Aly Raquel Bendixson planted the seed of the first uiTzi one hot Mexican afternoon when the idea of cooking inside was unbearable. Using a cardboard box and some tin foil she built a simple solar oven on her terrace and cooked a delicious happy-meat-and-vegetable stew... and was instantly hooked on cooking with the sun. Born in Medellin, Colombia and raised in SoHo, New York and on a small Nova Scotian island, Aly went to Hunter High School and Amherst College, has an undergraduate degree from Harvard, and an MFA from NYU Tisch, all under her maiden name. After a scintillating career in Hollywood as a director/producer and cinematographer on feature films, TV and documentaries, Aly shifted gears and began devoting her time to writing, gardening, eco-homesteading, solar cooking and becoming a student of holistic health. Aly has been known to say her religion is dinner. She is passionate about healthy, delicious food and devotes vast portions of her life to growing edible permaculture gardens and pursuing a hunter/gatherer lifestyle with her husband, Adam, and labrador retreiver, Folly.

Adam Bendixson is a writer, designer, sculptor, computer programmer and explorer. Raised in London and Paris, he has an MA from Oxford, worked briefly as a foreign exchange trader, speaks many languages, and possesses a bottom drawer full of unpublished novels. Although an economist by training, Adam has always preferred getting his hands dirty solving real-world problems. After spending many years living and travelling in the world's most remote and beautiful corners, he nowadays advocates for a back-to-the-land revolution combined with radical re-wilding as an antidote to the damages of corporatist globalization. His solar oven designs combine sculptural elegance with a kitchen technology capable of powering humanity's journey towards full sustainability... Learn more at Bendixson.com.

Salvador Ramirez ("Chava"), our chief metal worker, has been working in metal for more than forty years. As well as building solar ovens and melting metal in myriad ways, he teaches welding at Guanajuato's "Escuela de Artes", is a docent at the cathedral in Mellado, and volunteers every Wednesday as a councellor to prisoners at our local prison.

Jose Eric Hernandez ("Pepe"), our jack of all trades, is a muralist, tattoo artist, and family man who we value for his strength, versatilty, and being an all around good guy. He fits every uiTzi we make with its glass and mirrors, and employs his artist's eye in engraving its wing pannels.