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January 2015
TinyTech Plants large basket parabolic solar cooker being erected on its foundation.
- January 2015: Tinytech Plants is developing large solar baskets - Up to 12 meters in diameter, they are designed to cook for 1500-2000 people in one hour according to TinyTech Plants CEO Veljibhai Desai. At this time, it is one of the largest parabolic solar concentrators being developed in India. Presently, the concentrator has been erected on its foundation and the rotating tracking system is being fitted.
- January 2015: Uzbekistan, still rich with gas and oil, has begun to adopt solar power, now being viewed as an underutilized resource. Micro solar projects providing electricity for lighting, heating, pumping water and solar cooking are now beginning to percolate into the countryside. Read more: Uzbekistan Looks to Solar Power - Silk Road Reporters
- January 2015: Assessing lasting impacts of HotPot projects - Solar Household Energy is revitalizing relationships with previous partner the Mexican Fund for the Conservation of Nature (Fondo Mexicano para la Conservación de la Naturaleza, or FMCN) to assess long-term project outcomes. FMCN has distributed over 25,000 HotPots in Mexico. Quantifying the lasting impacts of these projects will prove HotPot long-term adoption and durability, demonstrating that the HotPot is a viable clean cooking solution. Read more: Assessing lasting impacts of HotPot projects in Mexico - SHE
- January 2015: More HotPot solar cookers for the Gaga refugee camp in Chad - The Lutheran World Foundation, now in charge of environmental activities in Gaga refugee camp, wishes to partner with Solar Household Energy to expand the HotPot project with 2,500 more HotPots--enough to cover 80% of households. Based on the success of the earlier HotPot project in Gaga refugee camp, SHE is also exploring options to introduce solar cookers in Burkina Faso refugee camps.
- January 2015: Read 2014 SHE project summaries, with plans for 2015. - SHE
- January 2015: Irene Perbal has explained how she used her experience promoting solar cooking in Sudan and Brazil to help out back in her home state of California, USA. She has been encouraging the use of solar cooking at local food banks. She began doing talks and seminars to train locals on how to build and use the cookers, including the underserved frequenting the food banks. Often her presentation includes sharing a lunch of solar cooked lasagne. Thinking Globally and Acting Locally - Huffington Post
- January 2015: Kyrgyzstan’s BIOM ecological movement has provided the Bishkek Center for Rehabilitation of Homeless Children with alternative energy equipment as the state-run social facilities remain underfinanced in the country. In 2010, BIOM provided the Center with solar water heaters, solar ovens, and lighting equipment. According to Natalia Bogatova, coordinator of SPARE (School Project for Application of Resources and Energy), BIOM concluded a contract for installation and maintenance of the above equipment for three years, but its specialists continue providing technical maintenance of the solar equipment after the contract expired. Solar energy for Kyrgyzstan’s social facilities - The Times Of Central Asia
- January 2015: GACC has released their November 2104 Post-Summit Report
- January 2015: Patricia McArdle responds to the GACC Post-Summit Report from the November 2014 conference.
The Lightoven III, designed by Hartmut Ehmler is explained at a training event for Pakistani Boy Scouts. - Hartmut Ehmler
- January 2015: Pakistani Boy Scouts are introduced to solar cooking - Hartmut Ehmler photographed this Boy Scout training event of his Lightoven III solar panel cooker. It is a lightweight portable design, suitable to take into the field for camping.
Solar Cooking in the Sahel - NOWCAST
- January 2015: Available sunshine in the Sahel region of Africa documented - Authors, Beth Newton, Sophie Cowie, Derk Rijks, Jamie Banks, Helen Brindley, and John h. Marsham have published a well-documented analysis of the potential sunshine available for solar cooking in the Sahel region, particularly in northern Chad. This is where a number of Sudanese refugee camps are located. TchadSolaire has been training both refugees and the indigenous population to solar cook in the region since 2005. Even along river population centers where clouds tend to form, solar cooking is possible for over 330 days a year. Read more: Solar Cooking in the Sahel - NOWCAST
Mid-day meal being prepared at a Mali school - Sun and Ice
- January 2015: Only the cooking food is out in the sun at this Mali school - Stephan Zech, with Sun and Ice, posted this photo of a mid-day meal being prepared at a school in Mali.
A student shows the dish he prepared in his solar cooker.
