Gira-Sol

Rural communities in the Amazon rely on inefficient wood stoves to cook and process food products. Most of this wood comes from illegal deforestation, which, upon burning, generates greenhouse gases that contribute to global warming and causes health problems in the community. Gira-Sol solves this by developing low-cost, sustainable clean energy systems, like briquetting technologies that transform local agroforestry waste (açaí seeds, cacao husks, etc.) into energy-efficient briquettes, solar-heated stoves and biodigestors. Then, we partner with local governments and community leaders to promote new rural food businesses that use our technologies, empowering traditional Amazon communities and creating a sustainable food production chain. At scale, this public-private partnership business model can use carbon credits to finance business expansion and growth, all while protecting the Amazon rainforest.

The Amazon rainforest is disappearing. Every year, unsustainable socioeconomic activities destroy over 8,800 sq. km of rainforest - an area 12x the size of New York city. Part of this is due to reliance on wood stoves in rural communities - for example, over 57% of the population in the Amazon state of Pará rely on wood to cook food. Most of this wood comes from illegal forestry, and when homes and local industries burn it, they release harmful greenhouse gases like black carbon and carbon monoxide, that cause health risks for local populations and contribute to global warming. Additionally, wood is mostly collected by women, who spend over 18 hours/week just to collect wood, placing them at risk. Gira-Sol rethinks this entire ecossystem by taking wood out of the equation completely, through low-cost and energy-efficient solutions.

Gira-Sol develops and implements low-cost technologies to enable local communities in the Amazon to cook and process food with clean energy, focusing on three systems: 1) solar stoves and ovens, which trap solar heat to cook or dry food products in simple wooden boxes coated with reflective and heat-absorbant substances; 2) biodigestors, which convert biomass waste into biogas and fertilizer through biochemical reactions within partially-buried plastic barrels and tanks, and; 3) briquetting machines, which transform local agroforestry waste (like açaí seeds, cacao husks, etc.) into energy-efficient briquettes through a simple mechanical process with a series of wooden presses. We then empower community members to use these technologies to improve or create new local businesses. For example, they can sell the briquettes to barbecue restaurants or small manioc flour producers, helping them reduce costs and improve efficiency. Finally, we can monetise the reduction in deforestation by selling carbon credits to interested buyers, providing an additional revenue stream. 

Our target population are the rural communities of the Brazilian Amazon, including quilombos and riverine communities. These communities have low incomes (less than $200/month) and rely on subsistence farming, extractivisim and agroforestry, with a focus on manioc flour, açaí and cacao food chains. Far from urban centers, they can't afford the costly gas stoves or other clean energy solutions, so they cook and process food products for exports by burning wood they unsustainably collect from the forest in a time-consuming and risky process. This often occurs within their own house or other enclosed spaces with poor ventilation, which places them at risk of developing health issues. These needs were identified in academic literature and verified locally through needs assessment surveys conducted with a Design Thinking structure. Surveyed users in Bujaru/PA also highlighted a desire to switch to more sustainable solutions, if the cost wasn't prohibitive and access were simple. 

By reducing dependency on wood burning and creating new business opportunities, Gira-Sol helps traditional communities in the Amazon to become more resilient in light of climate change and the shifting food chain structure that focuses on sustainability. By using our clean energy technologies to cook and process food with agroforestry waste, instead of relying on wood derived from illegal logging, these communities gain improved health, cleaner air, economic growth and reduced waste. For example, if a local manioc flour producer switched to our energy-efficient briquettes, he would instantly reduce costs. At scale, this would improve resilieancy for the entire community.

Gira-Sol was created in January 2021, after previous research on the clean energy market and existing solutions. Since then, we've partnered up with the local government of the small Amazon town of Bujaru, State of Pará, to test our clean energy solutions through a pilot project in the Bom Intento community. Currently, we have 1 solar oven and 5 briquetting machines being tested in the community, with plans to install our prototype biodigestor by December 2021.