PROJECT UPDATES
APRIL 2009
$2,335 has been wired to the Self Employed Women's Association (SEWA), 1Well's field partner in India, to be begin construction on 6 biogas plants in Sonalnagar. Local engineers and masons have been hired, and construction will begin in early May.
MARCH 2009
Congratulations to the students of New Trier High School's Amnesty International Club for meeting their project goal!
Read the recent press and blog posts about the Sonalnagar project:
- Field stories from Sonalnagar from the 1Well Blog.
- New Trier benefit concert raises more than $1,700 for Indian village from Winnetka Talk.
- 'Jamnesty 2009' set to rock out from Winnetka Talk.
About the Project
Sonalnagar is an agricultural community that borders the desert in rural India. Everyday, women must spend 3-4 hours collecting 20-50 lbs of firewood to fulfill their family’s cooking needs. The current practice of burning wood and kerosene is highly damaging to the lungs and is a fire hazard, especially in the houses with grass roofs.
Students from the New Trier High School Amnesty International Club are partnering with families in Sonalnagar to build biogas plants, small structures that mix cattle dung and water to produce clean cooking gas and organic fertilizer as a byproduct. A family of 4-10 needs 25 kilo of manure (the amount four animals create), mixes it with 25 liters of water, which then produces 2 hours of gas in the morning and 2 hours of gas in the evening. The gas runs from the biogas unit via a rubber hose into the house where it connects to a small stove.
Impact
Biogas plants prevent the destruction of the natural environment by diminishing deforestation and the burning of wood. It reduces CO2 emissions that result from burning wood as fuel and puts to productive use the energy that already exists in animal manure. The current practice of burning wood and kerosene is highly damaging to the lungs and is a fire hazard, especially in the houses with grass roofs.
Women will be alleviated from the need to spend hours collecting firewood, and can work as embroiders or agricultural laborers to earn an income for their families. Smoke-free and ash-free kitchens will also greatly improve the health of women and children. In addition, the organic fertilizer produced by the biogas plants will also allow families to be able to better farm their small plots of land.
Join the New Trier High School Amnesty International Club and partner with Sonalnagar village to provide families with a renewable source of clean energy.
Thank You:
The Braun family (Evanston, IL), and the Batlle family (Evanston, IL)
for investing in this project!