- 15,000 students in Mumbai solar cook and set world-record - 15,000 students from 80 schools in Mumbai, India set a new world-record for the largest ever solar cooking gathering. Each student was given a solar cooker and taught how to use it as part of a national campaign to spread awareness of the importance of solar technology. C Vidyasagar Rao, governor of Maharashtra and Ashish Shelar, minister of state, Power, Coal & New Renewable Energy, attended the record-setting gathering. Read more at: Over 15,000 students create a new world-record in solar cooking
- Children to learn about clean solar cookers on festival day - gulfnews.com
- Healthy food via solar cooker - Moneylife
- January 2015: Annual Maha SuryaKumba reaches for a lofty goal - The Bhayander based NGO, Keshav Srushti, is committed to spreading awareness of solar cooking. Under the banner of Maha SuryaKumba, they will be gathering students from 500 schools across Mumbai in Bhayander,India, and then will be taking the festival to remote tribal villages. Hoping this year reach the magic number of 100,000 solar-powered prepared meals! Keshav Srushti has been accredited by the Guinness Book of World Records for having conducted the largest solar oven cooking class in January 2014 with 3,639 participants from 62 schools. The new goal of reaching so many students from remote areas will require financial support beyond the means of Keshav Srushti. Please contact Keshav Srushti If you can help, it will be appreciated. The NGO has announced there will now be an annual Maha SuryaKumba held on January 15th. More information...
- January 2015: The solar bakery project in Burundi is up and running! - R20's East Africa Program Manager, Jini Sebakunzi, was at the inauguration ceremony for the new bakery in Gitega, Burundi this past November. The solar oven being used is the Villager Sun Oven, manufactured by US-based company Sun Ovens International. Each oven is capable of baking hundreds of loaves of bread each day. Environmentally speaking, the oven allows the users to save over 150 tons of firewood each year, which results in the reduction of around 277 tons of greenhouse gas emissions annually. In addition, by replacing the firewood with solar energy, the ovens will protect the bakers from inhaling harmful smoke. The twelve women trained to operate the new solar oven are motivated to see the the new enterprise become integrated with the community, and also to be able benefit economically for their efforts. Read more: R20 and local partner, CIRID, host inauguration ceremony of solar bakery project in Gitega, Burundi
December 2014
- See Solar, Cook Solar, a program run by the humanitarian agency Soroptimist International, will provide solar cookers to women in remote rural and island locations in Fiji, providing a safer, more economical and environmentally sustainable alternative to traditional kerosene stoves. Soroptimist International clubs in Fiji are working to develop this programme with the Ministry of Women, Welfare and Poverty Alleviation, who are already promoting solar lighting in remote areas, while educating, empowering and enabling opportunities for women and girls.
Virginia Bauso explains the workings of the parabolic solar cooker to community members living in remote mountain villages in Argentina. - Aljazeera
- Virginia Bauso and the Fundación EcoAndina have been working to bring viable energy alternatives to communities in the remote mountainous areas of Argentina. In particular, the community of Misa Rumi. The Fundación EcoAndina began working there in 1989, showing the village how they could harness the sun for their energy needs. Currently, the entire village of Misa Rumi is self-sufficient, producing their own electricity for lighting and heating and cooking with solar cookers. Virginia travels there, and to other surrounding communities to introduce solar cooking technology, and also provide long-term assistance in maintaining the cookers. The young people in Misa Rumi have grown proficient in the operation the solar cookers, and are relived they do not have to spend as much time as their elders gathering scarce firewood. The solar cookers serve the people's immediate needs, but they also take some pressure off the fragile arid environment. Read the article in Aljazeera, and watch the recently produced video documenting their efforts. Seizing solar power in Argentina
- Latest Nasa data shows elevated CO2 levels over Africa and South America - According to this BBC article, "Also apparent are the higher concentrations over South America and southern Africa. These are likely the result of biomass burning in these regions."
- José Andrés details his use of solar cookers at Life is Beautiful event in National Geographic - In an article for National Geographic, Chef José Andrés writes about his pop-up restaurant, Sunny Day, which he opened at the Life is Beatufiul event in Las Vegas, NV. Sunny Day used solar cookers to cook their signature dish, vegetarian tacos, during the day and clean-burining ethanol in the evening. Read article...
