Engineers Without Borders-HU Heads to Sudan

Photo by Kerry-Ann Hamilton L-R Kristina Banks, Bianca Bailey, Aleah Holt and Tena Hunter are members of Engineers Without Borders-HU and presenters at the 2012 knowledge Management Capacity Conference in Khartoum, Sudan.

WASHINGTON – Four smart and socially conscious engineering students are in Khartoum, Sudan to present at the Knowledge Management Capacity Conference on their grounding-breaking work to bring clean water to a village in Kenya through their work with Engineers Without Borders.

Shorma Bianca Bailey, a senior Chemical Engineering major, and the 2011 White House Champion of Change for Women and Girls in STEM recipient is leading the Howard delegation. Bailey is joined by Tena Hunter, Aleah Holt and Kristina Banks as well as faculty advisor John Tharakan, Ph.D.

“We are excited about this opportunity to showcase our work and to seek sustainable solutions that utilize appropriate technology,” Bailey said. “We are engineers and our core mission is solve problems. EWB-HU is committed to finding solutions across social, cultural and geographic boundaries.”

The team will present their paper titled Investigating the Water Quality and Quantity Issues in Choimim, Kenya. The EWB-HU members have worked on this sustainable water solution for the last three years. Choimim, a rural community of tea and cattle farmers, is about 200 miles from Kenya’s capital, Nairobi. The people there do not have adequate water and the shortage is dire in the dry season.

The Office of the Vice President of Student Affairs sponsored the travel to Sudan.“These young ladies are trailblazers and ambassadors,” said Barbara Griffin, Ph.D., vice president of Student Affairs. “Howard University has a growing international footprint and the work being doing by students in EWB-HU and the Freshman Leadership Academy, for example, ensure that we continue to have generations of global leaders.”

The opportunity came after the 2011 Appropriate Technology Conference held on Howard’s campus. At the conference, EWB presented their project about water sustainability in Kenya. The group also shared their research on the process and logistics behind implementing engineering solutions abroad. Participants included students from Morehouse College, the University of Maryland and Howard University. Also in attendance were faculty and staff members from Howard and visiting professors from the University of Khartoum (Sudan).

The keynote speaker, Gada Kadoda, Ph.D., spoke of her involvement and leadership with the Barefoot College, which specializes in the development of women. The program trains women to become engineers for their communities; empowering them financially, socially, and politically. Barefoot College aims to equip women with the skills to create sustainable villages through efforts such as building solar panel grids.

Because Dr. Kadoda saw sustainability as a common thread between both Engineers Without Borders and the Barefoot College, she invited the members of the Howard University chapter to be student presenters at the Workshop on Knowledge Management Capacity in Africa: Harnessing tools for development and innovation in Sudan.

This workshop is co-organized by the Garden City College for Science and Technology and the University of Khartoum in collaboration with the International Network on Appropriate Technology (INAT).

The young engineers hope to provide a foundation on how to implement international projects on sustainability, and create a partnership between the engineering program at the University of Khartoum and Howard University.

White House Names Bianca Bailey “Champion of Change”

Bianca Bailey, president of Engineers Without Borders-HU, leads a Howard partnership to bring clean water to Choimim, a village 200 miles from Nairobi, Kenya. Photographs by Kerry-Ann Hamilton

Shorma Bianca Bailey, a senior Chemical Engineering major, has been selected by The White House as a “Champion of Change for Women and Girls in STEM.” The award is a part of the Obama administration’s Winning the Future Initiative, which strives to execute the president’s plan to “out-innovate, out-educate and out-build the rest of the world.”

As the president of the Howard University chapter of Engineers Without Borders, Bailey, has volunteered for the last two years in Kenya and has worked on development projects in Brazil and Haiti. In January 2012, Bailey will travel to Sudan’s University of Khartoum to present EWB-HU’s work as a model of success.

She also volunteers and serves as the operational manager for Girls Incorporated of the Washington DC Metro Area located on Howard University’s campus. She frequently teaches BUILD IT, an engineering curriculum, to middle school girls.

In addition to her long-time commitment and service to Girls Incorporated, she was recently nominated to the National Advisory Board for the National Girls Institute.

Coupled with all of her many hours spent volunteering, Bailey is equally committed to academic achievement. The honors student from Dallas has interned at the NAVSEA Department of Defense, ConocoPhillips as well as conducted groundbreaking research at Carnegie Mellon University in the field of nanotechnology.

After graduation, Bailey plans to earn a Ph.D. in environmental engineering with a focus in international development.

Tune in to http://www.whitehouse.gov/live at 3:30p.m. EST on Dec. 9 to view Bailey as she is honored by the White House.

Bailey and the 2011 Champions of Change for Women and Girls in STEM award recipients from around the nation will also participate in a discussion focusing on creating culture change around the image of girls in STEM. The panelists will also examine mentoring and retaining women in the STEM workplace.

Maji uhai – Water is Life

A delegation from the Howard University Chapter of Engineers Without Borders recently returned from Choimim, a small village 200 miles from Nairobi, Kenya, where they are helping design a water solution for a community without electricity or running water.

Immediately after their final exams, the four students in the College of Engineering, Architecture and Computer Sciences took the 8,000-mile journey to continue the work they began in 2009. EWB-HU is partnering with Build the Village (BTV), a local organization led by James Esendi, the pastor of the local church and the acting director of the Kenya Build a Village project.

The Kenya student team included three chemical engineering students – Bianca Bailey, a senior and president of EWB-HU; Tena Hunter, a senior and

Kenya team leader, Aleah Holt, a sophomore and Rain Water Storage Analysis leader and Kristina Banks, a senior Systems and Computer Science major who served as Water Alternative Analysis leader.

