JJ Bean Coffee Roasters

The following update was sent from Habitat for Humanity in February 2010:

Habitat for Humanity Guatemala has been working for over 30 years to reduce the housing deficit by helping Guatemalans build safe, secure homes for their families. Habitat Guatemala operates on a “hand up, not a hand out” approach, offering loans and construction expertise to those in need of a decent place to live. To date, we have provided 30,325 housing solutions, helping an estimated 151,625 people, most of them children, improve their qualities of life. In addition to full home loans, Habitat Guatemala offers home improvements and reparations. JJ Bean is partnering with Habitat Guatemala to bring smokeless stoves to the West-Highland department (geographical state) of Huehuetenango, Guatemala.

Over half of all Guatemalans live in poverty, with nearly one in five people living in extreme poverty. According to a study conducted by the World Bank, around 97% of poor, highland families in Guatemala use traditional energy sources such as wood and crop residues for cooking. Through using these materials on traditional open fire stoves, families dramatically increase their exposure to indoor air pollution (IAP). Exposure to IAP increases the risk of diseases for both children and adults, most notably acute lower respiratory infections, such as pneumonia, in childhood, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in adults. Women and young children are at greatest risk due to their household responsibilities. Informal estimates indicate that acute lower respiratory infection mortality among children could be reduced by as much as 60% annually by eliminating IAP. In addition to causing respiratory illnesses, open fire stoves also increase a family’s risk of burns and accidental fires. As fires are often on the ground, children may accidentally step in or near them, creating unhygienic and unsafe environments. Also, the soot that accumulates on the home’s ceiling makes the home more flammable and thus a safety hazard. Furthermore, the loss of energy associated with an open fire obligates families to burn a relatively large amount of firewood every day. This is both a financial burden for impoverished families, and a direct cause of deforestation in many parts of Guatemala.

In 2009, Habitat Guatemala started its first smokeless stove pilot project in the village of Macalajau, in the department of Quiché. Families expressed their satisfaction with the stoves, stating that they help women cook in a healthier, safer, and more economically and temporally efficient manner, while still providing a large cooking surface. Recognizing the health impact of the smokeless stoves, as well as the possibility to reach a lower income demographic, JJ Bean and Habitat Guatemala have partnered to promote the stoves in coffee-growing communities in Huehuetenango, a department in which over 70% of families live in poverty. Most families in the area currently use open fire stoves, thereby not only creating health risks for themselves but also contributing greatly to deforestation rates in Guatemala which are among the highest in Huehuetenango. At present Habitat Guatemala is handing out brochures in different communities that educate families about the negative effects of IAP and open fire cooking. In addition we have hosted meetings with local leaders and groups to discuss smokeless stoves and promote the new project. This quarter, the local affiliate will be building a model stove so that families can see the change a Habitat smokeless stove can make in their homes. These education and publicity efforts are the first step in bringing Habitat’s smokeless stoves to Huehuetenango. Thanks to JJ Bean, Habitat Guatemala will provide 20 families in Huehuetenango with safe, economical smokeless stoves in the first half of 2010.

Thanks so much to JJ Bean Coffee for making this all possible!