Analysis of the Problem

The problem in general

As you have read in the introduction, the pollutive smoke from cooking on wood or inefficient stoves kills 4 million people every year. This is a major problem, and with that, one that probably needs more than one solution. The Fortune Cooker aims to become one of these solutions. At this point, the product offers a cleaner, more efficient way of cooking (in relation to woodfire and inefficient stoves). It does so by combining solar energy with a second power source, which can entail a variation on the rocket stove or a more common power source like electricity or gas.

The project problem

In order for The Fortune Cooker to have any of the desired effect, it is essential that the people who used to cook on one of the previously mentioned cookstoves, actually want to use it. It may not come as a surprise that changing someone’s habits is not something that can easily be done. How do we get the aspired user to want to use the product, and how can we achieve that they keep using the product? This is the question we will try to answer during this project. The question itself can roughly be divided in two parts: how to get the product to fit with the user; and how to get the product to fit with the market. In other words, how do we make the user like The Fortune Cooker, and how can we make sure the user is able to buy the product?

Strictly speaking, the project itself is a problem analysis as well. The research that we will do in Morocco will give us insight in the problems our target group encounters while cooking or during daily activities, which in turn will help us in the design process. However, the problems that the women of rural Morocco have with cooking on woodfire can be entirely different from the problems that are encountered in-for example-Ethiopia. So, we will use our target group in Morocco as our starting point. From there, we can figure out if and how the product can be adjustable to multiple cultures.