- ADES has created a document detailing their work with solar cookers and fuel-efficient woodstoves in Madagascar: ADES from 2001 to 2013
- Lapin Kulta Solar Kitchen Restaurant featured in The Guardian - Lapin Kulta Solar Kitchen Restaurant, the traveling solar restaurant from Catalan designer Martí Guixé, Chef Antto Melasniemi and Lapin Kulta beer, was featured in an article in The Guardian as an innovative user of solar energy. The piece discusses the journey of this experimental solar restaurant, including how they were able to cook in Finland in -15°C. Also featured are new innovations in photovoltaic technology, a new apartment in Hamburg, Germany which grows algae for fuel with solar energy, and simple method for water disinfection. Read article...
Diagram showing the role the solar dryer plays in helping produce dried fruits, vegetables, and briquettes for fuel-efficient cookstoves.
- Joshua Guinto, a specialist with Appropriate Technologies has provided an update on recovery developments in the Philippines in the wake of typhoon Haiyan. Their focus has been providing solar dryers to dry fruits and vegetables, as wells to dry wood for bio-char and briquette production for use in fuel-efficient cookstoves. Read more at: The Approtech Training for Salcedo Eastern Samar - Joshua Guinto, November 2014
Bjorn Qorn makes popcorn for sale with their In-the-ground solar cooker.
- Another business uses solar cooking to prepare their product - Bjorn Qorn located in New York, USA, has created a large In-the-ground solar cooker to cook their locally harvested corn for sale as popcorn.
November 2014
- José Andrés discusses solar and efficient cooking in Time Magazine - As part of the "What I'm Thankful For" series, José Andrés explains that he is thankful for cooking that is simple and safe for his family and how solar and efficient cooking methods can provide those with limited access to traditional fuels with some of the same benefits. Read more...
Hillary Rodham Clinton Cookstoves Future Summit
- Hillary Clinton acknowledges solar cooking's role in solving cooking fuel crisis - In her keynote speech at a Global Alliance meeting, Hillary Clinton stated that students from the Clinton School of Public Service had traveled overseas to teach solar cooking.
Les barbecues solaires d'IDCOOK dans télématin (France2) - IDCOOK solar barbecue on Frenc TV
Solar barbecue works on the principle of focussing the sun's rays. With its parabolic shape, all of the sun's energy is focussed on to the food being cooked. With no smoke or CO2 emissions, you'll be using free, environmentally friendly energy. (http://idcook.com)
- On their Facebook page, Haiti Solar Oven Partners reported that they built 50 solar cookers during a workshop that was attended by 85 students.
- Bernhard Müller started a fundraiser at betterplace.org to support seminars and workshops directed at the use and production of fireless cookers for the Kenyan NGOs NAREWAMA and FOTO."
Leéiyen teaches the use of solar box cookers and the SODIS method of water pasteurization in Cameroon, November 2014.
- Vise Gilbert Chin, CEO/President of Leéiyen, reports they have already taught more than 100 people to use solar cookers, including parabolic solar cookers, and the Heaven's Flame and CooKit solar box cookers in Cameroon. The SODIS method of water pasteurization was also presented in the workshops.
Graduation day for Student Solar Cooking Science Projects students in Eldoret, Kenya November 2104. - Camily Wedende
- Camily Wedende reports that a crowd of around 200 people attended the ceremony and celebration for the successful second project team in Student Solar Cooking Science Projects Eldoret, Kenya, innovators of the Hexagon Solar Cooker. Sharon Cousins, a long time supporter of the project, wrote a speech for the new graduates. It was read by guest of honor John Amayo.
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One of the 500 parabolic solar cookers manufactured in Nepal in 2014 with the help of Sun and Ice.
- Sun and Ice reports that it has helped with the manufacture of 500 parabolic solar cookers in Nepal in 2014. They provided the reflector panels, and the support frameworks were built on-site in Nepal. The solar cookers are used by families on the outskirts of Pokhara (second largest city in Nepal).
- EG Solar has created a clever animated video short explaining the benefits of solar cooking - Visit EG Solar.
October 2014
- At the Life is Beautiful festival in Las Vegas, NV, José Andrés debuted Sunny Day, his new solar-powered pop-up restaurant. His goal for the new pop-up restaurant is to educate Americans about clean cooking around the world. Interview with José Andrés.
- Solarafrica.network has two current projects in Zanzibar, Moto - Community Based Handicraft, and Dada - Healthy Food and Natural Cosmetics. Dada cooperatives are using SK14's and solar driers on daily base. Moto cooperatives use SK14's when the women meet to dye fibers.
