO
- Sierra Gorda, Queretero
- Oaxaca (state)
- Puebla (state)
NEPAL
- Siddhipur
- Nayapati
- Ghamcha
- Sunakoti
- Machhe Gaon
- Kathmandu
- Bamti Bhandar
- Jumla
- Buthanese refugee camps
TURKEY
- Yakapinar (formerly Misis), Adana
UGANDA
- Kikokwa
- Ruharo
- Biharwe
- Mbarara (district, Orukiga refugee settlement)

My solar cooker epiphany

by Patricia McArdle, SCI board of directors

In 2005 I served as the U.S. government representative at a British Army-run Provincial Reconstruction Team in Northern Afghanistan. I had heard of solar cookers before I went to Afghanistan, but I knew little about them or their incredible potential to save forests, reduce pollution and improve the lives of millions of women.

My solar cooker epiphany occurred on a cold but sunny March day while on patrol in the Hindu Kush with one of our military observation teams. During my travels around northern Afghanistan, I had observed that there were almost no trees and little groundcover left in the region. People told me that the trees had been cut down for firewood or to make charcoal. As we drove that morning up a narrow mountain trail to a remote village for a meeting with local officials, we passed a group of young (five-seven year old) children leading donkeys down the trail.

After our meeting, the soldiers and I were given a tour of the village. The district governor showed us the one remaining “forest” in the area, a small grove of cedar and pine growing just above the village. It was guarded night and day to prevent the trees from being cut down for firewood. The governor explained to us that if they lost their “forest,” the next big rain would wash away the village. I was also invited into one of the family compounds and introduced to the women who were cooking lunch over a smoky fire fueled with what looked like tumbleweed stacked in a huge pile next to their mud-walled hut.

At the end of the day, heading down the mountain, we again passed the children, who were on their way home. Their donkeys were barely visible under enormous bundles of the same “tumbleweed” I had seen the women cooking with. As we traveled west into the glare of the setting sun, I thought to myself, “Someone should tell these people about solar cookers.” Since I didn’t know much about solar cookers myself, I did some research.

That night, back at our camp in Mazar-e Sharif, I trolled the Internet for information on solar cookers and was astounded at the number of Web sites I found. I spent the next few evenings learning about this remarkably simple technology. Eventually I downloaded several plans, and asked the British Army kitchen staff for some old cardboard boxes, aluminum foil and flour to make paste. With the help of the soldiers, I constructed five different box- and panel-type solar cookers. We took them up to the roof of our heavily guarded compound and, over a period of several weeks, tested them and measured the results. The solar “CooKit” won the competition.

It was clear to me that there was a great potential in this country for the widespread distribution of solar cookers to:

• Reduce the amount of time children spend foraging for fuel
• Reduce erosion caused by a lack of ground cover (and the resulting flooding)
• Cut down on the amount of smoke that women are exposed to while cooking

I hoped to return eventually to the village that had inspired me to learn about solar cookers, to demonstrate the CooKit and see how the people would react to this remarkable technology. Four months later, we went back.
It was another cool, sunny day. A small group of men standing in front of the governor’s house watched in silence as we arrived for our meeting. (Women are not allowed out in public unless the gathering is all female). Before going in to see the governor, I poured a bottle of water into a black pot, put the pot inside a transparent oven bag, placed the bag in my homemade CooKit, turned the CooKit to face the sun and went inside with the soldiers.

When we came out of the meeting 90 minutes later, the pot was steaming and the crowd had swelled from 10 to about 40 men. They were scratching their beards, pointing at the CooKit and trying to figure out how this piece of cardboard covered with shiny paper was able to boil water. Where was the fire? It looked to them like magic even after I explained how it worked. The pot was clearly very hot, but the cardboard and aluminum foil were not. How could this be? They all insisted on coming up to touch the very hot pot and then the cool foil-covered cardboard to confirm what they were seeing.

One of the men exclaimed, “We could make our tea with this!” The others nodded enthusiastically. Another said he would be able to find cardboard, but “where,” he asked, “do I get that shiny paper?” They all looked at me in silence, waiting for an answer. I wasn’t certain how to reply, because I knew that aluminum foil was not sold anywhere but Kabul, which was more than 100 miles to the south over the Hindu Kush.

