Project Surya: Solar Cookers to Change the World

Posted on October 28, 2008 by Samantha Tackeff in Concept+Design

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Veerabhadran (Ram) Ramanathan, a professor at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at University of California San Diego, is looking to reduce global green house gas emissions while promoting the development of the world’s poor. Ramanathan has come up with Project Surya a concept project that would address the challenge of mitigating global warming by introducing clean-cooking technology in developing nations, and scientifically evaluating the impact on global warming.

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The first steps of the plan will give 3,500 “clean energy” and solar cooking devices to rural homes in the Himalayan area of Mukteshwar and document their effectiveness in reducing harmful emissions of carbon dioxide and black carbon (soot). The next steps will tackle emissions from the transportation sectors. Not only do the participants get clean cooking technology, but the pilot project includes a particularly ingenious idea of monitoring pollution levels through the distribution of cell phones loaded with GPS and an accelerometer to measure both the participants daily activities and the daily air quality through a link up with special filters and a bluetooth temperature sensor installed in the kitchen area.

The Other Carbon: In addition to Carbon Dioxide, Black Carbon, or “soot”, is a major contributor to global heating. Black Carbon absorbs sunlight from the atmosphere, causing warming. Unlike Carbon Dioxide, Black Carbon remains in the atmosphere for only a couple of weeks, and importantly, reducing black carbon emissions has been shown to have the immediate effect of reducing warming within weeks. It’s anthropogenic sources are from agricultural burning, residential burning of biomass for cooking and heating, and the use of diesel engines for transportation and industrial use.

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About half of the world’s population use biomass burning (such as wood, charcoal or dung) to cook and heat their homes, which in addition to carbon emissions causes a huge global health problem: the World Health Organization estimates that indoor and outdoor air pollution from biomass burning causes more than 1.6 million deaths each year. Thus, Project Surya will be combating not only the climate issue but hopefully improving the health of millions around the world.

In the future, reducing the impact of Wood Stoves and oil stoves on global emissions of greenhouse gasses will require policy changes on the national level, including mandates, conversion projects to clean-energy cooking alternatives, new stove standards, and tax incentives, or other ways to make this technology easily accessible to some of the worlds poorest citizens. Initiatives like Project Surya will be able to create the scientific data and local proof that world governments should take immediate action on this issue.

While Project Surya is to be implemented in the Himalayas, if it is successful, hopefully it can be used as a model, and replicated in regions of China, Africa, Russia, to help millions of poor all over the world improve their technologies, their health, and their successful development. In addition to Project Surya, other groups are in the race to to innovate sustainable technologies for developing countries. Recently, students at MIT created a $17 solar cooker out of yak-wool canvas panels stretched over bamboo ribs and faced with reflective Mylar. This is one project of a joint effort founded by MIT and Wellesley students called One Earth Designs to create inexpensive technology to aid citizens in developing nations.

More information on the project can be found at the Project Surya Website. and in an article about the professor in San Diego’s Union Tribune.

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Photo: [d], flikr , procsilas, flikr

Tags:

Development, Himalayas, Solar Cooker, Technology

14 Responses to “ Project Surya: Solar Cookers to Change the World ”

Stephanie

28. Oct, 2008

Oftentimes, these simple solutions can help the most. Especially for developing countries. Thank you for bringing Project Surya to our attention. Its great to know where we can donate much needed dollars.

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Carolyn

29. Oct, 2008

This is important work. It is also valuable to be reminded that ‘going green’ means different things in different places and economic situations. Thanks for sharing.

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Bippy

29. Oct, 2008

Cloudy days > Solar Cooker.

Pwnt.

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Sam

29. Oct, 2008

Bippy- this is true, although the project focuses on both solar cookers and (other clean energy cookers). The focus on solar cookers though is based on usage in predominantly sunny climates.

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Michele

29. Oct, 2008

How is it possible that I saw this exact item in a store here in Milan?

Is the Professor demoing in Europe or did he steal the design?..

I don’t think he did, anyway if he did, he did it for a right cause.

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Sam

29. Oct, 2008

Michele- The design for the solar cooker wasn’t invented by Ram- he’s using existing technology, but creating a system for getting it out to the people who need it most.

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fah

29. Oct, 2008

A very similar proyect was developed here in Argentina a few years ago but theirs is portable. http://www.xcruza.com.ar/cocina/

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Bunny

29. Oct, 2008

Yes, this is a very old idea, and I do personally like this technology, but I feel it misses the mark. This is not uncommon for people from first world countries because there are many realities that first world occupiers have never had to deal with.

The largest problem here is food safety and the dangers of diseases from biting insects. People from the first world have often never had to deal with flies and other insects as an ongoing and real problem. People from the first world normally do not realise that smoke from many types of fires keeps many of these insects away from the food, including the food that does not need cooking. Mosquitoes are also kept away by certain types of burning fuels.

This solution may just save greenhouse gasses, but may kill thousands through food contamination and thousands more through disease.

These people do not have the fly proof kitchens, insecticides and bug lotions that those in California do. Not to mention that the fly sprays and bug lotions that would be needed to protect these people may just to more harm than good ecologically.

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Bruce K

29. Oct, 2008

Here’s a link to a solar water purifier that’s also cheap to manufacture and being targeted for third world countries. Drinking unsafe water IS a problem. I’d like to see hundreds of thousands of these Watercones distributed.

http://greenterrafirma.com/wordpress/diy-solar-water-purifier/

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jeroen

03. Nov, 2008

Nice idea,

Please do not pretend that the USA is not a developing nation. 4.400 Homeless people in San Diego need you!

country first anyone?

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Total Solar Energy

10. Dec, 2008

great article. these cookers are life savers in remote regions where there is no electricity. clean safe food for everyone. we take such things for granted in the west

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