Transition Areas
Fair Energetics
- Alternative energy supply
- Integration of different energy uses.
- Energy efficiency.
- Change of use and consumption patterns.
- Self-management of health.
The first to talk to this organization about community energy was Fundaexpresión, a partner in the process, when they held a workshop on the costs associated with electricity, gas and firewood consumption.
This had a great impact on the family, who identified the multiple possibilities offered by the efficient stove and the dehydrators, since in addition to saving, they could keep water warm, bake new dishes and innovate with activities such as drying plantains and cassava.
From the beginning they thought of a proposal that could articulate different energy actions, so before starting the construction of the stove, they planted a woody forest from which they could obtain the wood; later they connected it with the silage and, finally, they are starting the process with the biodigester.
It is important to highlight the importance of the exchange of experiences among neighbors for the development of these processes, since the communities that benefit from community energies replicate the technical and thematic learning among their community networks.
Technical characteristics of the proposal
- Efficient stove: it has an oven, water heater and four burners; with the heat generated inside, meals are prepared for the family and products are sold.
- Woodshed: it has the capacity to provide firewood for the stove in which food is prepared for the family and products to market and share.
- Solar dryer: it has the capacity to dehydrate plantain and cassava for flour production; it is also used to dry coffee.
All these inputs come from the farm and the food dehydrated in the solar dryer is used for the family’s own consumption, but also leaves a surplus for marketing. We want to expand the capacity of the dryer in order to have a larger quantity of products to sell (mainly flours have a great sales potential).
- Fodder bank: species such as buttercup, sugar cane and bore are grown, which can be used to cover the feeding needs of the farm’s animals, since the foliage is used to make silage.
- Biodigester: by 2021 was in the initial phase of its implementation, which began with a planning and design work that took into account the location according to the proximity to the animals; the place to dispose of the organic material was defined and an exit point for the compost was established.
Productive, community, environmental, or economic processes or activities that were positively impacted by the implementation of the community experience of TEJ.
This community energy experience, on the one hand, contributes to the family’s self-consumption and the feeding of their animals (cows, chickens, pigs); on the other hand, it allows the production of flour for commercialization.
The family plans to expand the capacity of the solar dryer to be able to produce a larger amount of flour to market, increasing their income and making good use of all that is produced on site.
The flours that are elaborated extra to the expense of the house, in their majority are bought by Fundaexpresión that uses them as raw materials for the elaboration of food products such as cakes, tamales, drinks, coladas and arepas, which sometimes are taken to fairs and events. In addition, they are also sold to some people in the community.
Beneficiaries of the experience
1 family composed of 1 woman, 2 men, 2 teenagers (between 13 and 18 years old), 1 girl (between 0 and 18 years old), 1 boy (between 0 and 18 years old) and 1 girl (between 0 and 18 years old).
to 12 years)
Achievements and problems encountered during implementation
ACHIEVEMENTS:
- Environmental conservation: in the Buena Vista reserve, the environment is cared for by avoiding the cutting of trees, since the stove is fed only by the woody garden and costs much less than a traditional wood-burning stove. In addition, the air is not polluted.
- Improved health conditions of the people who cook, since they do not breathe smoke inside the kitchen. The food is better prepared, they can have more variety and thus take care of the health of the whole family.
- Better quality of life for the family: with the money they receive from the sale of flour, they can have access to other foods. They have the possibility of improving this income through increased production.
- Use of the farm’s resources to feed the family, the farm’s animals and to generate extra income.
- This experience has created curiosity in other people, as many neighbors come to ask how things are done, they also want to know how they work and what they can do, some show interest in being able to do it in their farms.
PROBLEMS:
- They have identified the maintenance of the solar dryer as a problematic situation: it was built two years ago and they had to rebuild it because the plastics and wood were damaged.
- They also identified that the size is not enough if they want to expand sales of the meals, since initially to make silage the size was adequate, but later, when they began to see that they could make other products, they realized that they had to make a better fit.
- Lack of financial resources for the construction and start-up of the biodigester.
Women’s participation in the TEJ community experience
The women’s participation in this experience began when a young woman from the village became interested in learning how to build efficient stoves. This was perceived as a bit strange at first because the construction work was always done by men, but after she started building stoves, other women wanted to join in the process.
Then, in the assembly of the solar dryer, there were more women in the whole process in both planning and construction.
This experience has allowed them to see how little by little the women in the village are more participative and integrated to the experiences, now with the biodigester that some people have in the area, there have been a greater number of women in the assembly process.