In 2006, Lori (Hanna) McIlvaine traveled to Sabana Grande de Totogalpa, Nicaragua through the University of Dayton ETHOS prorgam. A sophomore Mechanical Engineering student, Lori was search of a topic for her honors thesis. After a summer of testing solar cookers and interviewing local women on the use of solar cookers to roast coffee, she was introduced to the solar autoclave.

Wanting to better understand the exact need for the solar autoclave, Lori returned to Nicaragua during the summer of 2007 to conduct interviews with healthcare professionals at rural clinics.

Inspired by these interviews, Lori returned from Nicaragua and entered in the University of Dayton Business Plan Competition in the fall of 2007 with fellow UD students, Daniel Hensel, Anna Young and Lauren Dokes. The team collaborated over a 6 month period to write the initial business plan for Salud del Sol. The business model created was one that partnered with Las Mujeres Solares, an entrepreneurial women’s group in rural Nicaragua, to research, produce, and distribute solar autoclaves to rural clinics. Salud del Sol would be a “Nonprofit, appropriate technology assistance provider” working alongside Las Mujeres Solares to develop their business.

In April of 2008, Salud del Sol was awarded 1st place at the University of Dayton business plan competition and became the first nonprofit group to win the competition!

This caused for celebration. Where does one go after winning first place in a business plan competition? Why, to Nicaragua of course! During the summer of 2008, Dan, Anna, and Lori traveled to Nicaragua to put the winning business plan into action, while Lauren worked from Ohio to move forward with the legal filings for Salud del Sol. The idea was becoming a reality.

During the summer of 2008, a solar autoclave prototype was tested, business classes for Las Mujeres Solares were held, and approval from the Nicaraguan Ministry of Health was granted. The Salud del Sol team was able to truly experience the culture of the Sabana Grande community by living with host families, playing in the community soccer league, taking lanugage classes, and indulging in the fantastic cuisine of gallo pinto. It was an incredible experience that solidified the mission of Salud del Sol and the passion of the founders.

The solar autoclave research from the summer was brought back from Nicaragua and into the Engineering Design and Manufacturing Clinic at the University of Dayton. During the fall of 2008, a team of senior Mechanical Engineering students, including Lori and Dan, spent 4 months diligently researching design improvements. When the course concluded, a new prototype design was decided upon. During the Summer of 2009, Daniel traveled to Sabana Grande de Totogalpa, Nicaragua with a field team to test this design and develop it further.

In January 2009, the Salud del Sol founders held a kick off meeting for the year, discussing the company’s objectives and what to accomplish in 2009.  One of these was non-profit status, which was achieved by the end of the year.

This “History of Salud del Sol” is really an introduction to our story. The work with Las Mujeres Solares has just begun, and we are looking forward to furthering our partnerships and making our mission a reality!

• More about Salud del Sol

  • The News & Events page has postings to Salud del Sol news coverage. You can also read about upcoming conference attendance and speaking events of Salud del Sol.

  New! February 2009 Grupo Fenix Newsletter

  • Read the latest edition of La Salida del Sol, the Grupo Fenix newsletter including updates from the SEED award and stories from international Grupo Fenix volunteers. Download the newsletter (1.4Mb PDF) here:
    

  Solar Cooker Construction Manual by CJ Colavito, 2008 Grupo Fenix volunteer

  • The Solar Cooker Construction Manual, complete with photos and detailed diagrams for building your own solar box cooker, is available. Download the English version (4Mb PDF) here:
    
  
  Download the manual en Español (4Mb PDF) here: