INDEPENDENT NEWS

Cablegate: Nicaragua: Solar Women of Totogalpa Win Seed Award

Published: Wed 5 Nov 2008 05:10 PM
VZCZCXYZ0000
RR RUEHWEB
DE RUEHMU #1354 3101710
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 051710Z NOV 08
FM AMEMBASSY MANAGUA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 3347
INFO RUEHZA/WHA CENTRAL AMERICAN COLLECTIVE
UNCLAS MANAGUA 001354
SIPDIS
STATE/OES/ENV
PASS TO USAID/EGAT JUAN BELT
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: SENV EAID ECON KSCA NU
SUBJECT: NICARAGUA: SOLAR WOMEN OF TOTOGALPA WIN SEED AWARD
1. (U) Summary: A Nicaraguan project to launch a cooperative
business producing and marketing products such as solar
cookers and photovoltaic panels made from recycled solar
panels was one of five winning projects worldwide in the 2008
Supporting Entrepreneurs for Sustainable Development (SEED)
competition. Nicaragua,s project focuses on the work of the
Women of Totogalpa,8 a women,s cooperative from
rural northwest Nicaragua attempting to transform its
community through a self-sustaining, community-based
business. The SEED Initiative is a global network founded in
2002 to contribute toward the goals of the UN,s Millennium
Declaration and the commitments made at the Johannesburg
World Summit on Sustainable Development. The Nicaraguan
project, Up Hope and Communities,8 was chosen
from among 400 applications representing 100 countries. End
Summary.
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THE SOLAR WOMEN OF TOTOGALPA
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2. (U) Solar Women of Totogalpa (Mujeres Solares de
Totogalpa) is a group of rural women from a small community
in northwest Nicaragua who have worked in partnership with
the National Engineering University,s Program for
Alternative Energy Sources (PFAE) since 1999 to promote
renewable resource technologies and practices. With its
project, Up Hope and Communities,8 the
partnership has set up a cooperative enterprise producing
photovoltaic panels from recycled solar cells, solar cookers
and dryers, and solar cooked or dried food and medicinal
plants. The enterprise began with used or damaged solar
cells purchased at a discount from Skyheat Associates, a U.S.
source of solar materials and expertise, coupled with
training and assistance provided by SUNI Solar, a local
Nicaraguan enterprise based at the Engineering University.
The project also has benefited from technical exchanges with
students and faculty from the University of Dayton (Ohio).
From these beginnings, Solar Women learned how to trim used
or damaged solar cells to produce new, recycled cells that
can be installed in solar cookers and food dryers. Solar
Women also manufacture adobe bricks, which the group used to
construct a solar building to house the Up Hope
and Communities8 enterprise and sell to the public.
3. (U) The SEED Award will allow the Up Hope and
Communities8 enterprise to increase production, become
self-sufficient, and expand support to other community
development projects. The $25,000 one-year SEED Award is
specifically designed to assist each partnership to attain
sustainability, primarily through paying for technical and
legal assistance. Within five years, Up Hope and
Communities8 expects to be self-sufficient.
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THE SEED INITIATIVE
-------------------
4. The SEED Initiative was founded in 2002, following
commitments made at the Johannesburg World Summit on
Sustainable Development by the International Union for
Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the UN Development Program
(UNDP), and the UN Environment Program (UNEP). Partners in
the initiative include the governments of the United States,
United Kingdom, Germany, the Netherlands, South Africa, and
Spain. It seeks to identify and support promising local
enterprises working in partnership to improve livelihoods,
fight poverty and manage natural resources sustainably in
developing countries.
5. (U) The Department of State is a partner in the SEED
Initiative through the Bureau of Oceans, Environment and
Science. Following a 2006 commitment from the U.S. of
$100,000 for the 2006-2008 cycle, the SEED Initiative
increased its request for support from major donors from
$100,000 to $200,000 annually. The United States continues
to seek additional support for the initiative on an annual
basis. Embassy Managua Public Affairs Section will assist
the Nicaraguan project in building a network of useful
contacts. Additional information about the SEED Initiative
may be found at the following website: http://seedinit.org.
CALLAHAN
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