The 5 Stages of a Solar Oven Project
1: The Test
If we receive an application from a group of women, we begin the stage of testing whether a solar oven project is appropriate for their community: is there enough interest and is there enough sun? (There are many, many micro-climates in Central America.) We lend a solar oven to the community and we visit each month to cook with them and to answer any questions that may have come up during the last month. We ask them to keep track on a calendar the number of days that there was sufficient sun to cook. After six months, if there is a group of ten or more women who want to have their own solar ovens, they begin organizing themselves.
2: Organization
During this stage, the women form a committee: sometimes to look for financing, to arrange for lodging, food, and transportation for the CASEP instructers while the construction workshop is going on; and to sign a contract with CASEP listing all of their responsibilities as an owner of the solar oven.
3: Construction WorkshopA team of CASEP instructors - typically women who have already participated in a CASEP solar oven project - arrive at the community to help the women build their solar ovens. The workshops are three or four weeks long.
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4: Follow-UpDuring two years after the construction workshop, a promoter from CASEP arrives at the community to visit the women every month, giving them more advice about using the oven, sharing recipes, chatting about various things, and supporting the development of the group. How long is the process between the construction workshop and the first follow-up visit? What is the frequency of visits?(visits/year) How many times do we transfer the ovens from one woman to another? |
5: Independent Project
After two years, we expect that the group of women is well-formed and can continue in the future with more independence. When the group is ready, we no longer visit every month. Instead, we make a visit of the ovens twice a year.
How long do the solar ovens last?