VZCZCXYZ0000
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHMU #1354 3101710
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 051710Z NOV 08
FM AMEMBASSY MANAGUA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 3347
INFO RUEHZA/WHA CENTRAL AMERICAN COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS MANAGUA 001354 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE/OES/ENV 
PASS TO USAID/EGAT JUAN BELT 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: SENV EAID ECON KSCA NU
SUBJECT: NICARAGUA: SOLAR WOMEN OF TOTOGALPA WIN SEED AWARD 
 
¶1. (U) Summary: A Nicaraguan project to launch a cooperative 
business producing and marketing products such as solar 
cookers and photovoltaic panels made from recycled solar 
panels was one of five winning projects worldwide in the 2008 
Supporting Entrepreneurs for Sustainable Development (SEED) 
competition.  Nicaragua,s project focuses on the work of the 
&Solar Women of Totogalpa,8 a women,s cooperative from 
rural northwest Nicaragua attempting to transform its 
community through a self-sustaining, community-based 
business.  The SEED Initiative is a global network founded in 
2002 to contribute toward the goals of the UN,s Millennium 
Declaration and the commitments made at the Johannesburg 
World Summit on Sustainable Development.  The Nicaraguan 
project, &Lighting Up Hope and Communities,8 was chosen 
from among 400 applications representing 100 countries. End 
Summary. 
 
---------------------------- 
THE SOLAR WOMEN OF TOTOGALPA 
---------------------------- 

¶2. (U) Solar Women of Totogalpa (Mujeres Solares de 
Totogalpa) is a group of rural women from a small community 
in northwest Nicaragua who have worked in partnership with 
the National Engineering University,s Program for 
Alternative Energy Sources (PFAE) since 1999 to promote 
renewable resource technologies and practices.  With its 
project, &Lighting Up Hope and Communities,8 the 
partnership has set up a cooperative enterprise producing 
photovoltaic panels from recycled solar cells, solar cookers 
and dryers, and solar cooked or dried food and medicinal 
plants.  The enterprise began with used or damaged solar 
cells purchased at a discount from Skyheat Associates, a U.S. 
source of solar materials and expertise, coupled with 
training and assistance provided by SUNI Solar, a local 
Nicaraguan enterprise based at the Engineering University. 
The project also has benefited from technical exchanges with 
students and faculty from the University of Dayton (Ohio). 
From these beginnings, Solar Women learned how to trim used 
or damaged solar cells to produce new, recycled cells that 
can be installed in solar cookers and food dryers.  Solar 
Women also manufacture adobe bricks, which the group used to 
construct a solar building to house the &Lighting Up Hope 
and Communities8 enterprise and sell to the public. 
 
¶3. (U) The SEED Award will allow the &Lighting Up Hope and 
Communities8 enterprise to increase production, become 
self-sufficient, and expand support to other community 
development projects.  The $25,000 one-year SEED Award is 
specifically designed to assist each partnership to attain 
sustainability, primarily through paying for technical and 
legal assistance.  Within five years, &Lighting Up Hope and 
Communities8 expects to be self-sufficient. 
 
------------------- 
THE SEED INITIATIVE 
------------------- 

¶4. The SEED Initiative was founded in 2002, following 
commitments made at the Johannesburg World Summit on 
Sustainable Development by the International Union for 
Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the UN Development Program 
(UNDP), and the UN Environment Program (UNEP).  Partners in 
the initiative include the governments of the United States, 
United Kingdom, Germany, the Netherlands, South Africa, and 
Spain.  It seeks to identify and support promising local 
enterprises working in partnership to improve livelihoods, 
fight poverty and manage natural resources sustainably in 
developing countries. 
 
¶5. (U) The Department of State is a partner in the SEED 
Initiative through the Bureau of Oceans, Environment and 
Science.  Following a 2006 commitment from the U.S. of 
$100,000 for the 2006-2008 cycle, the SEED Initiative 
increased its request for support from major donors from 
$100,000 to $200,000 annually.  The United States continues 
to seek additional support for the initiative on an annual 
basis.  Embassy Managua Public Affairs Section will assist 
the Nicaraguan project in building a network of useful 
contacts.  Additional information about the SEED Initiative 
may be found at the following website: http://seedinit.org. 
CALLAHAN