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Robert V. Lange
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These are very special times for the ICSEE and we want to share them
with you.
It is my pleasure to announce the launch of a new program of the ICSEE(Tanzania) in social enterprise, alongside the Maasai Stoves & Solar Project. Read detail below.
Lowering the cost of our stove
while keeping all of its excellent features is always a goal. Read about the new money-saving designs we are testing in the field.
Kisioki, our manager, is one of the young African
leaders invited to study and travel in the U.S. this summer.
This week he attended a summit with President Obama. See below for more.
And I invite you to take a few minutes and enjoy the latest video of Philip Lange for a good look at boma electrification, also an important part of our work.
With appreciation,
Twende!
Robert V. Lange
August 2016
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An exciting announcement about our new launch
In Swahili,
Maisha Bora means "the good life". And now, it also means a new way to bring income to the people. We are proud to announce the launch of Maisha Bora Collaborative Enterprises (MBCE).
Peter Jepson and Nadine St. Amant have long been interested in social enterprise, a way to use ideas from for-profit business practice to provide benefits for the people. Social enterprise does not depend on grants or ongoing donations.
Thank you to Peter and Nadine. It is your initial investment that allowed this new program to launch.
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We thank Peter Jepson and Nadine St. Amant who provided the initial investment in social enterprise. They are pictured here standing on the newly-purchased Maisha Bora land
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The ICSEE(Tanzania) is providing the framework for this approach. The Maasai Stoves & Solar Project and MBCE are now working side by side.
Under the auspices of ICSEE (T) the MBCE purchased land and is constructing a new building to be used for a grain storage enterprise to bring income to Maasai women.
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The new grain storage facility-- in progress
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A cow-fattening enterprise that employs Maasai men is already underway.
The MBCE committee made up of Peter, Nadine, Kisioki, and Bob is studying fuel briquette manufacture. Made from waste, briquettes could eventually be an excellent replacement for charcoal.
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Reducing stove costs
The Maasai Stoves & Solar stove is very successful. The high demand for it and the fact that no women have abandoned it confirms that it is indeed what they need and want.
Our stove is not terribly expensive, but we still have to help the households pay for it.
Adequate pay for installation team women is most important to us, as earning possibilities are the top priority in poor rural communities.
While maintaining the excellent qualities of the current model, we'd like to reduce costs with a new design.
Most of the engineering features that make the stove so successful , and allow it to work well alongside the brick chimney, are embodied in our steel firebox.
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Experimenting with a new brick configuration
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We are now field testing new stove designs that retain all the good features of the current model, but use much simpler steel tops.
We think the function of the firebox can be accomplished with a more complex brick
and mortar foundation, such as the one pictured here.
We anticipate that our field tests will soon show that altering the brick foundation can bring down manufacturing costs significantly, while still maintaining all the important stove features that are the basis for 100 percent sustained adoption.
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Focusing on leadership, attending a summit with Obama
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Kisioki (in the center) in traditional dress at his family boma in Selela
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The U.S. State department honored our manager, Kisioki Moitiko, as one of 40 members of the Tanzanian delegation to the Mandela Young African Leaders Initiative.
Kisioki joined 20 people like himself, government workers and leaders of development projects, for six weeks of study at Arizona State University.They focused on leadership in civic engagement.
They also traveled in Arizona, including a trip to the impoverished Hopi reservation there.
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President Barack Obama
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In all, 1000 young African leaders representing all the Sub-Saharan African countries participated in the Initiative.
This week, the program culminated in a three-day summit in Washington D.C., with a speech and greetings from President Obama at the finish.
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The latest on electrification
View "No More Darkness: Maasai bring electricity to their homes," a video produced by Phil Lange. Keep up with news of our boma electrification project.
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For a better life for the rural world, and a cleaner environment for all
Worldwide Headquarters-
NOTE NEW ADDRESS
International Collaborative, Maasai Stoves & Solar Project
466 Putnam Avenue, Unit 1
Cambridge, MA 02139 USA
1-508-735-9176
Support our work with your tax-deductible
donation
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