Solarama Energy & Services held a recent cooking demonstration attended by government ministers and the the President of Morocco. - Solarama Energy & Services
- Solarama Energy & Services recently held a solar cooking demonstration in Morocco attended by government ministers and the the President of Morocco.
Camily Wedende instructs another group of young students in the assembly of solar panel cookers.
- Here is a recent photo of the latest group of children that Camily Wedende has been working with, each making their own solar panel cooker. See more photos at: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Student-Solar-Cooking-Science-Projects-Eldoret-Kenya/213211212064334. Thanks to Sharon Cousins for helping to post Camily's latest activities.
- Bernie Müller is working on the development of a counter-current solar food dryer which saves 50% on space and materials compared to common solar tunnel dryers. Involved in the development are Faustine Odaba of NAREWAMA, John Amayo of SURE, Prof. Wilson Ogola of the Technical University of Kenya as well as some experts from Uganda.
Sun and Ice teaching integrated cooking in Haiti. - Sun and Ice
- Sun and Ice recently sent more than 100 Premium14 and SK14 parabolic solar cookers to Haiti. They also sent fuel-efficient cookstoves and heat-retention cooking baskets along with the solar cookers to teach the Integrated Cooking Method. Use the solar cooker when it is sunny, use the fuel-efficient stove when it is not, and use the heat-retention basket with both cooking approaches.
- Faustine Odaba relates recent NAREWAMA activities.
- 1. On 4th October 2014, the Natural Resource and Waste management Alliance was invited to the launch of the Kenya Interfaith Network on Environmental Action(KINEA). The event that was held at Tangaza college in Nairobi and was attended by various universities, colleges, NGOs and different religion denominations, of which the guest of honour was Rt. Rev. Bishop Alfred Kipkoech Arap Rotich. The network engages in programs related to climate change and livelihood enhancement, which include faith-based institution promotion of tree growing, education for sustainable development(ESD), and sustainable agriculture and faith based wildlife conservation programs.
- 2. A training of Alliance of women in Coffee at the coffee plaza office in Nairobi on 25th September 2014. The women were trained in solar cooking, plastic waste recycling, and water testing. They learned of the need to be self-reliant and environmentally aware. The training was attended by 30 members.
- 3. At home in Nairobi, I spread the solar news when guests visited my home, and trained them in solar cooking, fireless cookers, and plastic bag recycling.
Sarah Collins with the Wonderbag
- Heat-retention cooker receives world attention - The Wonderbag, created by Sarah Collins, is a product that combines cooking efficiency with a lively aesthetic. The company reports over 650,000 of the brightly colored heat-retention cooking bags have been distributed. Using the same amount of cooking fuel, three or more meals can be prepared with the Wonderbag compared to only one meal using traditional cooking methods.
- On October, 4 2014, Natural Resource and Waste management Alliance was invited to the launch of Kenya Interfaith Network on Environmental Action (KINEA); a network of faith groups that are propelled by their faith values to care for environment. The event was held at Tangaza college in Nairobi and was attended by various universities, colleges, NGOs, and religion groups. The guest of honour was Rt. Rev.Bishop Alfred Kipkoech Arap Rotich, the military ordinariate of the Catholic church in Kenya. The event was attended by over a hundred participants. KINEA engages in programs related to climate change and livelihood enhancement which include: ,promotion of tree growing faith owned/ managed institutions and land, faith based education for sustainable development(ESD), and faith based sustainable agriculture and wildlife conservation programs.
- On September 25, 2014, a training of 30 NAREWAMA women was held at coffee plaza office in Nairobi. The women were trained on solar cooking, plastic wastes recycling, and water testing. They learned about the need to be self reliant and environment conservation.
- At her home in Nairobi, Faustine Odaba shared solar news with guests and trained them on solar cooking, fireless cookers, and plastic bags recycling.
- LA CUISSON SOLAIRE - UNE ALTERNATIVE - ÉCOLOGIQUE ET PUISSANTE - A L'UTILISATION DU BOIS ET DU GAZ - La Tribune
- Solar cooking in the Navajo nation - Raquel Redshirt presented her solar cooker design at the TEDxABQ 2014 conference in Albuquerque, NM on September, 6 2014. She stated that her solar cooker was a more health-conscious option in her community which has a high rate of diabetes.
