Aprovecho Wins International Award for Cleaner Stoves

Local sustainable research and education center Aprovecho has won an international award for their work in developing countries. Aprovecho was the international winner for the Ashden International Energy Champion Award on June 10. The award was presented to Aprovecho's executive director, Dean Still, by Prince Charles.

The Ashden Awards out of the United Kingdom honor work to inspire sustainable energy solutions in the UK and developing world.

The award was presented to Aprovecho Research Center from the US and Shenghou Stove Manufacturers from China for their work to "produce a cheap, robust and efficient stove for mass production to developing countries."

"The stoves replace dirty and polluting kerosene and open fires saving up to 50 percent of fuel wood and reducing 70 percent of dangerous emissions," says the awards web page, and according to Aprovecho only cost $4-$12. They are distributed around the world.

This is the second time that Aprovecho has been part of the Ashden Awards, the first was in 2006 when they worked with Programme for Biomass Energy Conservation in Southern Africa (ProBEC) on their rocket stoves.