Reducing Indoor Air Pollution in Developing Countries through Diffusion of Clean Cookstove Technology

Indoor air pollution (IAP) produced from incomplete combustion of biomass fuel affects three billion people worldwide and results in two million premature deaths each year. Clean cookstove technology has been proposed as the most cost-effective method for reducing IAP and improving health in the developing world. Based on Rogers’ (2003) diffusion of innovation theory, a model to effectively diffuse clean cookstove technology was constructed. To increase the likelihood of widespread adoption of improved cookstoves, this model addresses cross-cultural preferences in cooking practices and commercialization of innovation through ‘bottom of the pyramid’ market development.