Success Stories from Our Members in the field

Here Comes The Sun; Solar Cookers Help Refugees in Kenya, Solar Cookers International

For lack of firewood, thousands of refugees in Kenya were swapping food rations for cooking fuel, at least until the intervention of an American nongovernmental organization that provides an environmentally friendly alternative to the cooking fire.

Solar Cookers International began distributing low-cost, sun-fueled ovens in the Kakuma refugee camp, weaning refugees off their dependence on the rapidly shrinking forests of northwest Kenya. Since 1995, over 22,000 families - more than 100,000 people - have benefited from the solar cookers.

The simple ovens, manufactured in Kenya, rely on a reflector, a dark pot with a lid and a clear plastic bag to trap heat and cook food. Financed by private donations and grants, the cookers cost a little more than $5 per person.

Surveys of the refugees reveal that the solar cookers allow them on average to save 27 percent of their firewood, while some reported savings up to 70 percent. No longer forced to trade food rations for wood, refugees have been able to increase their food consumption by an average of four servings daily.

Better health among the refugees - resulting from less air pollution and fewer burns - has been a side-benefit of the innovative program. The introduction of solar cooking technology has also helped conserve wood and prevent fires.

The initiative by Solar Cooker International provides a vivid example of how international partnerships can reach into a refugee camp to create self-sufficiency, preserve the environment and help vulnerable people.