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ENERGIA News Issue 2.2, May 1998

Letters to ENERGIA

The first phase of ENERGIA News is slowly coming to an end, and we are making good progress to secure funding for the continuation and professinalisation of the newsletter. Thanks to the steady flow of responses to the questionnaire which was included in the last issue, we are able to get a good picture of who our members are and what your wishes are regarding the lay out and information supply of ENERGIA News. This greatly helps us in convincing future donors of the necessity of the news letter and of the network for Women and Sustainable Energy.

ENERGIA News can now also be visited at the ENERGIA site (http://www.energia.org) and which is hosted by WIRE. They are doing an excellent job!! The site is still under construction, but we hope to present you information on calendar events, forum discussion, a Who's- Who directory and links to other interesting sites in the near future.

I work on a programme co-sponsored by USAID and the US department of Energy (DOE) to promote the sustainable and appropriate use of renewable energy in Mexico.
I have worked mostly with the conservation NGOs, specifically Conservation International, The nature Conservancy and the World Wildlife Fund and their Mexican partners, to define energy needs within their conservation and development activities and together determine those needs that can be best met by PV or wind. We have placed considerable focus on capacity-building and hands-on training with NGO personnel in all stages of project definition and implementation. This has included understanding life-cycle cost analysis when comparing RE with conventional options like gasoline or diesel generators; defining energy loads; building NGO-vendor relationships; evaluating vendor bids; requiring vendor guarantees and creating plans for system O&M.
Lisa Buttner, Cale Montebelo 176, Rincón de los Lagos, Tuxla, gutierrez CP29000, Chiapas Mexico; Tel./Fax +52.961.50063

I work as an international trainer for Solar Cookers International, which is concentrating on the introduction of the COOKit in East African refugee camps and in slum communities in Zimbabwe, but [I] also do some private consulting in introducing this technology into the private sector.
Louise Meyer, 3327 18th Street, NW, Washington DC 20010, USA; Email Louise.Meyer@ids2.idsonline.com

I have been shown the contents of one of your magazines and am very keen to become a member of your group. Currently, I am studying for a Master's degree in Applied Science with a special interest in appropriate technology and energy education.
At the moment I am in Nepal trying to organise people who will trial my research. I wish to develop a simple energy teaching package that will enable non-literate people to learn about energy. This would enable better use of new technology and hopefully the ability to adapt the technology to local conditions.
Ms. Ruth Barclay, 109 Pleasant Road, Lower Templestowe, Victoria 3107, Australia; Email ruth@fritz.devtech.unimelb.edu.au