Instead of giving gifts, we are supporting a social project in Chile. It is a pilot project for equipping more than 100 social houses with Solar thermal, funded with Chilean capital and a central 10kWp on-grid photovoltaic-plant.
The Ingenieure ohne Grenzen e. V.IngoG) are responsible for the photovoltaic-plant including trainings for the local people. The charity aid organisation was founded in Marburg 2003 with following objectives:
- knowledge transfer in developing countries
- help in engineering problems in developing countries
- education and research in the context of development cooperation
The target group of this project are families and single persons, who are employed, but belong to the lower income group in Chile. For those people the institution Tu Casa Gestión Inmobilaria, who is specialized in those tasks, will build social houses with equity investments. It is about 115 houses with a living space of about 42m˛.
The people in Combarbalá live in simple houses with a stable current supply, but for some families its tariffs are not affordable.
The hot water supply in the social houses is only available with gas. The tariffs for gas are even less affordable.
HaWi donates for the whole plant one inverter and the needed photovoltaic panels.
IngoG cooperates with following experienced partners:
- Tu Casa Gestión inmobiliaria is a social company, its objectives are: To build sustainable housing areas for people who live in poverty and to make people more self-confident with creating responsibilities. These responsibilities allow them to treat the environment and their everyday life more effective for increasing peoples’ quality of live. Furthermore Tu Casa Gestión Inmobiliaria handles all bureaucratic workflows of the project.
- Comité Portal Cruz del Sur in the municipality of Combarbalá (IV. Region of Chile) is a neighbourhood organisation, founded September, 26th 2004 with the objective to build together a housing area (barrio), which is financed by the government for 98%. The Comité Portal Cruz del Sur has 131 members, who live as allegados with their families or have rented a flat at the moment. The members belong to the lowest income group in Chile. The average income is 150.000,- CHP, which is about 210 Euros a month. The equity investments of the members for the social houses were collected in raffle sales, own savings and fines for not attending the arranged meetings of the committee.
- Ecomaipo is a charity organisation. Most of the members of Ecomaipo are university graduates, who live in the municipality San José de Maipo close to Santiago de Chile. The objective of the organisation is the support of using renewable energies (RE), on the one hand in their own municipality and on the other hand in the whole country. Ecomaipo arranges projects for technical and educational trainings and it collaborates with the University of Chile. Due to that activity the delegation and education of students and members of the Comité Portal de Santa Cruz is possible.
- Oikos, founded in 2005, is a student organisation at the University of Chile in Santiago at the faculty of science and mathematics. One of its objectives is the encouragement of awareness for a better tune of environment and people.
- CNE, is a governmental organisation, who is consultatory responsible for the implementation of environmental decisions. CNE delivers relevant data for the planning of the project and will accompany it on a scientific basis.
- GEA is a department at the university Santa Maria. Within that project a scientific monitoring of the behaviour of the hot water- and the current supply in a German- Chilean cooperation is planned.
According to a census of the population in 2002, 42% of the Chilean households do not have hot water supply. The people are seeking for technical solutions, for either cleaning only parts of their body or showering the family first children and breadwinner. As far as it is possible, people try to wash themselves at work. Any improvement of hot water supply means an improvement of hygiene and of family life. Savings or a decline of the costs for hot water supply will lead to a supply with better groceries.
The progress of the construction of the photovoltaic plant can be checked under:www.ingenieure-ohne-grenzen.org/Regionalgruppen/Freiburg/Projekte/Solarprojekt_in_Combarbala_Chile
On a regular basis the webblog will be updated with the starting of the construction in the 3rd quarter of 2009
The pursuance of further constructions of that project is requested.
You will find the latest information on our website.
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The new council estate will be right next to the Atacama desert.
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| Combarbalá |
All inhabitants of Combarbalá are curious for the new housing area.
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