Farmer innovation driven by needs and understanding: building the capacities of farmer groups for improved cooking stove construction and continued adaptation

Uckert, Götz; Hafner, Johannes; Graef, Frieder; Hoffmann, H.; Kimaro, Anthony A.; Sererya, O; Sieber, Stefan

doi:10.1088/1748-9326/aa88d5

Cited by 19 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 53 publications

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“…The positive impact rating, as well as the high user frequency, show a positive assessment of ICS, which is controversially discussed in the literature. Many researchers refer to the benefits connected to ICS regarding reduced fuelwood and time consumption during cooking (Uckert et al, 2017;Hafner et al, 2018), while other scholars warn that ICS might reduce diet variety (Mwampamba et al, 2013). Masera et al (2000) indicate that ICS are inflexible because pot sizes cannot be adjusted, consequently limiting the amount and types of food cooked.…”

Section: Key Findings Of the Impact Assessmentmentioning

confidence: 99%

Adapting to Fuelwood Scarcity: The Farmers' Perspective

Scheid

Hafner

Hoffmann

et al. 2019

Front. Sustain. Food Syst.

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About 3 billion people worldwide depend on fuelwood to meet their domestic energy needs. Almost 90% of the population in Sub-Saharan Africa use fuelwood-based forms of energy. However, its use is often unsustainable and is one driver of environmental degradation. In Tanzania, the majority of rural residents depend on fuelwood as their major source of cooking energy. The adaptation measures applied by small-scale farmers in response to fuelwood scarcity are typically unsustainable with regard to socioeconomic , environmental, and food security dimensions. This study applies a methodological framework that assesses the personally experienced impact of coping strategies by local stakeholders on sustainability criteria. This framework comprises (1) the selection of appropriate adaptation measures; (2) the identification of local sustainability criteria; and (3) the participatory impact and frequency assessments at two case study sites in the semi-arid region of Dodoma in central Tanzania. Overall, eight coping strategies from 23 measures applied in the region were selected and four sustainability criteria defined by local key informants were identified. The participatory impact and frequency assessment show that the strategies of "on-farm tree planting" and "use of improved cooking stoves" are rated as positive across all four sustainability criteria and are regularly applied by the farmers. Two of the eight strategies are clearly negative: "eat fewer meals" and "increase in walking distance to collect fuelwood." These measures are regularly and widely used by farmers, thus amplifying the negative rating. Overall, the experiences of farmers suggest that applied coping strategies have the greatest negative effect on the environmental condition and, on average, a rather positive effect on economic conditions. The results offer an approach for developing a reliable monitoring of how adaptation measures are applied in response to fuelwood scarcity and to achieve distinct values for benchmarking.

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Section: Key Findings Of the Impact Assessmentmentioning

confidence: 99%

Adapting to Fuelwood Scarcity: The Farmers' Perspective

Scheid

Hafner

Hoffmann

et al. 2019

Front. Sustain. Food Syst.

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“…For instance, after switching to improved cooking stoves from three-stone fires in the Dadaab refugee camp in Kenya, the number of times women needed to walk for 4 h to the forest to collect firewood per week was reduced by 2 times [29]. Further, a 32% reduction in the annual time spent collecting firewood has been reported in Idifu village in Tanzania as a result of using improved cook stoves rather than three-stone open fires [30], while in Chamwino and Kongwa districts in Tanzania 50% saving of fuel collection time was reported [31]. The differences in time saved in various geographic locations are dependent on the distribution of firewood sources and the wealth of appropriate vegetation.…”

Section: Reduced Fuel Consumption and Time Spent In Collecting Firewoodmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Use of a larger TLUD gasifier by rural households in Kenya was reported to save 18% of time that would have been spent on cooking if using the three-stone open fire [20]. In Idifu village in Tanzania, the time spent on cooking was reduced by 20% when an improved cook stove was used instead of a three-stone fire [30]. However, arranging fuel in the canister and lighting fuel takes more time than with three stone open fire.…”

