Candace Stryker, Intern 2002-2003
Background Bio:
After completing my university degree in 2002, I spent 4 months on
my bicycle raising awareness about environmental issues affecting
Canadians, as part of a group called ‘Cycling for Sustainability'.
Education:
B.Sc. (Environmental Science), Carleton University
Host Country:
the Philippines
Internship Experience:
In the Philippines Yori (the other 2002-2003 intern) and I worked primarily
in introducing the Mayon Turbo stove to a new province on the island of Panay.
At the same time we were trying to establish a new partnership with a local
NGO who was also interested in renewable energy.
The limited funding and resources we were given made it difficult to get the
project off the ground, but we made use of the resources at our disposal and
were able to start up a small-scale stove program. We also got positive feedback
from stove users regarding the benefits of the stove which encouraged us to
continue on with the expansion of the project.
 My
role was in the education and promotion of the stove throughout the Province
of Panay. I worked to increase local awareness of the stove through conducting
demonstrations in public markets, with rice mill owners, Baranguay Captains,
Mayors, and anywhere else I could find. I educated them on how to use the stove,
as well as on its environmental, health, and economic benefits. In furthering
the promotion of the stove we developed an international stove marketing package,
and organized a workshop to bring together interested parties throughout the
province.
The village integration I participated in was essential to the success I had
as an intern. Through this experience I was able to develop my language skills
and a rapport with the locals, as well as see and feel first-hand the needs
and concerns of the locals.
It was this experience that enabled me to put the importance of the project
into perspective.
I am very grateful for the opportunity I was given to participate in this
project. I learned so much about development from REAP-Canada as well as from
the Filipinos I worked with in Aklan. I also learned about my own abilities,
and developed a new respect for, and fondness of, other cultures. This experience
put my creativity, tolerance, and patience to the test, and as a result I feel
I am a better person for it.
Current Status:
Working for a non-profit organization tackling industrial waste issues in
Calgary, Alberta.
Yori Jamin, Intern 2002-2003
Background Bio:
Yori Jamin (left) and Candace Stryker(centre) with the Mayon Turbo Stove
in the Philippines |
In April 2001, I completed my undergraduate degree at the University of Calgary
in mechanical engineering. Currently, I am pursuing a master's degree in mechanical
engineering also at the University of Calgary. My research is focused on enhanced
heat transfer using a porous medium applied to cogeneration systems.
My previous work experience includes working with the Pembina Institute for
Appropriate Development focusing on Life Cycle Analysis and renewable technologies,
and working as a design engineer at Exchanger Industries Inc. responsible for
manufacture of shell and tube heat exchangers.
Education:
B.A.Sc. (Mechanical Engineering), University of Calgary
M.Sc. (Mechanical Engineering), University of Calgary (in progress)
Host Country:
the Philippines
Internship Experience:
 Yori
Jamin testing the Mayon Turbo Stove |
During my international internship, I was responsible for a small cook-stove
program in the Philippines. I had the opportunity to work with a local NGO, Sustainable
Rural Enterprise. Together, we worked on the Mayon Turbo Stove (MTS) project
at the Center for Productive Use of Renewable Energy (CPURE). Our goal was three
fold: 1) understand the performance characteristics of the stove, 2) establish
a local manufacturing program for the MTS and 3) promote the stove as a low cost
alternative to LPG, Charcoal and wood cookstoves. Based on the results of testing
completed at CPURE, I wrote a paper while studying at the University of Calgary.
The paper was submitted to the International Journal of Biomass and Bioenergy
and is currently under review. Through my internship I was able to better understand
the effects of increasing demands of population growth and affluence on the earth's
finite ecosystem and feel it is necessary to re-evaluate conventional energy
use and resource allocation. In short, we need to understand and act toward a
sustainable future.
Current Status:
Completing master's degree in Mechanical Engineering at the University of
Calgary.
©2004 REAP-Canada |
