Peruvian Highlands, Fume-Free
In the Andean Highlands of Peru, a typical single-room homw will burn approximately 3.6 tons of wood a year, not just for heating but for cooking indoors. Three billion people worldwide cook indoors over open fi res with solid fuels. This use has a detrimental effect on human health. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), nearly two million people die annually from open-fi re cooking, with women and young children the most affected. The hazards related to these practices include acute respiratory infections, insuffi cient weight at birth, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Despite WHO estimates that cookstove smoke is one of the top fi ve threats to public health in poor developing countries, the effects of exposure to it have received limited funding and research attention. The good news is that since the announcement last year of the Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves [launched by the United Nations (UN) Foundation], coordinated efforts are successfully under way to support the use of clean cookstoves in the developing world.