Vietnam
From Solar Cooking
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[edit] News and Recent Developments
- March 2008: In early 2007 the non-profit Solar Serve (SLS) organization was prematurely evicted from its solar cooker factory in Tamky. Though unfortunate, the incident created an opportunity to move the factory to Da Nang, which is more suitable for transport, materials acquisition, marketing, and access to labor. A search for a suitable building was unfruitful, and the financially difficult decision was made to purchase land for a new factory. In August, SLS acquired a 420-square-meter tract of land big enough for a factory and additional space for research and storage. It is located behind the Marble Mountains area, along the beach and the new road to Hoi An. SLS worked with an architect to design the building, which will house the factory on the first floor, and a show room and training rooms on the second floor. Construction of the building began in November, and by the end of December the foundation had been laid and the exterior walls framed. Work continues on the interior walls and fixtures. SLS has a small budget, and didn’t have the funds necessary to purchase the land or pay construction costs. Though SLS doesn’t solicit donations directly, it received financial support from a variety of sources: “Friends and unknown people, individuals like a handicapped person, a former drug addict, an embassy worker, a single mother, an older couple who gave their anniversary gift, leaders from an organization, a church, support of a fair and secondhand sale, a sponsor walk, dozens of companies, poor, rich and also children.” SLS was overwhelmed with the generosity, and “felt like solar cookers bathing in beams of warmth and love. It was a miracle.”
- July 2007: In partnership with Dutch organization Solar Cooker Workgroup Sliedrecht NL, Vietnam Solar Serve (SLS) has developed a new solar box cooker for use in Vietnam. The previous SLS solar box cooker is made from wood, which is increasing difficult to purchase in Vietnam. The new cooker is made from aluminum sheets that are shaped using two molds, one for the inner box and one for the outer box. SLS has also been working on a new method of shaping parabolic solar cooker components. Dr. Hoang Duong Hung, an SLS supervisor from the University of Danang, has designed a machine that presses a wedge-shaped piece of aluminum into a parabolic curve, saving time over current manual shaping procedures. The six panels that comprise an assembled parabolic cooker can be disassembled for easy transport.
- November 2006: This year, the Solar Serve organization has been introducing solar cookers to the Raglai minority south of Phan Rang. Many Raglai cut and sell firewood for a living, and were a little hesitant to try solar cooking. They warmed to the idea over time. Solar Serve organized workshops, trained a person to conduct follow-up house visits, and ultimately provided 100 solar box cookers and 30 concentrator-type solar cookers to the community. One kind Vietnamese donor provided funds for 20 of the solar cookers. To celebrate International Environment Day, 70 Raglai solar cooked a feast of fish, beef, vegetables, rice, and curry for dozens of people, including some local authorities. Contact: Nguyen Tan Bich
 
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| From pot to plate, this solar curry dish was was a big hit.
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- November 2005: The Vietnam Solar Serve organization reports overwhelming response to a nationally broadcast television documentary of their work promoting solar cookers around Da Nang, including many requests to bring solar cooking to southern areas of the country. As a result, Solar Serve conducted several workshops in Phan Rang, an area that is "like a desert. Hot, dry and sandy." Water contamination is rampant, according to Vietnam Solar Serve. "There is no clean water available but dirty river water has been pumped into an open drain system. Every day people are using this water for cooking, drinking and washing." High levels of illiteracy forced the Solar Serve staff to be creative in their workshops, in which participants ultimately assembled 100 solar box cookers and several parabolic cookers. A two-day celebration at the end of the workshops drew over 100 people, who feasted on solar-cooked fish, beef, curry, vegetables and rice. Other media coverage and requests for assistance followed on the heels of the television documentary. "The first article was in a major newspaper. People from all over the country started to call the paper. It was so overwhelming that they published a second article and asked the people to contact us directly if they had further questions. From that day we received many telephone calls and a stream of visitors. It was hard who to answer first, the call or the visitor. Almost 100 people wanted to buy a parabolic solar cooker and others wanted us to set up a project with the solar box cookers. Amazing!" To meet the rising demand for solar cookers in Vietnam, Solar Serve will form a new entity to make solar cookers available for sale. The proceeds from cooker sales will directly support the work of Solar Serve. Contact: Nguyen Tan Bich
- July 2005: Vietnam Solar Serve, based in DaNang, reports building 300 solar box cookers and 50 parabolic cookers during the last rainy season. The organization is investigating ways to distribute the cookers in Quang Ngai province. Vietnam Solar Serve was recently one of several solar energy projects featured on a 30-minute national television documentary. Contact: Nguyen Tan Bich
- November 2003: The latest report from Nguyen Tan Bich is that his volunteer organization has distributed 700 solar cookers throughout the Quang Nam province in the past three years. These well-crafted solar box cookers are assembled by disabled individuals using local materials. Plans for the cookers are distributed freely. Funds are needed to help continue the spread of solar cooking in Vietnam. Contact: Nguyen Tan Bich
[edit] Climate, Culture, and Special Considerations
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