On a cool sunny day in Borrego Springs, California, Eleanor Shimeall walks from her kitchen and goes
outside to a strange-looking piece of equipment. She opens a glass door and puts some bread inside. Then
she opens another flap of a box made of glass and wood and pulls out a pot of chicken and rice. ‘Ah it’s doing
nicely’, she says. Shimeall’s meal looks delicious but the remarkable thing is that she isn’t using wood or fossil
fuels such as gas or coal to cook her food. Instead, Shimeall is using the sun to make her meal, and she’s
done it almost every day for more than 20 years. Using her solar cooker, she can cook meat, fish, grains and
vegetables – just about anything that you can cook on a normal cooker.
This method of cooking is becoming popular among people who are concerned about the environment and
global warming. However, they aren’t the only people interested in this unusual invention. In developing
countries around the world, solar cookers have the potential to save lives. According to one expert, people
around the world may soon not have enough traditional fuels. He explains in his own words, ‘With sunshine
you have an alternative to fire. And that’s important for two and a half billion people to learn about because
they’re running out of non-renewable fuels.’
Eleanor Shimeall and her husband, Dr Bob Metcalf founded a company to promote solar cooking around
the world 15 years ago. They came up with the idea for Solar Cookers International (SCI) for
two reasons: they wanted to help stop the terrible deforestation which is occurring in
some countries, and they also wanted to make women’s lives easier. The problem of
deforestation is often due to the demand for trees and wood to use as fuel. The
women who collect the wood often have to walk two to three miles. It’s also
their job to look after the fire and the smoke can burn their eyes and choke
their lungs. According to the World Health Organisation this problem can
be linked to the death of two million women and children each year.
SCI has already trained more than 22,000 families to cook their
traditional food with a solar cooker. When the women first receive their
solar cooker it looks like pieces of cardboard and shiny metal. Someone
from the organisation comes along to show them how to use it and the
women are always surprised that it cooks a wide range of dishes such
as soups, rice, potatoes, and bread. As well as being a safe way to
cook without traditional fuels, SCI say it can make water safe
to drink by heating it to the correct temperature. Even more
importantly each cooker only costs about five dollars
SCI has been making the lives of African women easier
with their solar cookers and now similar projects are also
starting in countries such as Nepal and Nicaragua.
Their goal is to increase the use of solar cookers
everywhere. Dr Metcalf adds, ‘Science is supposed
to help and benefit all of mankind and we’ve got
something that is good science that could help
half a billion people in the world.’ With the need
for renewable fuels at a global level, perhaps solar
cookers could also have a place in richer countries
as well as the developing world.
Proszę o napisanie streszczenia tego tekstu!
On a cool sunny day in Borrego Springs, California, Eleanor Shimeall walks from her kitchen and goes
vegetables – just about anything that you can cook on a normal cooker.
This method of cooking is becoming popular among people who are concerned about the environment and
global warming. However, they aren’t the only people interested in this unusual invention. In developing
countries around the world, solar cookers have the potential to save lives. According to one expert, people
around the world may soon not have enough traditional fuels. He explains in his own words, ‘With sunshine
you have an alternative to fire. And that’s important for two and a half billion people to learn about because
they’re running out of non-renewable fuels.’
. The
women who collect the wood often have to walk two to three miles. It’s also
their job to look after the fire and the smoke can burn their eyes and choke
their lungs. According to the World Health Organisation this problem can
be linked to the death of two million women and children each year.
SCI has already trained more than 22,000 families to cook their
traditional food with a solar cooker. When the women first receive their
solar cooker it looks like pieces of cardboard and shiny metal. Someone
from the organisation comes along to show them how to use it and the
women are always surprised that it cooks a wide range of dishes such
as soups, rice, potatoes, and bread. As well as being a safe way to
cook without traditional fuels, SCI say it can make water safe
to drink by heating it to the correct temperature. Even more
importantly each cooker only costs about five dollars
SCI has been making the lives of African women easier
with their solar cookers and now similar projects are also
starting in countries such as Nepal and Nicaragua.
Their goal is to increase the use of solar cookers
everywhere.