BioLite, an innovator in energy solutions, has been awarded Fast Company’s Innovation by Design Award in the social good category for its groundbreaking HomeStove. This low-cost biomass cookstove for developing countries was selected from more than 1,500 submissions from around the world as one of the year’s top 10 designs of 2014.

“We are honored to be recognized by Fast Company and the design community,” said Jonathan Cedar, CEO of BioLite. “3 billion people still cook on smoky open fires, killing more people annually than AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis combined. Our HomeStove product and programs aim to take on some of the world’s most pressing health and climate challenges and we hope this award can help shine a light on the clean cooking movement.”

The BioLite HomeStove dramatically reduces emissions while providing off-grid electricity. It has been in development since 2009, with 2013 marking the beginning of commercial pilot programs across India, Ghana and Uganda.

“The last year has marked amazing progress for our emerging markets team,” says Cedar. “This award is a powerful motivator for us, reinforcing that thoughtfully designed products combined with market-based solutions can create meaningful impact.“

BioLite’s HomeStove work is made possible in part due to the company’s unique business model called Parallel Innovation. By incubating core technologies and using the near term revenue generated by its outdoor recreation business, BioLite is able to invest in the long-term infrastructure required to bring new energy technologies and solutions to the communities that need it most.

This is BioLite’s second Fast Company award; it received the 2012 Innovation By Design Award in the Consumer Goods category for the BioLite CampStove, its flagship outdoor recreational product.

Contact

Julie Atherton
220 Halleck Street, Suite 120A
San Francisco, CA 94129
415.839.7546 office
julie@jamcollective.net

Image courtesy BioLite