Solar Cooking
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Last edited: 31 December 2017      
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The cooperative association Sol Solidari was created as a non-governmental organization (NGO) in Empordà, Catalonia, Spain in 2008. The main objective of Sol Solidari is to provide solar cookers, solar ovens, improved stoves, fireless cookers, solar lights and other appropiate technologies to rural communities in the developing world. Sol Solidari is formed by people with experience in sanitary cooperation projects on one hand, and with people with experience in environmental projects, working together on joint projects that combine both environmental and sanitary ojectives.

Sol Solidari panaramic workshop, 2-25-12

Photo credit:Sol Solidari

Whenever is possible, the devices are locally manufactured, where formation on its use is carried out with the help of a local counterpart, which monitor progress on the use of the devices. We commercialize the units and we also give microcredits to spread its use.

Sol Solidari receives grants from governmental institutions, and also donations from private institutions and citizens for the financing of their projects.

Our area of activity has been until now Africa, currently working in Ethiopia, Mali, Cameroon, Burkina Faso, Uganda and Namibia in partnership with a local based NGO.

Our priority areas are:

News[]

  • November 2011: Sol Solidari introduces 8 institutional rocket stoves in Cameroon. (Read more)
  • April 2011: Europastry is working with Sol Solidari to reduce poverty and desertification in Africa (English, español)
  • March 2011: Big success of the sale of subsidized solar ovens in Lalibela, Ethiopia. The people in this area now have seen the cookers function, and understand the benefits of these solar ovens, that we began to offer to them on a subsidized basis in early 2011.
Sol Solidari Ethiopia 2008
  • February 2009: Sol Solidari has finished his 2008 Ethiopian project in the Lalibela region and Abune Yosef Mountains (Bugna woreda). One hundred cookers and ovens have been distributed among seven villages of the area. You can see how the project was done at our web page or download this slideshow (in catalan).
  • November 2009: We move to Ethiopia to continue our project (second phase) in Lalibela region. Our aim is to establish a permanent cookers workshop in collaboration with our counterpart Bereket Dessie and where we will distribute subsidized cookers and ovens.
  • December 2009: We will go to Mali to carry out the first phase of the Bandiagara region project. In the same way than we did in Ethiopia last year we will introduce some cookers in the villages and, furthermore, in this project we will introduce economical stoves and solar water pumps.
Ethiopia solar

Lalibela, Ethiopia. January 2010

  • December 2008: In 2008 Sol Solidari started to introduce solar ovens in Lalibela and in the Abune Yosef mountains. The solar ovens are a kind of sealed boxes with glass in the upper part. The solar rays that come into the box cannot go out of it and the inside heats up like a conventional oven. This oven is less expensive than a solar cooker, but it is also slower. The idea is to be able to cook without supervising the food whilst cooking; although the preparation of the food will take several hours. In a first phase of the project the solar ovens were given free to the families with the biggest needs. These families were chosen by the kebeles to promote the knowledge of this new technology. In this way 166 ovens were given during the years 2008 and 2009. Now that the people in this area have seen the functioning and the benefits of these solar ovens we took a start, in 2011, to sell them subsidized. If each solar oven (made in Addis Abeba) will cost us 45 Euros we will subsidize 80%, thanks to public and private donations, and the client only will have to pay 20%, about 8 Euros. At the end of February we sent a first transport of 72 solar ovens to Lalibela. A local tradeswoman offered to sell them in his shop in exchange for a commission per sold item. Her shop is situated in a busy part of Lalibela; as soon as she exposed a solar oven in her shop, word went round that solar ovens were for sale there. To our big surprise all 72 ovens were sold in only two days! Also many more women expressed their desire to buy one directly whenever they arrived. So, as soon as we will have the money to subsidize 100 ovens more, we will order them and transport them to Lalibela. Ultimately this is another step forward to make use of a source of wealth that will never turn its back on us: the sun.

Audio and video[]

  • 2012:
Curs_solar_BURKINA_2012

Curs solar BURKINA 2012

External links[]

Contact[]

Dr. Deli Saavedra
Sol Solidari
Abat Escarré, 19
17007 - Girona
Spain

Mobile: +34-693034986 Email: info@solsolidari.org

Web: http://www.solsolidari.org (English version)
Twitter: @SolSolidari
Facebook: Sol Solidari