Another man smiled, reached into his back pocket and took out a pack of cigarettes. He pulled up the inner foil liner and shouted, “We could use this!” The other men nodded, and several more pulled out their own cigarette packs to examine the foil liners. Within five minutes, these men had figured out a use for this technology and they had discovered a way to manufacture it using a locally available resource. None of them suggested that their wives might be able to cook meals with this technology, but I was still very impressed with their positive and creative reaction to my very brief demonstration. If they only used the CooKit for heating tea water, they would still dramatically reduce the biomass consumption of their village.

I began inquiring about solar cooker projects in Afghanistan and found that only Gordon Magney, who has distributed several hundred “SOS Sport” solar box cookers , was currently involved with solar cookers there. (I learned later that Sun Ovens International had, several years earlier, distributed solar cookers in Afghanistan.) Magney gave me a detailed proposal for another solar cooker project. I tried to generate support for his project within our embassy and U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) mission, but, sadly, was not successful.

I have told this story and given solar cooker presentations many times at the U.S. State Department, the Peace Corps, USAID and elsewhere since my return from Afghanistan. Currently the U.S. government is partially funding only one solar cooker project, with Solar Household Energy (SHE) in Mexico. I plan to continue working to convince my colleagues in the government to support the spread of solar cooker technology around the world.

Show your support with a stamp

	Martin Almada reports that Paraguay has issued a postage stamp featuring a solar cooker. He feels the stamp is an advance in spreading awareness of solar cookers, and will contribute to environmental protection and energy conservation. He hopes that organizations elsewhere will follow this example and encourage creation of solar postage stamps in their own countries.
	In 2004, Tanzania Posts Corporation released a series of postage stamps commemorating the 75th anniversary of Girl Guiding in Tanzania. Included in the set was a stamp depicting Girl Guides “demonstrating environment friendly solar cookers.”

Another world is possible … with solar cooking!

by Margaret Owino, SCI eastern Africa director

Another world is possible! This was the message at the 2007 World Social Forum held in Nairobi on 20-26 January, 2007. This short, clear message was there for world movers to see, hear and deliberate on. People from all over the world came, bearing one message or another, and Solar Cookers International (SCI) was there, too.

The Forum was filled with speeches, discussions, exhibits, dances and music. SCI displayed three major types of solar cookers: concentrator cookers, box cookers and panel cookers, including SCI's CooKit. The cookers were used over four days to demonstrate that another world is possible by using the sun's energy to fulfill a basic need — the need for clean, free energy to cook food and pasteurize drinking water.
Many exhibitors had products to sell, but SCI was there to talk about solar cooking, to show people what solar cookers are and how they work, and to share with them the flavorful, nutritious rewards of a solar-cooked dish. All doubts were swept away as people sampled roasted peanuts, doughnuts, cakes, roast meat and local Kenyan dishes such as Ugali and Githeri.

Flanked by our Swiss friends Roland and Monica Baumann and Schmid Bonhard, who brought a beautiful solar box cooker with them, and supported by Pax Romana, a church group that let us use their stand, we made good use of the opportunity. Forum participants went away with new solar cooking knowledge, new memories in their cameras, and sometimes even new CooKits. They also went away convinced that another world is possible … with solar cooking.

California High School raises money for Darfur refugees

Solar Cookers International (SCI) received this kind letter from a local high school student, along with a donation in support of solar cooking. SCI would like to express its gratitude for the initiative taken by these young adults:

Enclosed is a donation from the members of Mira Loma High School’s new Solar Cooking Club. This year, we have been working to spread solar cooking in our school community as well as raising money for Solar Cookers International’s Darfur relief effort. We have had several fundraisers so far. In September, we sold solar-cooked chili dogs at school. We also had a booth at the Salmon Festival, and on Halloween we went trick-or-treating for donations of spare change and handed out flyers on solar cooking. We intend to do more fundraising in the spring.

The members of the Solar Cooking Club are eager to help SCI in other ways too, so please contact us about any volunteer activities that are suitable for a group of high school students. On behalf of all members, I would like to offer my support for SCI's mission of spreading solar cooking in our community and around the world.

