Access to modern stoves could be a game-changer for Africa’s economic development–and help cut the equivalent of the carbon dioxide emitted by the world’s planes and ships

Young woman in Africa cooks over an open flame (Credit: Per-Anders Pettersson—Getty Images)

There are many glaring injustices in the world. But what is most appalling is when an injustice is ignored for decades and brings needless hardship to billions of people—even more so when the solutions are right in front of us. That’s the case today with cooking.

Few things are more routine in our daily lives than preparing a meal. But for more than 2 billion people around the world, half of them in Africa, the simple act of cooking shapes their entire lives: from spending hours each day collecting firewood or dung to cook, missing out on education and work opportunities, and serious health complications from the inhalation of toxic fumes. Women and girls are by far the worst affected.