Natasha Robinson-Alanez
Berkeley (& Chaguitillo), California, United States
Empowering Women to Education
<font class="Apple-style-span" color="#660033" size="3"><b>Here's some background on me and my other projects in the area:</b></font><br><div><br></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(127, 127, 127); font-family: Georgia, 'Nimbus Roman No9 L', serif; font-size: 13px; "><font color="#008000">My name is Natasha and I have been living in Nicaragua on and off since the mid 1980s. Women's healthcare is a huge need in the community. My other work is listed below, we work providing pelusa a wood alternative from coffee shells to communities in Nicaragua. I am also a trained artist, there are some links below for those interested:</font></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(127, 127, 127); font-family: Georgia, 'Nimbus Roman No9 L', serif; font-size: 13px; "><font color="#008000"><br></font></span></div><blockquote class="webkit-indent-blockquote" style="margin: 0 0 0 40px; border: none; padding: 0px;"><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(127, 127, 127); font-family: Georgia, 'Nimbus Roman No9 L', serif; font-size: 13px; "><a href="http://www.expressionsgallery.org/artists-bios-0307.php">http://www.expressionsgallery.org/artists-bios-0307.php</a><br></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(127, 127, 127); font-family: Georgia, 'Nimbus Roman No9 L', serif; font-size: 13px; "><font color="#008000"><a href="http://www.anotherbullwinkelshow.com/chalk-art-2009/pages/2-art-nouveau-woman_jpg.htm">http://www.anotherbullwinkelshow.com/chalk-art-2009/pages/2-art-nouveau-woman_jpg.htm</a></font></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(127, 127, 127); font-family: Georgia, 'Nimbus Roman No9 L', serif; font-size: 13px; "><a href="http://www.examiner.com/events-in-san-francisco/chocolate-and-chalk-festival">http://www.examiner.com/events-in-san-francisco/chocolate-and-chalk-festival</a><br></span></div></blockquote><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(127, 127, 127); font-family: Georgia, 'Nimbus Roman No9 L', serif; font-size: 13px; "><font color="#008000"><br></font></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(127, 127, 127); font-family: Georgia, 'Nimbus Roman No9 L', serif; font-size: 13px; "><font color="#008000">Over the years, I have seen the surrounding forests cut down and used for firewood. I spent time planting trees but it was never enough. I wanted to make stoves that could run on fuel that didn't involve cutting down trees or using petroleum. </font></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(127, 127, 127); font-family: Georgia, 'Nimbus Roman No9 L', serif; font-size: 13px; "><font color="#008000"><br></font></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(127, 127, 127); font-family: Georgia, 'Nimbus Roman No9 L', serif; font-size: 13px; "><font color="#008000">My other project is called Green Stoves for All, we are currently working with a non-profit regarding this, look for more information at</font></span></div><blockquote class="webkit-indent-blockquote" style="margin: 0 0 0 40px; border: none; padding: 0px;"><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(127, 127, 127); font-family: Georgia, 'Nimbus Roman No9 L', serif; font-size: 13px; "><font color="#008000"><a href="http://greenstovesforall.com/Our_Story.html">http://greenstovesforall.com/Our_Story.html</a></font></span></div></blockquote><blockquote class="webkit-indent-blockquote" style="margin: 0 0 0 40px; border: none; padding: 0px;"><div><a href="http://greenstovesforall.com/Gallery.html" style="text-decoration: underline; ">http://greenstovesforall.com/Gallery.html</a></div></blockquote><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(127, 127, 127); font-family: Georgia, 'Nimbus Roman No9 L', serif; font-size: 13px; "><font color="#008000"><br>The stoves I started making and using were based on a design that had been in use for years and ran on rice hulls, wheat chaff, sawdust, or in our case, coffee husks. The stoves were made from old truck brake linings, but finding and then cutting these required a truck and a cutting torch, and were thus not sustainable. <br><br></font></span></div><blockquote class="webkit-indent-blockquote" style="margin: 0 0 0 40px; border: none; padding: 0px;"><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(127, 127, 127); font-family: Georgia, 'Nimbus Roman No9 L', serif; font-size: 13px; "><font color="#008000">One day I met a Peruvian man, named Nicanor Ponce, who suggested I try making the stoves out of clay. I started experimenting with different substances I mixed into the earth I dug out of my front yard until I found a formula that worked well enough and I started giving the stoves to my neighbors. The stoves were a big hit, and were now easy for anyone to make themselves. </font></span></div></blockquote><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(127, 127, 127); font-family: Georgia, 'Nimbus Roman No9 L', serif; font-size: 13px; "><font color="#008000"><br>Pelusa, or coffee husks are a by-product of Nicaragua's coffee industry. Coffee husks (or pelusa) historically have had little