#YoungIcons2024 The Smokeless Cookstove Foundation focuses on empowering marginalised communities across India by teaching them to build zero-cost, mud-based smokeless cookstoves through a signature training program

The Smokeless Cookstove Foundation (SCF) is a registered Section 8 Not for Profit organization established in 2017 by Nitisha Agrawal after leaving her corporate career. The foundation focuses on empowering marginalized communities across India by teaching them to build zero-cost, mud-based smokeless cookstoves through a signature training program. The organization has established a presence in over 14 states and has gained recognition from international forums such as the Clean Cooking Alliance and the Global Women’s Network for Energy Transition.

BREAKTHROUGH PROJECT:

While SCF has undertaken several small and mid-scale projects in over 14 states across several villages and with numerous tribal, remote, marginalized communities across India, its project with the Korku tribes in Khandwa, Madhya Pradesh has been the most important project for the organization and the team. SCF team worked for over 2 years with this community, and this is where its inclusive and participatory model was conceptualized and refined.

PROJECT FOR THE GODREJ DESIGN LAB (GDL) FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM:

Through the Godrej Design Lab Fellowship, SCF has been able to expand its understanding of the problem of traditional & open fire cooking in yet another tribal community residing in Palghar district of Maharashtra and Aarey colony in Mumbai. The fellowship has enabled us to not only work with our signature training model of improved mud cookstoves but also look at newer and greener cooking technologies like electric cooking and solar powered induction cooking both in domestic as well institutional cooking set up. We have trained more than 20 women and men across two blocks in Palghar and installed over 40 cookstoves so far.

HOW HAS THE GODREJ FELLOWSHIP HELPED YOU ADVANCE YOUR WORK?

GDL fellowship has been a kind of ‘watershed’ opportunity for SCF to work in its home state, Maharashtra with a section of Warli tribes residing in Palghar & Mumbai. While we are working through our signature model, this fellowship has enabled us to forge partnerships on multiple levels in areas of ethnographic documentation, exploring potential green technologies in institutional set up, opportunities for skill and capacity building, initiate independent research on State of cooking in rural educational institutions in India, and several other potential opportunities in months to come. GDL has also helped us showcase the problem statement of open fire cooking related issues and our work around it to an audience that otherwise would have not been accessible to SCF directly. With carefully drafted external communication around the Fellowship projects, continuous engagement with other Fellows and GDL facilitating team, there is a constant opportunity to discuss creative ideas and share learnings that helps in shaping up the work further.

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