“Aprovecho’s Natural Building Program is a design/build school offering educational opportunities in the design and construction of energy efficient structures using sustainable materials. Trainings are offered both for the do-it-yourself home-builder as well as students pursuing a career as a designer/builder.”
Aprovecho
I imagine this program is very high quality since they are the world’s leader in things like rocket stove research.
Aprovecho Farm, is where the sustainable living programs are taught and the Aprovecho Research Center (stove work) are two distinct entities (2 campuses miles apart). There have been lawsuits in the past regarding interns being taken advantage of and despite the longevity of this program, the continuity of education and actual certification of transferable skills are questionable.
I’d suggest folks do in depth background research before committing to spending hard earned funds there. It is a ramshackle campus with lots of uncompleted projects spanning several decades. The Aprovecho / StoveTec Research Center Executive Director, unfortunately lacks integrity.
They won Prince Charles Ashton Award for supposedly for distribution of 70, 000 stoves to the Worlds poor (another scam). Actually there were only bills of lading for 3,000, in which 2,000 failed in Haiti over only a several week period. None of the stoves were donated, but purchased by disappointed NGO’s. No due diligence was done by the Ashden committee to verify Aprovecho claims, which were untrue. They have also solicited humanitarian donations for years, with a only single humanitarian donation of your tax payer dollars (DOE funds) in 2014. Any donations to this organization is a mistake. They survive on Federal funds, due to non profit status.
Unfortunately I drank the Koolaid for an extended period and worked for this organization for the first 6 months for free, thinking they were a legitimate humanitarian organization. I created StoveTec to sell and market what turned out to be very low quality Aprovecho stoves. Unfortunately I had no access to the book keeping functions and it took a couple years to discover they were washing for profit funs to the non-profit organization. Note age of promotional video, word to the wise find recent attendees and solicit feedback for current value of programs offered. I’d hate to see more folks taken advantage of.
Regards,
Todd Albi, SilverFire Disaster and Recreation Stoves & Cookware,LLC
Thanks for the feedback. I have no firsthand experience with them so I was only going from what I hear on the Internet. Soliciting input from current trainees is always wise.