About a quarter of the global popu-lation depend on wood as their main energy source for cooking. In areas hosting displaced populations, depend-ence on woodfuel is even more dra-matic. This is the main driver of forest degradation and deforestation in these areas. This creates not only global en-vironmental problems, but also massive local health problems due to indoor air pollution. In fact, the fast-growing number of premature deaths due to respiratory ailments is estimated to be higher than the death toll from malaria and HIV combined (African Develop-ment Bank, 2016).

1 billionpeople

Innovative solar cooker and solar home system

Life in a box

lack access to electricity.Facts from WHO May 2018

The ECOCA is a compact, self-contained, multi-purpose home unit consisting of an electric power base consisting of a battery pack and a solar panel array. The unit is small and light-weight and is simple and intuitive in daily use. The ECOCA also comes with a highly insulated pot which will keep food warm for hours.

Pesitho offers a ground-breaking solution: The ECOCA solar cooker and solar home system

Harvesting the sun’s energyECOCAThe ECOCA uses solar panels to gen-erate electricity, which is stored in the built-in battery. In standard configura-tion, an average rural family will easily have its daily cooking needs covered by the ECOCA, and even at a lower annual cost than polluting diesel gen-erators. The modular system makes it possible to increase the power capacity of the unit by adding more solar panels or battery capacity when needed. The battery pack is sufficient to ensure effi-cient running of the kitchen for several hours after dark.

Weight: 8 kgMeasure: 32 cm x 32 cm x 12 cmPot: 4 l or 6 lSolar panel dimensions: 250 WBattery capacity: 20 Ah

One of the first editions of the ECOCA tested in the Bidibidi settlement in Uganda

Cooking in arefugee camp in Uganda

Additional featuresAs smartphone use is also widespread in rural areas in developing areas of the world, the ECOCA is also fitted with 2 standard USB charging ports and an AUX power outlet for small appliances such as razors. In this way, the ECOCA also functions as the family’s solar home system with no operational costs. As an extra feature, the ECOCA also comes with 2 LED rechargeable portable lamps, making indoor activities such as education and hand-craft possible after sunset without the usage of conventional fuel sources.

Life in a boxThe ECOCA has been designed to be affordable in price, making it possible for NGO’s, government organisations, relief agencies, village communities or even private citizens to invest in the unit. Designed with simplicity and ease of use in mind, the ECOCA solar cooker is a simple, environmentally sound and pragmatic solution to several of the prob-lems faced by the rural population in developing areas of the world. Also, as the ECOCA is equipped with output for electrical devices, it allows for income generating activities based on electricity, such as mo-bile charging, hairdressing etc. Additionally, with the ECOCA, the risk of pollution by kitchen smoke and the burden of collecting firewood will be lifted, including a reduction of risks of violent and sexual assaults for women and children fetching firewood.

45%

Cooking in Myanmar

of all pneumonia deaths in children less than 5 years are caused by exposure to household pollution.

3 Billion people cook using polluting open fires or simple stoves fulled by kerosene, biomass or coal.Facts from WHO May 2018

Contact us

Pesitho is a Danish socio-economic enterprise committed to provide off-grid power solutions to the world’s poor. Pesitho has developed the ECOCA, which provides a potential solution to the deforestation taking place in many settings globally, especially around many refugee settlements. The company was founded in 2017, and has a combined experience of more than 40 years in the renewable energy industry. Pesitho is an active partner in a range of science projects. The target of the research activities is to apply groundbreaking innovation, science and user friendliness to ensure a cleaner planet through knowledge creation and pioneering product development. Caritas Denmark is part of the international network of Caritas, which is the humanitarian organization of the Catholic Church working in more than 200 countries and territories worldwide. Caritas Denmark is committed to the Sustainable Development Goals and strive to make a contribution to the global transition to a low carbon economy by incorporating CO2 reduction into the organisation’s development and humanitarian engagement.

The partnership between Caritas Denmark and Pesitho is instrumental in this work. Together we are testing the ECOCA prototype, taking the product to scale, and establishing local production through social enterprises.

Pesitho ApSBirk Centerpark 40, 7400 Herning info@pesitho.com+45 5183 5775

Caritas DanmarkGl. Kongevej 15, 3. Sal1610 København Vcaritas@caritas.dk+45 3818 0000

behind the ECOCA

From left to right:Simon Buss la CourThorben Gonzalez NielsenMarco TingaardPeter Enevoldsen

The team