Guro Seim, the CEO of Morpho Solar, and Catlin Powers, COO of One Earth Designs, prepare a meal on a SolSource solar cooker. - Morpho Solar
- Norwegian start-up tackles heat storage for solar cookers - Guro Seim, CEO of Morpho Solar, announced a breakthrough in the heat storage capabilities for solar cookers. They hope to have a production model ready within a year and a half. The breakthrough was recognized with a $8,000 USD award from the Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy this past August. The company will begin selling the cooker in Europe, and under an agreement with Cambridge, Mass.-based One Earth Designs in the United States. Read more...
- Global Hope Network International has recently supplied 300 solar cookers to rural villagers in central Afghanistan at below cost. They used a charter bus to transport the cookers rather than a truck in order to reduce the likelihood of attack.
Mauritanian solar cooked pizza is prepared at a Solar Clutch workshop. - Solar Clutch
- Increased demand and success for solar cooking in Mauritania - Solar Clutch has teamed up with Lutheran World Federation to introduce solar cooking to refugees entering Mauritania to escape the civil unrest from neighboring Mali. The number of new refugees to Mauritania has stressed available solar cooking resources. With a group of ten instructors, the Solar Clutch team developed a system to quickly train new instructors by having students demonstrate their new skills back to the group. They also encouraged using fuel-efficient cookstoves when good sun was not available. Tasty local recipes were successfully solar prepared. Again, an example of a group doing a lot with limited resources. Read more at: Solar Cooker Report Mauritania, April 2014
Solvatten users in Songot, Turkana, located in north western Kenya - Solvatten
- Thanks to a generous grant from the Erling Persson Family Foundation, SOLVATTEN has launched a safe water campaign for Kakuma, Kenya. Erling Persson was the founder of H&M and today Stefan Persson, his son, is the chairman of the family's philanthropic foundation. The Turkana campaign aims to reach more than 100,000 people and is being implemented by the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC). Read more news...
September 2014
Shyam Nandwani conducts a workshop on non-cooking uses for solar cookers in Costa Rica.
- Shyam Nandwani spoke at the Promesa at Santa Ana organization, lecturing on Solar Energy and Productive uses with solar devices, and assembeled Box Solar Oven about heated/cooked meals. The objective was to learn how solar cookers and other solar devices could be used for other purposes, and the end product could be sold. For instance, heating sandwiches, making candles, drying herbs etc. by using clean, free and abundant fuel- the Sun. The group now have the basic concepts and some possible uses. They plan to submit a proposal/project to get seed money (around $2,000 USD) to buy some materials, tools to start a small buisness and use part of the income to make the project sustainable.
- Household air pollution and lung cancer in China: a review of studies in Xuanwei - Chinese Journal of Cancer
- Hawaii company awards solar energy grants - Hawaii Pacific Solar (HPS), a Maui-based solar PV design and installation company, has awarded two education grants totaling $2,718 for solar energy-related projects at Hokulani Elementary School and King William C. Lunalilo Elementary School, both Kaimuki Complex schools. A $500 grant was awarded to Aiea Elementary School to build a solar oven out of recycled products using renewable energy. Read more...
IDCOOK show off their parabolic solar cookers in Paris, France. - IDCOOK
- Paris solar cooking demonstration - IDCOOK held a solar cooking demonstration on the rooftop of the BHV building in Paris, France.
- The Solar Connect Association now has a new website: http://www.solarconnectassociation.com
- Launch of new website - NAREWAMA, located in Nairobi, Kenya and under the direction of Faustine Odaba, has brought their organization and renewable energy activities online. Visit at: Natural Resources and Waste Management Alliance - NAREWAMA
FOTO staff members Seline and Pamela traveled to remote Remba Island in Kenya to demonstrate solar panel cookers and fireless baskets. - FOTO
- Remba, the island without wood, welcomes solar cooking - Friends of the Old (FOTO) staff Seline and Pamela went on a four day work trip to Remba Island, Kenya to promote solar cooking and water testing. Remba Island is on Lake Victoria and is rocky and very remote. There is no firewood or charcoal on Remba Island and must be imported from Mbita by boat. The scarcity of firewood on the island combined with plenty of sunshine makes solar cooking and water pasteurization an ideal solution for the locals. Interest was high at the demonstration and local residents bought the available supply of CooKits and fireless baskets. See more photos of their trip...
