Combating Food Insecurity in the Bolivian Andes

April 2022, Ullchu/ Micani - while in Europe and North America spring is in full swing and it is getting brighter and warmer from day to day, in the high Andean regions one encounters more variable temperatures. Especially in the early morning or evening hours, when the environment is no longer warmed up by the sun, it can get quite cold. Especially in the high villages of the Micani region, like Ullchu. This was also noticed by our volunteers who travelled from Germany to Bolivia to visit and work on our projects.
One morning in May the members of our partner organization Fundación SODIS and our volunteers started their journey from the main village Micani and drove over the unpaved and bumpy roads and finally arrived in the village Ullchu. A project workshop was planned for the day, as well as an evaluation of the solar tent that had been built a few months earlier. And the outside temperatures quickly made everyone want to go to the solar tent because it was much warmer and more comfortable there than outside. Proof that the solar tents are really serving their purpose. The plants also flourish much better because of the warmth. In Ullchu, the villagers experienced a vegetation cycle that was shortened by at least 2months. The visit there was a complete success, Maria, one of our volunteers from Germany, could convince herself of the good condition and functioning of the solar tent and the associated school garden in Ullchu.
Motivated by the successes with these first solar tents, we were able to complete three more in other communities (Ipote, Allpaca und Cabrini) this year. The photos show the construction process of the past weeks. We were also able to optimize and adapt our model for our purpose. So for example, thinner wooden poles were used and we replaced the foil with plates, which further stabilised the roof of the solar tents.
The idea of the solar tents was very well received by the villagers and our partner organization is now regularly approached by the residents of other villages asking if they, too, get the chance to build one in their village. This shows that our project not only works technically, but is accepted by the villagers to such an extent that they develop their goals for the garden and solar tents. This is the change we want to initiate and we thank you very much for your support!