In the past year, we've raised thousands of dollars and sent hundreds of solar cookers to help refugees in Darfur.
Background: Over 250,000 refugees, mostly women and children, now live in refugee camps in Chad, across the border from war-town Sudan. This area offers little security beyond the camp perimeter. Girls and women who leave the camps in search of firewood and water often meet the same fate they encountered in their Darfuri homes: they are raped, beaten, branded, and sometimes killed by Sudan-supported janjaweed militia.
The Solar Cooker Solution: Refugees are given simple solar cookers made of aluminum foil and cardboard that convert sunlight into heat for cooking food and purifying water. After training, the women receive two cookers per family, one for rice or other starch, and one for sauce or vegetables. The use of solar cookers instead of wood not only reduces risks to women's lives. Solar power has the additional advantage of relieving pressure on a resource-poor environment.
