Cooking with Maya Nut Workshop
Allison Shaw, TWP’s Assistant International Director, has been announced as the 2009 recipient of the Wall Alumni Service Award. The $25,000 Award is available to alumni of Grinnell College, where Allison graduated from in 1998 with a BA in Biology.
Allison’s proposed project, Protecting Family Health and the Environment in El Salvador, will work to expand TWP’s current fuel-efficient stove project, while, at the same time, introducing the nutritious Maya Nut tree into the local diet. This project will provide significant health, economic, and environmental benefits to communities in El Salvador. The main goals of the project are to build 100 new fuel-efficient Justa stoves, to create jobs for two local women as stove promoters, and to produce 1,300 Maya Nut trees. With these goals met, Allison believes we will continue to see increased native forest cover in El Salvador by reducing the demand for firewood and planting Maya Nut trees. Also, family health will be improved by reducing exposure to smoke and improving nutrition.
Through a collaborative effort with TWP and the Equilibrium Fund, as well as the Salvadorian NGO Arboles y Agua para el Pueblo, Allison will coordinate and manage the project. Her experience as a Peace Corps volunteer in Guatemala, as well as her two years of work with TWP makes her the perfect administrator for this life-changing project. We are looking forward to the contributions that Allison will bring to communities in El Salvador and congratulate her on this wonderful award!
Categories: Uncategorized
Trees, Water & People (TWP) has been announced as the 2008 winner of the US$1 million Rio Tinto Prize for Sustainability. Co-founder and International Director of TWP, Stuart Conway, was delighted to accept the Prize at the 2009 International Economic Forum of the Americas (Conference de Montreal) in Montreal on June 9, 2009.
“We are absolutely thankful, delighted and overwhelmed with gratitude at being announced the 2008 Prize winner. We now have the opportunity to expand our community reforestation and improved cook stove programs in Honduras, Nicaragua, and Haiti. In particular, we will look to use the Prize to leverage additional sources of funding, and increasingly share the work we are doing with other interested organizations,” he said.
Rio Tinto global head of Health, Safety & Environment Elaine Dorward-King said the Rio Tinto Prize for Sustainability was designed to recognize and reward not-for-profit, civil society and non-government organizations for significant contributions to the goals of economic, environmental and social sustainability.
Rio Tinto partners with the International Business Leaders Forum (IBLF) to facilitate an inclusive, rigorous and transparent management process for the award of the Prize. IBLF engages independent sustainability experts from around the world to ensure the process and decisions are made in an objective and consistent manner. Rio Tinto does not participate in the assessment process.
IBLF chief executive Adam Leach said the diversity of the organizations short listed for the Prize in 2008 demonstrated the diversity of work being undertaken locally throughout the world to contribute to global sustainable development. “All ten short listed organizations in 2008 highlighted the depth and range of talent, initiative and skills that exist in the civil sector,” he added.
For more information about the Rio Tinto Prize for Sustainability, visit www.riotintoprizeforsustainability.
Categories: Uncategorized
ECi to Offset Carbon with TWP
ECi Software Solutions (ECi) has recently joined with Trees, Water & People (TWP) to offset carbon emissions and help combat global warming by planting trees. This partnership is part of ECi’s new “Going Green” initiative; an effort to help both ECi and their clients decrease their carbon footprint.
ECi has pledged to plant 10 trees with TWP for every $1,000 in new business related to their delivery management software, RoutePerfect™ and RouteTrak™. These products help companies with delivery operations reduce their carbon footprint through paperless invoicing, route optimization, reduced fuel usage, and reduced vehicle maintenance.
With this generous donation, TWP will plant trees in Central America, continuing our ongoing efforts to help communities protect and conserve their threatened natural resources. With every five trees planted, ECi will be able to offset approximately one ton of their carbon emissions, greatly reducing their impact on the environment.
“We are very excited about our partnership with Trees, Water & People,” stated Nathan Green, ECi’s Relationship Development Manager. “Through our tree planting initiative with TWP, ECi is leading the way as a model to show that being good corporate stewards of the environment does not require sunk cost in your business. Reduce your company’s carbon footprint, increase profits and plant trees to ensure a better environment for future generations…what more could you ask for?”
Categories: Uncategorized
PSD Energy Manager Stu Reeve accepts check from Lacey Gaechter of TWP
On Tuesday, May 12, Trees, Water & People (TWP) attended the 9th Grade Celebration at Kinard Junior High School in order to present the $4,000 donation raised during this year’s Renew the Rockies – The future IS Clean Energy event. The graduation ceremony included a feature on the impressive environmental initiatives at the school. Kinard is the most energy efficient school in Colorado and received an Energy Star plaque to honor its impressive efforts. As Stu Reeve, Energy Manager for the Poudre School District likes to say, “Buildings don’t save energy, people do.” While Kinard is constructed to be extremely efficient, Reeve highlights the fact that teachers and students – such as those in the environmental group Kinard CARES – have undertaken an impressive effort to maximize use of the building’s energy saving features.
Solar electricity will be a critical component in moving toward zero-emissions for the building. With this goal in mind, Trees, Water & People incorporated fundraising for a photovoltaic array into this year’s Renew the Rockies event. At the 9th Grade Celebration, Lacey Gaechter, Community Outreach Coordinator for Trees, Water & People, presented Kinard’s portion of the proceeds from the March fundraiser, which Poudre School District will use toward the installation of a 10kW system on the school. TWP was honored to share a small part of the spotlight with the extraordinary graduates of Kinard. The four-hundred people in attendance showed a tremendous amount of support for both their students and the school’s commitment to environmental excellence.
