Promote Clean Cooking to Combat Deforestation

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Our Clean Cooking advocacy is about promoting safe, affordable, and sustainable alternatives to traditional cooking methods (like open fires and kerosene stoves), which are major contributors to household air pollution, deforestation, and gender inequality.

• Health: Household air pollution from solid fuels causes millions of premature deaths each year, especially among women and children.
   
• Gender Equity: Women and girls bear the brunt of fuel collection, which consumes time and limits education and livelihood opportunities.
   
• Climate Justice: Traditional fuels (wood, charcoal, kerosene) contribute to deforestation, CO₂ emissions, and black carbon.
   
• Economics: Clean cooking reduces fuel costs and creates jobs in clean energy value chains.
   

1. Awareness: Educate communities and policymakers on the health, gender, and climate benefits of clean cooking.
    
2. Policy Influence: Push for national clean cooking strategies, subsidies, or integration into energy/climate policies.
    
3. Financing: Advocate for public and private investment in clean cooking solutions.
    
4. Behavior Change: Encourage households to adopt and consistently use clean cooking technologies (LPG, electric, biogas, ethanol, improved biomass stoves).
    

• Community Engagement: Run local demonstrations, “clean cooking fairs,” and storytelling campaigns featuring women leaders.
   
• Partnerships: Work with health clinics, women’s groups, and climate NGOs.
   
• Media Campaigns: Use radio, social media, and TV to highlight the dangers of smoke-filled kitchens and the benefits of alternatives.
   
• Policy Dialogues: Organise roundtables with government ministries (energy, health, environment, gender) and development partners.
   
• Evidence Building: Collect local data (e.g., time saved, health improvements) to strengthen advocacy messaging.
   

1. Rapid Tree Loss & Environmental Risk
   Sierra Leone has lost about 39% of its tree cover since 2001, including over 10,000 hectares in the Western Area Peninsula near Freetown—threatening ecosystems and human safety. Reuters
   The 2017 mudslide on the slopes of Mount Sugar Loaf, which killed around 1,000 people, was exacerbated by deforested land, weakening soil stability. Reuters
    
2. Drivers of Deforestation
   Illegal logging, artisanal mining, charcoal production, rapid urban development, and land grabbing for plantations (e.g., palm oil) remainsignificantr threats. protectsierraleone.comRainforest RescueAyvnewsReuters
    
3. Government and Civil Society Responses
    
   • The “Freetown the Tree-Town” initiative aims to restore urban tree cover by planting one million trees by the end of 2024. Africa Press Arabic
      
   • In March 2025, the government launched a four-part Protect Sierra Leone strategy focusing on integrated landscapes, community forests, sustainable marine management, and reducing deforestation—specifically noting the need for affordable cooking fuel alternatives. moice.gov.sl Sierra Leone Monitor 
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Elevate Protection of Biodiversity Hotspots

• Strengthen enforcement in critical zones such as Gola Rainforest, Kambui Hills, and Western Area Peninsula. Use high-profile sites like the Tacugama Chimpanzee Sanctuary, currently closed in protest, to spotlight threats. Reuters
   

Promote Clean Cooking Alternatives

• Integrate LPG, electricity, or improved biomass stoves into policy frameworks and community programs to reduce demand for firewood and charcoal. moice.gov.sl
   

Expand Community-Based Approaches

• Scale up partnerships with CSSL models, focusing on mangrove restoration with high survival rates and REDD+/REDD+ benefit sharing. cs-sl.org+1
   

Amplify Advocacy Networks

• Unite under coalitions like ENFORAC to synchronise messaging, resource-sharing, and joint campaigns. Wikipedia
  Expand environmental journalism training for broader storytelling and accountability. Sierraloaded
   

Increase Policy Engagement & Enforcement

• Push for adoption of the Protect Sierra Leone integrated landscape framework (~1 million hectares protected, passive restoration of ~230kha). protectsierraleone.com
  Advocate for a national REDD+ taskforce, stronger legal frameworks for community rights, and equitable land governance.