Days 10 and 11: Solar Bakery Inauguration and All Things Solar
Now that we’ve focused our scope on helping Vatsalya get their first course accredited, we’re truly making progress. It feels a bit like playing an old questing game, like the Legend of Zelda. Each time we find a piece of information, we discover that we need to go to a new government web site or contact a different organization to understand the next step.
Still, we have selected the Vatsalya course (possibly two) to target and discovered the right application channel. Now, we are working on decoding the 23-page application form. Oh my!
Solar Bakery Inauguration
Yesterday, we visited Vatsalya’s campus to witness the inauguration of the new solar bakery. It’s a truly impressive accomplishment. When the solar ovens on the market proved too expensive and too small for their needs, the team decided to build their own. With two engineers and two members of the cooking staff, they designed, built, welded and wired a working oven complete with lights, a 360-degree viewing window and ventilation.
In India, an inauguration begins with the breaking of a coconut — instead of opening a bottle of champagne. That was followed by the cutting of the cake, just like in a wedding ceremony in the US. Afterward, everyone enjoyed samosas, pizza and cake prepared in the oven. Our team was honored to be included in the ceremony.
All Things Solar
During our visit, we learned that Vatsalya’s dream is to go fully solar. They’re well on their way. The solar powered cooking pot and solar bakery mean that all cooking on campus is now solar. The sewing studio and most of the offices are also powered completely by solar.
Vatsalya has even started designing products under a separate for-profit arm. Their first is a solar-powered lantern, which can run for 15 hours on its fully charged solar battery. These lanterns provide a hands-on practice opportunity for the students in the solar courses.
Fun facts: We learned that solar apparatus on the cooking pot rotates automatically to follow the sun and resets itself over night. Also, it paid for itself in just 8 months!
Before leaving campus, we visited the Anoothi store and stocked up on blocked printed and hand-stitched gifts for our families, all of which are made by artists trained at Vatsalya. Many are made on site.
