August 30, 2022 — A new report by the Clean Cooking Alliance features the work of Sustainable Harvest International (SHI) and others in expanding access to clean cookstoves as a critical, yet under-valued, nature-based solution to climate change.

According to the 68-page report, 2.4 billion people around the globe have no access to clean cooking technologies, depending instead on inefficient and harmful stoves that emit over 120 megatons of climate pollutants annually. The lack of access to clean cooking technology causes more than US$2.4 trillion in damage to the climate and local economies and contributes to more than 3.2 million premature deaths every year.

The report underscores the critical need for investment in clean cooking technology, especially in “hot spots” like Belize where over 50% of woodfuel harvest is unsustainable. The report concludes with a series of recommendations for decision-makers across government, private, and non-profit sectors.

SHI has been promoting clean cooking technology in Central America for the past 25 years. To date, SHI has constructed 2,600 wood-conserving stoves that reduce families’ firewood consumption by 50%. SHI’s efforts to increase access to clean cooking technology is a critical part of improving rural livelihoods and reducing the drivers of deforestation.

For just $60, you can give the life-changing technology of a wood-conserving stove.

Learn more about SHI’s work with improved cookstoves:

Read the full Clean Cooking Alliance report HERE.