Protect Guatemalan Forests with Clean Cookstoves

This year has been very good to us here at Tu'ik Ruch' Lew (TRL).  Our clean cookstove project has continued to progress.  Although COVID-19 is still with us, most restrictions have been either reduced or lifted.  The TRL team has been meeting with potential beneficiaries again and stove installation is moving forward at a rapid pace.  We have installed 97 stoves since February 2022.

To meet the increasing demand for stoves, a new Technical Adaptation Specialist (TAS) has joined the TRL team, and, occasionally, our accountant volunteers to help with installations. We’re  proud that the members of our staff will pitch in wherever they are most needed. TRL received a grant for 162 stoves this year, so having a four-person team for installations, rather than a two-person team, has been extremely helpful.  We are already more than halfway toward meeting our installation goal. 

If you’ve been following our GlobalGiving updates, you will know that typically, when the rains begin in May, interest in clean cookstoves drops off. This is the time of year when families need to save their money to buy food—the next harvest won’t be in until August. However, this year, the demand for stoves has continued, and even grown.  Families are finding that having an efficient, clean cookstove helps them save money. The cookstove uses 70% less firewood than the traditional three-stone fire still being used in most Tz’utujil Maya homes around Santiago Atitlan. Reportedly in the double-digits, inflation has hit Guatemala hard. 

There have been some bumps in the road. A problem with the quality of a recent batch of stoves raised concerns about the manufacturing process. Isabel, our TAS, hitched a ride to the stove factory, when we sent a truck to pick up 40 stoves. She wanted to see if she could figure out what was causing the problem. While the truck was being loaded, Isa talked with the men who make the stoves. The men were surprised, but pleased, that someone was so interested in what they do.  We believe that the problem lies with not letting the cement completely dry. And in the rainy season, that means a delay in delivery. We’re having a similar delay with our hand-made replacement combustion chambers…this exceptionally wet and long rainy season has made it nearly impossible to produce the clay pieces, which must be dried in the sun before being fired.

Without your continuing support, none of our success would be possible. We send you wishes for a lovely Autumn along with our heartfelt thanks!

Warm Regards, 

The TRL Team

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