Making a World of Difference: Cooking with the Sun

Making a World of Difference: Cooking with the Sun

Paul Munsen, SUN OVENS International

In a world that generally seems so complicated, things can sometimes be very simple. According to the World Health Organization, about 3 billion people use fires to cook and heat their homes—burning wood, animal dung, crop waste and coal. Each year, about 4 million people die prematurely from illnesses attributable to pollution from cooking with solid fuels. More than half of deaths among children under age 5 is due to soot from household air pollution. Adding to that, with global deforestation occurring at an alarming rate, about half of the wood consumed in the world is for heating and cooking. Come on, how hard can this be?

For 28 years, SUN OVENS International, located in Elburn Illinois, has been making solar cookers in the USA. The company’s ovens are currently used in 130 countries around the world with the support of organizations including the USA Department of Energy, the UN High Commissioner on Refugees, World Bank and many others. In 2004, Nelson Mandela attended the dedication of a SUN OVEN project in the Eastern Cape of South Africa.

The SUN OVENS International business model is to sell solar cookers in the USA to those who wish to save energy and prepare for emergencies and to use a portion of the profit from those sales to support SUN OVEN cooking in deforested developing countries. The company works to develop and implement solar cooking programs that decrease dependence on fuelwood and dung as cooking fuels, benefiting the environment, raising standards of living and improving human health.

MAREA is delighted to welcome the president of SUN OVENS International, Paul Munsen, as our speaker on June 30 at TEK PARK. Well, sorta! Turns out, Paul can’t come to PA that night but can join us online using a new service they’ve set up. Here’s how: We will gather in our usual time and place at TEK Park. Paul’s live presentation will be projected onto the screen and questions will be taken from the crowd. (Others can use their computer to watch and ask questions from home. See details below.) We’ll have a SUN OVEN in the room and some folks there with solar cooking experience to share. And of course, snacks and conversation!

In his presentation, Paul will talk about solar cooking projects in developing countries, including the environmental, health and quality-of-life benefits. He’ll also explain how SUN OVENS work and how to use them. Solar cooking products will be described with pricing and how to purchase. SUN OVENS is going to offer the MAREA audience a discounted SUN OVENS package with accessories (details below).

To join the live meeting from home (over the computer), just go to this website: http://events.instantteleseminar.com/?eventid=70884228.  You can see and hear the presentation and questions, and type in any questions you’d like to ask. For a week after the meeting (using the same website link), anyone can view the recording and still ask questions. They’ll be answered by the next day. The discounted Sun Ovens package will also be available for the week.

We hope you can join us on Tuesday, June 30 at 7:00 at TEKPark in Breinigsville, PA (between Kutztown and Allentown) or online. Meetings are free and open to the public. After the meeting, please plan to stick around and chat with friends old and new. We’re also interested in your ideas for MAREA speakers, activities and services. Light snacks will be served. Hope to see you there!

Paul M. Munsen is the president of SUN OVENS International, Inc, located in Elburn, Illinois USA, and is the leading manufacturer of high quality solar cooking devices. He has been involved in solar cooking projects and taught solar cooking on 5 continents. Paul has addressed the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development at the UN Headquarters in New York and worked on projects supported by Rotary International, the U.S. Agency for International Development, U.S. Department of Energy, the Overseas Private Investment Corp., U.N. High Commissioner on Refugees, South African Ministry of Minerals and Energy, British High Commission and World Bank. He is the past-president of the Illinois Society for International Development, and a member of Solar Cookers International and the Illinois Solar Energy Association.

SUN OVENS International package discount for MAREA

·  One All American SUN OVEN

·  Multi-Level Dehydrating & Baking Rack Set (set of 3 racks w/1 roll parchment paper)

·  Two Easy-Stack Pots with interchangeable enamel and glass lids

·  One Multi-Fuel Water Pasteurizing Indicator (WAPI)

·  Two Loaf Pans

·  One Cloudy Day Cube Stove with 2 Fuel Disks/Fire Starters

·  Ten Fuel Disks/Fire Starters

·  SUN OVEN® eCookbook & Emergency Preparedness CD with 600 recipes, hundreds of pictures, video clips and much more

Sun Oven is offering MAREA a 30% discount, reducing the package price from $448 to $315 (shipping included). A Sun Oven without accessories can be purchased on Amazon for $294.

For questions, contact Vera Cole, <a>[masked]</a> or [masked].

Free DVD with MAREA membership  While supplies last, all new and renewing MAREA members will receive a free copy of “Saving Sunshine, Keeping the Lights on with Batteries and Solar Power,” the 30-minute DVD produced by MAREA this year with funding from the Berks Community Foundation and distributed by Bullfrog Films. It’s terrific film, offering an interesting and easily understood explanation of the electricity grid and distribution generation, especially the role of batteries with solar. MAREA is a 501(c)3 non-profit. Donations and memberships are how we keep the lights on. You can join at the meeting or anytime online. Thanks for your help.