LEGACY FOUNDATION

Legacy Foundation is a non profit organization which has actively focused on stopping the destruction of forests while increasing local employment and income, by extending and promoting simple and practical technologies which turn non-productive agricultural residues, yard wastes and junk mail into economic and environmentally sound heating and cooking resource in the form of a hollow core fuel briquette. Because these briquettes are produced by micro-enterprises and sold in direct, free-market competition with firewood and charcoal, they provide meaningful, self-sustaining employment to thousands of local entrepreneurs who are otherwise under or unemployed. Briquettes address the root causes of forest degradation, increasing income for local communities, mostly women, while conserving the environment.

Legacy Foundation has, over the past fourteen years, perfected extension and promotion techniques, which efficiently deliver local capacity building and awareness of the fuel briquette technology directly to the area of need, with lasting impact.

In partnership with national NGOs, government and international development institutions, Legacy Foundation has provided demonstrations, training of trainers and awareness/promotion related to briquette technology in Malawi, Zimbabwe, Peru, Nicaragua, Haiti, Mali, Kenya, Tanzania, Mexico, Nepal, South Africa, Thailand, Uganda and the United States. Additionally Legacy Foundation provides online technical assistance to projects in over 40 countries, with the assurance that there is briquette production taking place in at least 20 of these countries. Backup data on the status of briquetting in these countries can be provided.

Local, labor-intensive, micro-enterprise based, hollow core biomass briquette making is an intervention that is making inroads to address deforestation and employment issues. Biomass briquette production and sales have a particular appeal because briquettes are replicable locally, generate income directly and, as the briquettes use mainly agricultural wastes (leaves/grasses/straws/husks etc.), their production is far more sustainable than using woody biomass.

The overall objective of the LF interventions is to reduce, possibly even halt, the rate of deforestation through market demand for sustainably-harvested, agricultural-residue based and locally-produced, biomass briquettes which are sold in direct competition to wood and charcoal. This is accomplished through the establishment of a self-sustaining, income-generating worldwide network of trainers and producers of hollow core biomass briquettes.

Achievements

Over 15 development films have been produced internationally in Malawi, Tanzania, Papua New Guinea, Peru and rural Alaska, covering environmental conservation, policies and practices for sustainable development and health and agro forestry. These films were made for the International Red Cross, United Nations Development Program, United States Agency for International Development, UN Food and Agriculture Organization, the European Union, various sectarian development organisations and the Alaska public schools system.

In the technology-consulting area, over the past six years the principals have conducted demonstrations and training in five nations for thousands of individuals. Of these, 40% have become trainers and extend their skills to thousands of others.

Over 70% of the training efforts result in self sustaining programs. That figure improves dramatically where we have support to provide the necessary media awareness with which to launch the project in the community.

Six technical training and applications manuals have been developed which cover important aspects of the agro-residue fuel briquette technology. These manuals are based on ten year''s experience in the field and the lab. Manual titles include Porta Press™: A Users Manual, Porta Press™: Construction Manual Fuel Briquette Press Kit: A Construction Manual, Briquette making: A User''s Manual, Fuel Briquettes; A Trainer''s Manual and Fuel Briquettes: Theory and Applications from Around the World. For detailed descriptions and ordering information, please click here.

Design and implementation of a wide range of sustainable technologies in renewable energy, water supply, sanitation and rural transport. Some of these have included ground breaking designs in windmills, biogas generators, passive solar heaters, fuelwood alternatives including briquettes and bicycle trailers for rural medical transport .