Section: Reducing Time Spent On Cookingmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In a study in rural India, it was found that cleaning the soot-laden pots due to use of inefficient stoves, when added to other work done by women like cooking and fuel collection, brought the women's time spent on these activities to around three hours per day [32]. Households in Idifu village in Tanzania cited reduction in smoke from improved cook stoves compared with three-stone fires as the main advantage of the former [30].…”

Section: Improved Kitchen Conditionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Implications on Livelihoods and the Environment of Uptake of Gasifier Cook Stoves among Kenya’s Rural Households

et al. 2019

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A majority of people in developing countries use biomass energy for cooking and heating due to its affordability, accessibility and convenience. However, unsustainable biomass use leads to forest degradation and climate change. Therefore, this study was carried out in Kwale County, Kenya, on the use of a biochar-producing gasifier cook stove and implications of its uptake on livelihoods and the environment. Fifty households were trained and issued with a gasifier for free. After 2–3 months of gasifier use, a survey was conducted to investigate the implications of its uptake. The direct impacts included reduced fuel consumption by 38%, reduced time spent in firewood collection, reduced expenditure on cooking fuel, diversification of cooking fuels, improved kitchen conditions and reduced time spent on cooking. The potential benefits included income generation, increased food production, reduced impacts on environment and climate change and reduced health problems. Improved biomass cook stoves can alleviate problems with current cooking methods, which include inefficient fuel use, health issues caused by smoke, and environmental problems. These benefits could contribute to development through alleviating poverty and hunger, promoting gender equality, enhancing good health and sustainable ecosystems and mitigating climate change. The study recommends the promotion of cleaner cooking stoves, particularly gasifiers, among households in rural areas while paying attention to user needs and preferences.

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“…However, measures such as tree plantations need several years before fuelwood is produced; thus deforestation is not reduced in the short term (Egeru et al 2014). Uckert et al (2017) indicate that limited financial capacities and a lack of awareness are bottlenecks for adopting energy-efficient fuelwood consumption solutions. Our findings, regarding the comparison of coping strategies between the CSS, suggest that if the aim is to reduce forest degradation, then decreasing fuelwood demand alone may not be effective.…”

Section: Preventive Versus Acute Strategiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fuelwood scarcity and its adaptation measures: an assessment of coping strategies applied by small-scale farmers in Dodoma region, Tanzania

Scheid

Hafner

Hoffmann

et al. 2018

Environ. Res. Lett.

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In Tanzania, the majority of the rural population still relies on fuelwood as their major source of cooking energy. The adaptation measures of small-scale farmers in response to increasing fuelwood scarcity play a key role in altering the course of nutrition insecurity, environmental degradation, and economic instability. This study delivers a classification of coping strategies that does not exist in the literature. Furthermore, it analyses the adaptation measures applied by small-scale farmers in the semi-arid region of Dodoma district in response to fuelwood scarcity. A comparison between two case study sites provides information on the choice of adaptation measures by households. Overall, 28 coping strategies from 24 studies are identified, then differentiated into preventive and acute measures that are arranged into eight clusters. The classification is then used as a codebook to identify applied coping strategies at two case study sites. In total, 23 adaptation measures, including two strategies not cited in the literature, were identified through 39 household interviews. This suggests that the majority of coping strategies applied are independently from regional and social conditions. The majority of the strategies applied at the case study sites and described in the literature are acute measures that do not tackle the underlying problem triggering forest degradation. It is observed that the adaptation measures across the case study sites are widely congruent, thus showing that acute strategies are not replaced by preventive strategies but rather co-exist.

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Farmer innovation driven by needs and understanding: building the capacities of farmer groups for improved cooking stove construction and continued adaptation

Cited by 19 publications

References 53 publications

Adapting to Fuelwood Scarcity: The Farmers' Perspective

Adapting to Fuelwood Scarcity: The Farmers' Perspective

Implications on Livelihoods and the Environment of Uptake of Gasifier Cook Stoves among Kenya’s Rural Households

Fuelwood scarcity and its adaptation measures: an assessment of coping strategies applied by small-scale farmers in Dodoma region, Tanzania

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