use and were burned in large smokestacks as waste. Today, coffee shells are in huge demand. Communities all over Nicaragua want the Pelusa to cook with. Wood is more expensive than ever and people have to go farther into the hillsides to find it. Pelusa and the stoves that burn it are one answer to the cooking woes of Nicaragua. It is also a solution to the problem of deforestation. <br><br></font></span></div><blockquote class="webkit-indent-blockquote" style="margin: 0 0 0 40px; border: none; padding: 0px;"><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(127, 127, 127); font-family: Georgia, 'Nimbus Roman No9 L', serif; font-size: 13px; "><font color="#008000"> Unfortunately, coffee shells are not a without their own set of complications. The coffee corporations (called Beneficios in Spanish), have very tight security on their drying yards. Citizens are commonly denied access to Pelusa shells for reasons of security. This hinders the people from acquiring coffee shells for their community.</font></span></div></blockquote><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(127, 127, 127); font-family: Georgia, 'Nimbus Roman No9 L', serif; font-size: 13px; "><font color="#008000"><br> Another complication is the transportation of the coffee shells from the coffee drying yards to the nearby communities. Nicaragua, being an extremely poor nation, has almost no individuals that have vehicles that could bring large amounts of shells to their communities. In the past, some of the beneficios have offered to loan their large trucks to to transport the shells as a favor to nearby communities, but their trucks are not available consistently. <br><br></font></span></div><blockquote class="webkit-indent-blockquote" style="margin: 0 0 0 40px; border: none; padding: 0px;"><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(127, 127, 127); font-family: Georgia, 'Nimbus Roman No9 L', serif; font-size: 13px; "><font color="#008000">Currently, I have a truck and haul the pelusa myself, but this helps one or two communities at best and I am searching for a way for each community to become self-sufficient.</font></span></div></blockquote><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(127, 127, 127); font-family: Georgia, 'Nimbus Roman No9 L', serif; font-size: 13px; "><font color="#008000"><br></font><font color="#008000">In order to get coffee shells from the Beneficios (coffee corporations), one has to convince<br>them that you have some authority. Having spent many years in Nicaragua, I am familiar to a lot of the people there. Sometimes I have brought a letter from a local politician to introduce myself and my project to the beneficios to gain their trust. Often the very fact that I am a foreigner gives me enough time to get my foot in the door. In time I hope to form an alliance with some of the major US coffee retailers, with their suppliers in Nicaragua.<br><br>Usually after a little lecture about the environment they are convinced that I am sincere and I am not scheming to steal the coffee beans. I just want the pelusa. Many times I offer the beneficio managers a free stove so they can see for themselves how it works. The stoves are a big hit and they almost always want another one. I am almost never turned away empty handed. <br><br>The list of coffee yards that have given me pelusa include:<br><br></font></span></div><blockquote class="webkit-indent-blockquote" style="margin: 0 0 0 40px; border: none; padding: 0px;"><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(127, 127, 127); font-family: Georgia, 'Nimbus Roman No9 L', serif; font-size: 13px; "><font color="#008000">Cafeteleros such as Esperanza, San Carlos, Provedencia, Picasa, Don Will, San Pedro, Bencafe, </font></span></div></blockquote><blockquote class="webkit-indent-blockquote" style="margin: 0 0 0 40px; border: none; padding: 0px;"><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(127, 127, 127); font-family: Georgia, 'Nimbus Roman No9 L', serif; font-size: 13px; "><font color="#008000">El Coco, Sajonia , Atlantic SA. and USEY. While we have obtained help from these beneficios, there are many more who can join our effort.</font></span></div></blockquote><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(127, 127, 127); font-family: Georgia, 'Nimbus Roman No9 L', serif; font-size: 13px; "><font color="#008000"><br>After securing a supply of pelusa, it needs to be transported to the communities. I have used my own funds to buy a four ton Isuzu truck. It can haul about 150 sacks of coffee shells in one trip. Several men from the community regularly volunteer to fill the sacks and then load them<br>on the truck. Once loaded, we head out for the neighborhoods. People come out of their homes<br>with their sacks in hand. They bring their sack over to the truck and we pour the coffee shells from my sacks into their sacks. <br><br>I would like to see this service expanded to other communities in the future to get as many people as possible to use pelusa instead of wood. I invite any organization or government to come help me in my efforts to help the poor and save the rainforest. <br></font></span></div>
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