Holly Hughes sent ECI this report:
The past few months have seen exciting new developments for Vita, not least of which was our 30th birthday recently! Who would have thought, 30 years ago, that our mission would evolve from refugee support to addressing climate solutions!
Striving to implement community-led programmes in East Africa that prioritise decarbonisation and climate mitigation, Vita continues to safeguard the futures of rural communities through sustainable livelihoods.
Fuel-efficient cookstoves are an important element of this strategy and are quickly gaining popularity in areas that have been harshly affected by worsening environmental conditions. In Ethiopia, Vita has ambitious plans to achieve green status in these areas through climate mitigation programmes.
In fact, our wonderful Programme Officer, Emily, has just returned from a trip to our Ethiopian office, where she met world expert on community-led programmes, Kamal Carr, to discuss the best ways to implement carbon-reducing and climate mitigating practices to rural villages. Emily spent an informative week talking to many professional staff and village leaders, as well as holding community workshops around fuel-efficient cookstoves, in partnership with the CLTS foundation.
These stoves use less fuel, reduce carbon emissions by 60%, and prevent further deforestation in an already overworked landscape. They also liberate women and children from the drudgery of collecting wood, meaning more time can be spent earning money or attending school, which has endlessly positive impacts on the wider community.
This cookstove project perfectly demonstrates how, now more than ever, everything is connected to protecting God’s Earth and why climate mitigation is a fundamental part of safeguarding and improving the lives of many.
It has been a nostalgic month for Vita looking back on our long history and, with more governments committing to protecting our planet’s future, we have never been more excited to continue fighting for a better, fairer world!