- Bhubaneswar: The state government will provide solar chullahs to 500 households inside Satkosia Wildlife Sanctuary - This was done to reduce load on firewood, which the villagers collect from the sanctuary. There are around 5,000 households in the reserve, but initially 10% will be provided with the solar cooking device. The panchayati raj and forest departments will jointly conduct survey to identify the families to be given the chullah. A private party will donate the chullahs to the forest department. - Read more... - Times of India
- Youtube: 100 parabolic cookers & 100 clean cookstoves for low income families On August 19th till 21st (2014) Solar Serve supplied 100 parabolic cookers & 100 clean cookstoves for low-income families in three villages near Hoi An city with the support of a recycling shop in Sliedrecht (Holland).
- Bolivia Inti-Sud Soleil reported the following data on their distribution of solar cookers, water heaters, heat retainer cookers, rocket stoves, and solar food dryers:
- Bolvia: 6,378 solar cookers since 2000 and 30 water heaters since 2013.
- Puno, Peru: 3,835 solar cookers since 2001.
- Arequipa, Peru: 3,533 solar cookers since 2005.
- Chile: 2,193 solar cookers since 2003, 883 heat retainer cookers since 2006, 1,007 rocket stoves since 2009, and 28 solar dryers in 2011.
- Argentina: 473 solar cookers, 1,241 rocket stoves, and 62 heat retainer cookers between 2008 and 2012.
- Alex Kee was recently interviewed in Singapore Makers in the Meet a Maker feature. His green interests, including solar cooking, are varied. Read the interview: Meet a Maker: Alex Kee
- Sanjib Rout, Chairman of the C.V. Ramen College of Engineering, is currently working with some of the remote villages around Odisha, India to introduce solar cooking. This will eliminate the need for firewood collection for seven months of the year, helping to save time and expense for the villagers. The added benefit is less stress on their local environment. Currently they have distributed fifty solar cookers.
- Raquel Redshirt presented her solar cooker design at the TEDxABQ 2014 conference in Albuquerque, NM on September, 6 2014. She stated that her solar cooker was a more health-conscious option in her community which has a high rate of diabetes. Read more...
The Sun Juicer lightweight parabolic solar cooker
- Successful Kickstarter for The Sun Juicer - Congratulations to Leonel Gotlibowski and The Sun Juicer on their successful Kickstarter campaign! They set a goal of $15,000 and raised a total of $19,152. They describe the Sun Juicer as an emergency ultralight, compact, parabolic solar cooker. Read more...
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Read the Fall 2014 issue of Solar Cooker Review ...or see back issues. |
- Update on Jewish World Watch Solar Cooker Project - Jewish World Watch published their Summer 2014 Solar Cooker Project newsletter. It offers background information on their refugee camp projects, highlights of the latest developments, and how to support it moving forward. Jewish World Watch reports that it has distributed approximately 128,000 CooKits with participation rates of 75% to 100% in the camps where they have worked: Kounoungou, Mile, Oure Cassoni, Touloum, and Iridimi. They also plan to provide an additional cooking pot for 10,000 families. Read more...
August 2014
- Pierre-André Aubert is using the Simply Solar mobile solar kitchen unit with an 8m² Scheffler Reflector, mounted on a trailer, in summer 2014 to cook for variouse events in the south of France. He is a professional gourmet cook and is currently developing his own concept of solar catering. More info... -
- From 'Wonderbags' to solar cooking, brilliant solutions to Africa's alarming charcoal problem - Mali & Guardian Africa (See also: Wonderbag page)
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Energy needs graph of the Ram Krishna Mission Student’s Home, Mylapore, Chennai, India - Ajay Chandak
- Institutional solar cooker with heat storage allows cooking after sunset - Commissioned on October 26, 2013, the steam-based ARUN®100 solar cooking system at the Ram Krishna Mission Student’s Home, Mylapore, Chennai in India now allows early morning and evening cooking. The accompanying graph shows when they need to cook and when the mid-day sun recharges the system. Read more about it at: ARUN®100 with Thermal Storage at Ramkrishna Mission, Chennai - Ajay Chandak
3,484 children from 80+ schools participated in the previous world's largest solar cooking class in Mumbai.
- The stage is set for the next world's largest solar cooking workshop - A Bhayander, India based NGO, Keshav Srushti, in a bid to spread awareness on solar cooking, will be gathering 25,000 students from 500 schools across Mumbai on January 15, 2015 to cook solar-powered dishes. Read more...
- Solar Cookers International contributes data for US-Africa Leaders Summit - President Barack Obama announced August 6th, 2014 that the U.S. NGO community invested over $1.5 billion in Africa in 2013 and anticipates investing another $4 billion over the next three years. Solar Cookers International (SCI) was one of the members of the InterAction network collaborating to collect data on U.S. NGO aid spending in Africa. See information on SCI’s current projects and the news release.
