A guide to clean cooking with African Clean Energy
A win-win solution for generations to come.
It seems so normal, to many people, to come home from work and whip up a quick meal. However, in some communities, this practice is incredibly unsafe. Around 4 million people annually — more than AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis combined — are affected by indoor air pollution caused by dangerous cooking and heating practices.
“The majority of these people are women and children, and their health is not the only cost. I haven’t even gotten into the environmental cost,” said Judith Walker, COO of African Clean Energy, in a past interview.
The family business, a social enterprise and one of Proof of Impact’s most innovative impact partners, enables decentralized access to clean energy for rural households in Sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia.
Clean cookstoves are not a new venture in the developing world. However, the way these have been deployed in the field has had varied results in the past. Studies have found that even a little bit of smoke can cause health problems. With this in mind, African Clean Energy has developed an innovative smoke-free cookstove.
Win-win
The ultra-clean stove, called the ACE 1, is a nifty invention that has several benefits to families and communities in developing countries.
- Health benefits
Each year, close to 4 million people die prematurely from illness attributable to household air pollution from inefficient cooking practices and using polluting stoves paired with solid fuels and kerosene. According to the World Health Organization, these fuels can release harmful particles and smoke into the air while burning. When a person inhales these regularly, it can cause lung diseases and pneumonia.
The ACE 1 cookstove by African Clean Energy does not emit smoke while cooking. How? The solar-powered fan at the bottom of the ACE 1 stove adds oxygen to the fire to increase combustion. This ensures the fire gets so hot it gasifies biomass and therefore interferes with smoke production. The stove can produce as much as 5 kW worth of energy.
- Safety benefits
When cooking on an open fire often, fuels such as coal, paraffin, or kerosene are used. Not only does this cause a huge amount of smoke, if an unstable homemade cooking device or lamp that uses highly flammable fuels falls over, it can also easily turn into a lot of misery, risking homes and even entire communities to burn down.
The stable, safe, and clean cookstove by African Clean Energy solves this problem and more. The solar battery used to power the fan also eliminates the need for kerosene lamps or other unsafe energy sources. The USB connection can additionally power an (included with the stove) LED light, further reducing the risks of causing a fire.
- Economic benefits
The clean cookstove by ACE reduces fuel use by about 75 percent, saving 83 percent in costs and drastically improving women and children's lives, who do most of the cooking in many communities. In households with polluting cookstoves, women and girls spend on average 18 hours per week collecting fuel or water for their homes. Take this limitation away, and they can devote this time to education, health, development, and work.
The cost of acquiring an ACE 1 is accessible to most people that live on $2 a day or more because of ACE’s empowering financial model in the shape of a micro-loan. Repayments are facilitated by the energy savings customers achieve by using the cookstove, reducing the costs of purchasing kerosene, candles, and charging phones. When fully charged, the solar battery will power the fan for over 20 hours of cooking.
- Environmental benefits
Inefficient home stoves can cause broader suffering, too. Firewood collecting and trade promotes deforestation and timber smuggling. The smoke from cookfires pollutes indoor air as well as outdoor air. Black carbon emitting from wood fire accelerates the effects of climate change if the billions of people currently using open fires cannot change the way they cook.
ACE is a helping some of the most underserved consumers in the world save money on fuel expenses while providing for their thermal energy needs in a clean, sustainable way.
The ACE 1 can burn any dry solid biomass fuel (such as animal waste, crop residue, sticks, and twigs) and drastically reduces the reliance on wood fuel and kerosene for cooking, relieving nature and people.
Understanding needs
To develop their product, African Clean Energy gathered in-depth information about their clients’ needs, rather than assumptions. Surveys conducted by sales teams and by phone after each purchase resulted in over 3000 data points to better understand customer needs.
What makes the ACE 1 so different from other cookstoves is that it’s a hybrid thermal/electrical device. Over 95% of the kWh consumed by households in developing countries is attributed to thermal energy (cooking and heating). The remaining fraction is used for electrical needs such as charging and powering devices and lighting. By providing both, ACE helps some of the most underserved consumers in the world save money on fuel expenses while providing for their thermal energy needs in a clean, sustainable way.
Providing smart solutions
A remarkable result of African Clean Energy’s impact research is the rollout of an upgraded ACE 1 cookstove with a microprocessor. In short, “smart” capabilities will allow the stove to communicate with smartphones. The next-generation ACE cookstoves will come with a refurbished Samsung smartphone with a pre-installed ACE Connect app.
When the cookstove is connected to the phone by USB, the app will gather the latest customer payment status and usage data. While reporting back to ACE to provide more clear stats on their environmental and human impact, the app will also enable customers to manage and monitor their loan repayments, reducing the default risk. Further benefits include usage tips and a direct connection to ACE’s customer service and maintenance teams.
It is safe to say that African Clean Energy is well on its way to fulfill a mission to help conserve our environment for generations to come and empower communities. Data really is key, and quantifying impact will further improve experiences in the long run. It’s a win-win for all.
Proof of Impact empowers businesses to offset their carbon footprint or aligning their brand to one or more UN Sustainable Development Goals by offering a rich and data-driven experience for all stakeholders, such as customers, employees, and investors. Contact us via hello@proofofimpact.com.