Sincerely,

Molly B

Solar cooker workshop announcement

Solar Cookers International is hosting a solar cooker workshop, at which participants will:

• Learn to make solar cookers
• Learn to cook food using free, clean solar energy
• Learn to test and solar pasteurize water

These skills may come in handy someday!

Date: 2 June, 2007
Time and Location: To be determined (Sacramento, California, USA)
Fee: $45, includes supplies

To register, contact Katie Sisay by e-mail: katie@solarcookers.org or tel: (916) 455-4499.

Calling all U.S. federal employees!

Over one million U.S. federal employees participate annually in the Combined Federal Campaign (CFC): the world’s largest workplace giving campaign. This year federal employees have the option of supporting Solar Cookers International (SCI) with a one-time gift or recurring payroll deductions through the Aid to Africa Federation. SCI is proud to qualify for CFC’s rigorous financial, accountability and governance standards. (CFC #9985.)
More information is available on the Internet: www.africacharities.org/index.shtml.

Dear friends of SCI,

I would like to inform you that I will step down from my current position as Director of International Program Development on 30 March, 2007. It has been my pleasure to meet and correspond with so many of you over the last five and a half years. I admire your commitment to spreading solar cooking and confidence in Solar Cookers International (SCI). I certainly will miss working with Sacramento and Kenya staff and volunteers and hearing first hand from the beneficiaries of solar cooking projects. Thank you for the support you have extended to me and to SCI.

Respectfully yours,

Pascale R. Dennery

Tributes

• Kay Allen in memory of Pauline Ludwig
• Barbara Blum in honor of Bev Blum
• Helen and Robert Campbell in honor of Jay Campbell
• Patricia Chamberlin-Calamar in memory of Pam Kantz
• Ann M. Collentine in honor of her father, John Collentine
• Michael and Judy Crowell in memory of Robert Newman
• Lisa A. Ford in honor of Robert Cantrell
• Carol N. Gerlitz in memory of her husband, Bill Braddock
• Charles and Dana Larson in memory of Robert (Bob) Larson
• Targe and Joanne Lindsay in memory of Sally Narusewicz
• Colleen McGloughlin in honor of her sister, Kate McGloughlin
• Jenny Murphy in honor of Robert Renfer
• Marianne O’Malley in memory of James and Elaine O'Malley
• Martin and Joan Rosen in honor of Clark and Eleanor Shimeall
• Carol Schwamberger in honor of Yehudit Lieberman
• William R. Shelton in honor of Alice Ann Glenn
• David and Betty Strait in memory of Gina Droitcour
• Georgene Stratman in memory of Pauline Ludwig
• Ezra and Leila Van Gelder in honor of Daniel Krigel
• Esther Wanning in honor of Rufus Wanning
• Amy Williamson in honor of Gordon Williamson

If your tribute has been omitted or is in error, please let us know! Contact Yolanda Torrecillas by e-mail: yolanda@solarcookers.org or by tel: (916) 455-4499. Thanks for your support.

Solar Cooker Review

Solar Cooker Review ("Review") is published two or three times per year with the purpose of presenting solar cooking information from around the world. Topics include solar cooker technology, dissemination strategies, educational materials, and cultural and social adaptations. From time to time we cover related topics such as women's issues, wood shortages, health, nutrition, air pollution, climatic changes, and the environment.

The Review is sent to those who contribute money or news about solar cooking projects. The suggested subscription price is $10/year. Single copies are sent free to select libraries and groups overseas.p> We welcome reports and commentary related to solar cooking for possible inclusion. These may be edited for clarity or space. Please cite sources whenever possible. We will credit your contribution. Send to Solar Cookers International (SCI), 1919 21st Street #101, Sacramento, California 95811-6827, USA. You may also submit by fax: +1 (916) 455-4498 or e-mail: kevin@solarcookers.org.

The Review is compiled and edited by Kevin Porter, SCI's education resources director, with assistance from other staff. Layout is graciously donated by IMPACT Publications located in Medford, Oregon, USA.

SCI is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization assisting communities in using the power of the sun to cook food and pasteurize water for the benefit of people and environments. SCI is a member of InterAction. We do not sell, rent or trade names of our donors. Tax ID # 68-0153141.

The Review is available online at www.solarcooking.org/docs.htm#newsletters