Hi, my name is Mari Titcombe. I’m in my 4th year of a chemistry PhD program, trying to squeeze a master’s of public health in on the side. The Stoves for Njombe Project is a combination of the nerdy physical scientist in me, my love for Tanzania, and my interest in developing world health.

This website has been a long time coming! Many of you have been hearing about this project for well over a year now. I’m excited to be able to share a bit about this passion of mine and appreciate any assistance you are able to give.

I’m asking for donations to help my former Peace Corps secondary school replace two broken cooking stoves. The walls of these stoves have corroded away. Smoke from these stoves spews into the kitchen and often infiltrates adjacent student dormitories, greatly increasing the concentration of harmful indoor air pollutants. The estimated total cost to replace these stoves is $2,000. Stoves will be purchased from a company in the northern city of Arusha which specializes in large scale improved wood stoves. I will use 100% of your donations to provide new stoves for Njombe Secondary School. My hope is that Njombe Secondary can serve as an example of the successful use of “fuel efficient” stoves – designs that reduce indoor air pollution and conserve natural resources.