The Partnership for Clean Indoor Air is increasing the use of affordable, reliable, clean, efficient, and safe home cooking and heating practices and to reduce the burden of disease. The partners are contributing their resources and expertise to improve health, livelihood and quality of life by reducing exposure to indoor air pollution, primarily among women and children, from household energy use. The Partnership for Clean Indoor Air is focusing on four priority areas: overcoming social/cultural barriers; supporting the development of local business models and markets for improved cooking and heating techniques; meeting design and performance guidelines for affordable, reliable, clean, efficient, and safe home cooking and heating practices; and demonstrating reduced exposure to indoor air contaminants.

Partners:
Countries: Canada, Commission for Central American Development (CCAD, Costa Rica, Panama, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala, Belize), France, Italy, Mexico, Mozambique, South Africa, and the United States
NGOs and Private Industry:
Appropriate Rural Technology Institute, Aprovecho Research Center, CEDESOL-BOL, Colorado State University Engines and Energy Conversion Laboratory, The Energy and Resources Institute, ETHOS, Global Environment and Technology Foundation, Health Effects Institute, HELPS International, Indian Institute of Technology, Indian Women Scientists' Association, Intermediate Technology Development Group, Iowa State University, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, LPG Association of Southern Africa, Proleña, Resources for the Future, Shell Foundation, Society for Development Alternatives, Solar Household Energy, Inc., Trees, Water & People, UC/Berkeley’s Renewable and Appropriate Energy Lab, University of Liverpool -- Department of Public Health, University of Washington, Winrock International, World LP Gas Association
International Organizations:
Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA), UN Environment Programme (UNEP), World Bank, World Health Organization (WHO)

Partnership Targets:

• Develop uniform health and exposure assessment and monitoring protocols to be used in each Partnership Pilot; this will enable the Partnership to demonstrate reduced levels of indoor smoke that will ultimately lead to improved health.
• Develop broad Design and Performance Guidelines for home cooking and heating practices that can be used by a wide range of organizations throughout the world.
• Develop in-country networks of organizations in high-risk/high-priority countries working on home cooking and heating to share best practices, work together to further each other’s goals and to leverage resources to achieve more together than would be possible separately.
• Address social and cultural barriers to changing cooking practices using social marketing approaches.
• Expand household energy activities throughout partnering countries.
• Evaluate and refine approaches (outreach modules, business models, and financing mechanisms) and identify longer-term implementation plans.
• Prioritize long-term sustainability through local market and business development.
• Support the direct exchange within regions of experiences among users/cooks, researchers, entrepreneurs, project implementers, and program directors.
• Reduce the mortality related to indoor air pollution in targeted areas by 50%.

Progress Towards Targets:

• Launched country networks in Mexico (in May, 2003) and in India (October, 2003) with in-country organizations working on household energy issues both countries. These networks will advance our mission and enable us to reach our targets by holding regular meetings at which successes (and failures) are shared, opportunities to work together and to leverage resources are explored, and initiatives involving multiple stakeholders are developed.
• Facilitated two Achieving Environmental Results/Social Marketing Workshops with Shell Foundation grantees in India (in October, 2003) at which a wide array of stakeholders developed local action plans to overcome social and cultural barriers to changing cooking and lighting practices.
• Organized and facilitated a Design and Performance Guidelines Workshop in Seattle, Washington (in February, 2004). The goal of this Workshop, which was co-sponsored by the Engineers in Technical, Humanitarian Opportunities of Service-learning (ETHOS) and included non-governmental organizations and users from throughout the world, was to establish broad design and performance principles for home cooking and heating practices that can be used by a wide range of organizations throughout the world. Outcomes of the Workshop included participants generating and coming to consensus on fairly comprehensive guidelines pertaining to reliable, affordable, and safe home cooking and heating practices. The next steps are to send these guidelines out for review and comments and then publish and promote their use. The guidelines (or principles) for clean and efficient were more challenging to develop and agree upon and will take more time and an additional process to finalize them.

Next Steps

Pilot Projects:
In 2004 many partners will be funding pilot programs around the world to reduce people’s exposure to indoor air pollution. The United States will fund six to eight pilot projects in Africa, Asia and Latin America designed to increase the use of affordable, reliable, clean, efficient, and safe home cooking and heating practices. France is supporting similar projects in Africa and Asia; Italy’s efforts are focused in China; The Shell Foundation is working on projects in India, Africa and Central America; and Canada will also be funding two projects.

By 2005, we will be measuring the number of:

• Countries implementing Partnership Initiatives;
• Homes using improved cooking and heating practices;
• People with reduced exposure to combustion pollutants indoors.

2004 Calendar of Events:

Health and Exposure Assessment Protocol Workshop (Rome, March 2004) -- The goal of this workshop, hosted by the Italian Ministry of the Environment with an organizing committee from the Shell Foundation, the United States Environmental Protection Agency, and the World Health Organization, is to refine and institutionalize harmonized health and exposure protocols for indoor air pollution from household energy use. These protocols will then be used in all Partnership projects.

Annual Partners Meeting (Summer 2004) – Information will be posted when a date and location are set.

Resources
To date the United States Government has committed $1.5 million. Other Partners, including Canada, France, Italy, and the Shell Foundation, among many others, have also pledged funds and resources to support Partnership activities.

USG Primary Points of Contact:

Brenda Doroski
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Phone: 202-343-9764
Fax: 202-343-2393
Email: doroski.brenda@epa.gov 

John Mitchell
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Phone: 202-343-9031
Fax: 202-343-2393
Email: mitchell.john@epa.gov