Categories: Uncategorized
Trees, Water & People (TWP) partnered with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to lead a regional forum for leaders of local watershed groups and water protection agencies May 4-6, 2009. Thirty-seven participants travelled to Loveland, CO from throughout the Intermountain West and as far away as Washington DC to discuss the future of watershed protection.
The roundtable is part of the Protecting the Water of the Arid West (PWAW) project led by TWP and is funded by a Targeted Watersheds Capacity Building Grant from the EPA. The aim of PWAW is to enhance the abilities of watershed groups to understand, protect, and restore their home waters by providing a network of supportive, capacity- building services.
A major focus of the event was providing the opportunity for grassroots organizations to connect with leaders of state, regional, and national agencies and discuss how to improve collaboration, strengthen programs and increase funding. TWP’s National Director Richard Fox explained how this roundtable lets us “turn agencies into people.”
Besides the extraordinary chance to interface with potential allies, participants came to the roundtable to learn what their interstate counterparts are doing, where they have found success, and how they have dealt with obstacles.
Categories: Water
TWP was recently awarded a grant from Namaste Solar in Boulder, Colorado, for the installation of a 2 KW solar electric system at the Red Cloud Renewable Energy Center (RCREC). This system will provide renewable energy for RCREC’s facilities, as well as serve as a demonstration for visiting tribal members and a teaching tool for future trainings. The installation will be completed this summer by Namaste and RCREC staff, as part of an interactive workshop on solar electricity.
Categories: renewable energy
Every day is Earth Day at Trees, Water & People.
Our name speaks for itself. We at Trees, Water & People are just that; people who improve other people’s lives by helping communities protect, conserve and manage their precious natural resources EVERYDAY. From our fuel-efficient stoves and tree nurseries, to our solar heating systems and watershed protection programs, we are working EVERYDAY to make a difference for both people and the planet.
Today, TWP would like to thank you for your commitment to making a difference for people and the planet. Celebrate Earth Day every day with Trees, Water & People!
To learn more about TWP and how you can offset your carbon footprint visit www.treeswaterpeople.org.
Yours for a greener tomorrow,
Trees, Water & People
Categories: Uncategorized
More than half of the world’s population relies on biomass combustion to meet basic domestic energy needs. Indoor cookstoves can result in extremely high levels of indoor air pollution and can lead to severe respiratory and other health problems. The World Health Organization estimates that pollution from these stoves kills over 1.6 million people worldwide each year.
Traditional indoor cookstoves can result in extremely high levels of Indoor Air Pollution (IAP), a serious health issue in the developing world. IAP is linked to Acute Respiratory Infections (ARIs) and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), both major causes of illness and death. Traditional cookstoves that emit hazardous wood smoke are the main contributors of IAP. Women, children and the elderly are the most vulnerable to the toxic gases and fumes, and IAP is the leading cause of morbidity and death for children under five years of age in Latin America. Improved stove technology and commercialization projects have proven very successful at eliminating IAP because they incorporate chimneys into their design which vent the harmful smoke outside the kitchen.
There are solutions to this massive global health problem. In the summer of 2008, a group of Colorado State University students working with Professor Jennifer Peel and Trees, Water & People traveled to El Fortin- a barrio of Granada, Nicaragua- to assess the exposures and health of families using traditional indoor cookstoves.
The families in El Fortin received an improved, more energy-efficient stove with a proper ventilation system. In the summer of 2009, we will return to the community to assess the effectiveness of the new stoves in reducing exposure and improving the health of these families. The study will provide critical evidence about the success of these stoves as a potential solution to this problem affecting families worldwide.
For more information about TWP’s “Improved Cookstove Intervention to Assess Changes in Woodsmoke Exposures and Health Status among Nicaraguan Families” project please go to www.cvmbs.colostate.edu/erhs/Nicaragua
Categories: fuel-efficient stoves
I hope this note finds you well. I am a Peace Corps Volunteer in
Metapan, the most northwestern region of El Salvador. I have seen your
projects first hand in other parts of the country, and have been
completely blown away. The effect they have on the local communities is
outstanding and impressive.
I am writing to you to find out how I can become involved in these
projects. In my area, reforestation projects and stove projects would
be ideal. I would love to have more information on these projects and
if there would be any opportunity to bring them to Metapan. It would
be really ideal because there are 8 Peace Corps volunteers in the
area, all of who could help organize, facilitate, and sustain these
projects.
Thank you so much and I look forward to hearing from you!
Emily Clyne
Voluntaria Cuerpo de Paz
Santa Rita, Metapan
El Salvador
Categories: fuel-efficient stoves · local support · reforestation
The Lopez Nature Center, also known as the Outdoor and Wildlife Learning Site (O.W.L.S.), was once used as an outdoor educational area by Lopez Elementary. With funding from Larimer County Open Lands and the City of Fort Collins, Trees, Water & People (TWP) will restore this natural area to again serve as a unique learning experience for Lopez Elementary School, making it a place that that can be enjoyed by students, as well as the community.
The area already provides habitat for many species including the Western Screech Owl, Red Fox, and several types of song birds. Our efforts will enhance the suitability of this area for these and other species. By using native plants, we hope to attract native wildlife, including the threatened Preble’s meadow jumping mouse.
The Lopez Nature Center restoration and improvement will take place this spring. TWP looks forward to working with the Lopez Webelos, a great group of cub scouts ages 7 to 11, who plan to make this area a favorite project for many years.
Categories: local support
