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Project Assida

Region/Community: Uru, Tanzania (with intension to expand to Kasese, Uganda)

Description: Project Assida aims to promote clean-burning renewable energy alternatives to traditional wood burning stoves. Many women and children throughout the developing world spend several hours daily collecting firewood. This time can be spent on income generation and education if they have access to a renewable energy stove option. Wood burning stoves also create serious health risks as they create concentrated air pollution in the small huts where women and children cook. Finally, deforestation is a serious problem in many regions, and by providing an alternative to firewood, the stoves prevent further environmental degradation. Project Assida has partnered with several on-the-ground NGOs to aid with the promotion and maintenance of the project. Students working on Project Assida traveled to Tanzania in January to conduct the initial pilot run and will return in the summer to continue follow up work.

From Lauren: Initially, I was doing a lot of work on the genocide occurring in Darfur, Sudan and learned of an extremely sad issue where women and children are often raped and attacked while collecting firewood. I began to research alternative stove options in hopes of bringing stoves to Chad, where many of the Darfur refugees reside. As the situation became more volatile, it became apparent that I would not be allowed into Chad. However, because I’m interested in green development more generally, I continued working on the project for other regions recognizing the value of renewable energy alternatives to firewood throughout the developing world. We hope to find that these technologies we’re promoting can be transferred to other regions, such as Darfur.