Blacksmiths are not normally associated with environmental protection, but for the Kisangani Smith Group (KSG) it is an obvious link. KSG was set up in 1996 as a volunteer organisation with a mission to alleviate poverty, and initially focussed on passing on blacksmithing skills to unemployed disadvantaged young people, enabling them to make and sell tools.

Rural blacksmiths need charcoal to run their furnaces, and KSG realised that charcoal was a major contributor to deforestation. The group therefore started an ambitious programme of tree-planting, and has planted 100 hectares of fuel wood and restored 24 hectares of indigenous forest to date. This will eventually provide them with a sustainable supply of wood and income. In return for the use of the land, KSG is helping the local village get electricity by working alongside village members to build a hydro scheme.

Developing more efficient cooking stoves was the logical next step for people with metalworking skills who are committed to forest protection. KSG has developed two types of ‘Rafiki wa mazingira’ (environmentally friendly) cooking stoves, which can be made by blacksmiths using hand tools. Since 2005, over 3,500 stoves have been made and sold by KSG and its trainees.

The first is an innovative stove made by hand from sheet metal. This stove burns sawdust, which is readily available as waste from the timber and furniture industry in Njombe. Elsewhere in Tanzania it is also used with rice husks and other agricultural residues. When filled with packed sawdust, the stove can burn steadily for up to six hours. Users like the stove because it cooks quickly and cleanly, needs little attention, and above all saves money. A stove costing 35,000 TSh (£16) can save a family over 10,000 TSh (£4.50) per month from purchasing charcoal. Thus the stove pays for itself in three or four months.

The second stove is designed to burn wood more efficiently and has a sheet metal exterior, lined with clay and bricks to form the combustion chamber. Preliminary measurements suggest that this stove uses 75% less wood than an open fire, and opinions of users confirm this. For users, the main advantage of the stove is saving the time and drudgery of collecting wood, but they also find it allows quicker and cleaner cooking.

KSG members have not benefited from higher education, or extensive external support. They have simply used their practical abilities and commitment to make a difference – giving skills and income-generation potential to young people, and developing and selling effective wood-saving stoves, using designs which could be followed by any blacksmith.

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The Ashden Awards for Sustainable Energy