Mission trip of a different kind

(Top: Ngobe women in their traditional nagwa dresses and carrying heavy bags (called chakaras) on their foreheads take a moment to enjoy the view; Middle: A complete version of a lorena stove, a more efficient way to cook with wood; Bottom: A traditional 3 stone fire for cooking in the Comarca)

“One of the least known problems of poverty is indoor smoke from cooking. … The World Health Organization estimates that indoor air pollution in a smoky hut exceeds by a factor of sixty the European Union’s standard maximum for outdoor air pollution. The sufferings from acute respiratory infections are hard to convey to people in rich societies, who no longer experience them. The lungs fill with pus, some of which the patient coughs out. The infection causes chills, fever, shaking, sharp pains in the chest, nausea, and vomiting. Death follows when the infection goes untreated. This is how indoor smoke kills. The death toll is around 1.8 million a year worldwide”. (White Man’s Burden, page 109)

I have no idea how many people are directly killed from respiratory complications due to smoky indoor cooking in Panama, but I do know that I hear my neighbors hacking away all the time and no one smokes cigarettes here. Women are primarily in charge of cooking, so they are most affected, as are infants and small children who are never far from their mothers’ side.

Cooking in many parts of the world, including the Comarca, hasn’t changed much since the beginning of time. Food is prepared in pots cooked over a 3 stone fire. I have the luxury of cooking on a propane gas stove, but this requires about a $70 initial investment and $7 for a new tank of gas each time it runs out. The high price of propane gas stoves presents an economic barrier that is too high for people here, plus many live hours away from roads and/or a store that would sell propane gas tanks. For all of these reasons, traditional, stone-age style cooking methods continue, as do the respiratory complications.

One solution is to use what is called an estufa lorena (lorena stove) that burns the firewood in a protected chamber, cooks two pots at the same time and then carries the smoke out through a chimney and away from the cooks’ face (or the house). This stove also has the advantage of burning about 50% less firewood because it has significantly less exposure to air than a traditional 3-stone fire that is exposed on all sides. So, when another volunteer met a guy who is from a community who was interested in learning more about this stove, we offered to make the trip. The community is way to far away from roads, medical care or cell phone reception for Peace Corps to send a volunteer, but that didn’t stop us from visiting to teach them how to build the lorena stove. 3 volunteers and I rode on the back of a pickup truck for an hour or so on a 4 wheel drive only road and then walked mostly uphill for 7 hours on trails to arrive in a small community called Cascabel, which lies on the continental divide in the Comarca.

I don’t claim to be an expert at making lorena stoves. In fact, I had only made one, during training, over a year ago. Even that was built between 20 or so people, so I was mostly sifting sand for a good part of the day. Fortunately, our friend, Jake, had built several and was our expert. So what is a lorena stove? As you might be able to tell from the pictures, it is a big, rectangular structure built out of clay, sand and horse manure. The mix is very similar to cob or other adobe structures. A large “door” is carved out of the side for the firewood and tunnels carry the heat up to the two holes on the top for cooking. A smaller, third hole is carved out and a chimney made out of old tin cans is attached to carry the smoke away. Pretty simple. All the materials are free and available to anyone willing to put in the labor. It was 2 days of intense work, but the benefits far outweigh the time required to build this stove.

The journey there was quite beautiful. Full of scenic mountain views and friendly Ngobes along the way. They were quite surprised to see gringos passing through these remote areas and even more surprised when we greeted them in their native language. We were sidetracked several times drinking coffee and moonshine with people along the way. Our guide also clued us in to a spot where ancient clay pots have been found. No one really knows the history behind them or exactly how old they are, which almost adds to their mystique. Another hour was enjoyed trying to dig out a huge pot with a camping fork, knife and spoon. We were not successful and left the pot for some other dedicated archaeologist to discover.

Building the lorena stove with the community was a challenging adventure, but heartwarming and unforgettable. The hike there was far and steep. We slept on the cement floor of the school (with amazing new solar panels from the government, so weird to have lights), ate mostly white rice and sardines for breakfast and dinner. No lunches. Just crackers. The stores carry the barest of minimums: rice, sardines, crackers. So that’s what we had. The water from the aqueduct was intermittent, so showering wasn’t an option. The people, however, were absolutely amazing. I have never seen such a labor-intensive project that included all generations helping out. The whole community was involved: men, women, grandmas, school-aged boys and girls, and babies that had just learned to walk were all participating. We had a great time doing a sock puppet socio-drama to introduce the idea of the lorena stove and why it might be a better option for fuel efficiency and health. Ngobes can be hard to engage, but the sock puppets were mesmerizing. At night we sat around a fire to keep warm. At one point, I counted 18 of us, all huddling around a tiny fire, laughing and singing songs both in English and Spanish. The national anthem of both countries came out, as did the chicken dance and the traditional dance of the Ngobes “the hegge.” It was the most picturesque Peace Corps experience I have had yet. The perfect blend of physical challenges, cultural exchange, fun, and getting dirty to create a sustainable product that all took part in and hopefully, all will adapt so that future generations may live healthier lives.

(Photos: Yoga break on a beautiful over look; Kate's sock puppet demonstrating a typical Ngobe carrying firewood in a chakara (handmade bag) on their forehead; Filling in the lorena stove mold with the mud, sand and cow/horse poo mix; Cultural moment with the kids (dancing the traditional "hegy"); Me and a cute little kid- my favorite part of my work as a PCV)