- Solar Cookers International is hiring! - Based on needs identified at the recent SCInet Solar Cooking Convention, SCI is hiring a full-time Monitoring & Evaluation Specialist to promote data collection and project evaluation practices within the global solar cooking sector. Read full job description.
Professor Nandwani (right) receiving the Energy Globe Silver Medal of Honor in 2014.
- Professor Shyam Nandwani was recognized by the Energy Globe Foundation for his work as Energy Globe Ambassador for Costa Rica since 2012 and awarded the Energy Globe Silver Medal of Honor.
- Update on Solar Cooker Project - Jewish World Watch published their Summer 2014 Solar Cooker Project newsletter. It offers background information on their refugee camp projects, highlights of the latest developments, and how to support it moving forward. Jewish World Watch reports that it has distributed approximately 128,000 CooKits with participation rates of 75% to 100% in the camps where they have worked: Kounoungou, Mile, Oure Cassoni, Touloum, and Iridimi. Dangerous trips to gather firewood outside the camp have been reduced by 85%, and refugee girls' school attendance has increased. JWW also plans to provide an additional cooking pot for 10,000 families. More info...
- Central Valley Solar Cookers had a great solar cooker building work shop last month with 8 cookers built, We also held a work shop for a Reedley area 4-H group where 4 more cookers were built. Yesterday, we demonstrated solar cooking at the Black-pot Cook Off in Shaver Lake. There was a lot of smoke up there so cooking was challenging, but we got it done. At our last meeting we discussed getting our club more organized, starting with writing some by-laws. If you would like to help or have access to some by-laws we could use as a template please let me know. We hope to have an evening meeting soon to work on this; perhaps at a library in Fresno or Clovis. Also discussed was making members contact information available to other members. If you would like to be on an email list available to other members let me know and I well send out a group email to everyone who asks to be on the list.
- TrinySol built and installed a series of reflectors in El Sauz, Mexico. The cookers are either 10-square-meters or 16-square-meters and can cook for up to 60 people, said Gregor Schäpers. More info...
- A group of volunteers from First United Methodist Church of Jamestown recently traveled to Moffit, N.D., to help fabricate solar ovens to be used in Haiti. The Moffit workshop is located at the home of Dave and Renae Silbernagel. Each year hundreds of volunteers fabricate and package solar oven parts in the Moffit and Volga, S.D., workshops, preparing them for shipment to Haiti. Teams of volunteers, under the direction of Jost, travel to Haiti each year to live in communities that have invited them. For 10 days, these volunteers work with Haitians to build ovens and educate people about solar cooking under the direction of the Montas and Raymonde Joseph of Haiti. Their goal is to deliver 2,300 solar ovens plus hands-on training to Haitian families every year.
- See Haiti Solar Oven Partners.Haiti Solar Oven Partners
- Steam heat storage system used for institutional cooking in India - Ram Krishna Mission Student’s Home, Chennai, India wanted to adopt solar cooking system for its hostel. However the desired cooking times and the availability of sunshine was not matching up. Breakfast is cooked at 4.00 a.m. and lunch cooking starts at 7.00 a.m., while dinner is cooked after 5.00 p.m. A steam-based system, the ARUN®100, with heat storage was designed and commissioned on October 26, 2013. Read more about it at: ARUN®100 with Thermal Storage at Ramkrishna Mission, Chennai - Ajay Chandak
- A molecular approach to solar heat storage Researchers MIT and Harvard University have posted promising results from experiments involving energizing photo-switching molecules, known as azobenzene, to store solar heat gain for extended periods. The molecules are then triggered much later to release their energy for uses requiring heat. Apparently the approach will not be effective for generating electricity, but cooking is a prime candidate. Read more at: A molecular approach to solar power.
Sun and Ice workshop in Senegal, August 2014
Sun and Ice workshop in Senegal, August 2014
- Stephan Zech recently posted these photos of a recent solar cooking workshop in Senegal.
June 2014
Sun and Ice send off 100 parabolic solar cookers to the Dominican Republic in June 2014.
- Stephan Zech, with Sun and Ice, reports they have just sent 100 parabolic solar cookers to the Dominican Republic.
April 2014
- Stephan Zech, with Sun and Ice, reports that they have distributed and impressive 50,000 parabolic solar cookers in the last ten years