“At 19, traveling to Kenya was a life changing experience for me,” Holt said. We were able to gain a lot of data from the water samples and keen insight from the people. However, I valued the opportunity to learn and experience a different culture. They made us feel so welcomed and at home.”
The five-year year commitment is a multi-pronged effort to bring solutions to a critical area of need – maji (water in Swahili).The partnership, which is now in year three, will result in the development and implementation of water sourcing solutions in order to help the community become sustainable in all its water needs. Faculty advisor John Tharakan, Ph.D., a professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering, and mentor and water expert Kenneth Ludwa, a professional engineer, accompanied the team.

“The EWB-HU students conducted a very successful assessment site visit
to the Choimim community,” Tharakan said. “The students were able to tie together theory and practice in the field to enhance and solidify their learning.”

The focus of the trip was to gather important water samples, analysis and assessments to determine usability and alternative water resources, including river water, well water and rain water storage capture. The team demonstrated to members of the community how to test different water quality factors including pH, turbidity, dissolved oxygen, and E. Coli/Coliform counts.

The Howard contingent also met with community elders, the head pastor of BTV and community members of Nandi Hills to conduct needs assessments and share preliminary findings and recommendations. The team also had the opportunity to interact with Kenyan government officials representing health, safety and education.

When the EWB-HU team returns to campus they plan to finalize designs for the water solution, which tentatively involves enhanced rainwater harvesting.

CRISIS Magazine Features EWB-HU’s Work in Kenya

Work in Progress, Engineering student and their allies bring help and hope to foreign lands. 

Engineers Without Borders-HU Improve Lives in Kenya, Brazil

WASHINGTON (March 31, 2009) – Spring Break for the average college student includes sleep or sunbathing, but not service. For a more than a dozen students from the Howard chapter of Engineers Without Borders, the March recess was spent giving back to two communities in Kenya and Brazil. The communities expressed gratitude, but so did the student volunteers as they gained tremendously from the experience of serving while learning.

Mission to Kenya

The 10-member delegation including students and advisors arrived Sunday, March 15, after a 24-hour flight and an 8-hour ride by minivan to the rural community of Nandi Hills more than 200 miles from Nairobi. They have met with elders and church leaders to listen to their needs and grasp their vision for the village. The students have also walked throughout the community to greet the people including scores of children.

EWB-HU is partnering with Build the Village, a local organization, led by James Esendi, the pastor of the local church and the acting director of the Build a Village project, in Choimim, Kenya.

The 3-5 year commitment is a multi-pronged effort to bring solutions to a number of areas of critical need including environment (waste management), energy, health, water, education and infrastructure.

“The mission to Kenya exemplifies service-learning at its best,” said EWB-HU faculty advisor John Tharakan, Ph.D. “It allows students to apply theoretical foundations gained at Howard, assess local problems, and arrive at solutions that are sustainable, acceptable to the community and beneficial both to their own development and that of the community.”

Howard students worked at Noel Academy, a Build the Village-affiliated school. The Kenyan Ministry of Education has issued several warnings to the school’s kitchen because of its lack of ventilation and other structural violations.

Dr. Tharakan, the students and two members of the community dismantled the old kitchen. They have expanded it by 5-ft and raised the roof to provide a 1-foot ventilation space. They worked through the afternoon downpour and well after sunset using flashlights to add a roof to the structure. The scope of work includes other education and labor-intensive activities to improve the Build a Village campus and the quality of life for the community.

“I am very happy the students were able to expand the kitchen,” Esendi said. “The ladies that cook for the school children told me they were going to go blind working in the kitchen. I told them don’t worry.”

Esendi admits he did not know how the kitchen would be fixed, but said he had faith that the school would get a temporary structure.

“I am thankful to the students who completed the kitchen in less than two days,” he added.

While visiting a nearby high school the team of young engineers realized the piping structure for the school’s well, their only source of water, was malfunctioning and needed work. That afternoon, they traveled to a hardware store more than 10 miles away to secure the appropriate pipes and fixtures. By noon the next day the high school students were able to get a steady stream of water from the well. The look on their face was one of exhilaration.

Photo by Jose F. Paranagua
Civil Engineering student Aaron Johnson distributes toothbrushes in Brazil.

The Brazil Mission

A second envoy including seven students and two advisors from EWB-HU also journeyed to Salvador Bahia, Brazil. They were eager to begin their physical site assessment of a modest and dilapidated community center – Instituto de Cultura Brasil Italia Europa (I.C.B.I.E) for future renovations, and to evaluate the socioeconomic conditions of residents living in the distressed peninsula District of Ribeira.

The 9-member team were guests of Roy Zimmerman, Pietro Gallina and Pietro’s wife Marlene who own and operate I.C.B.I.E. The institute provides an opportunity for the disadvantaged youth and residents of Salvador to participate, free of charge, in formal classes ranging from computer technology, English, Italian, Capoeira, hapkido, visual arts, theater, and music. This unique facility provides rare access to educational and artistic skills that will permit its citizens to obtain meaningful employment and escape the vicious cycle of poverty and violence endemic to that region of Brazil.

“Student volunteerism at Howard has found expression on the world stage, particularly for its underdeveloped and disfranchised communities,” said faculty mentor Brian Stephenson, PE. “Thanks to the support of the university, at all levels, and the life-long dedication of others, the mission of Howard to create and send forth global leaders for tomorrow has been elevated to a new benchmark.”

The Institute is in critical need of an overall electrical utility upgrade, interior and exterior architectural repair, as well as the construction of a new roofing system to cover an existing open courtyard. Such a structure would create functional space that would allow I.C.B.I.E. to continue conducting their much-needed cooperative activities during Salvador’s torrential seasonal rains.

While on the ground, EWB-HU members performed diligent site documentation of all existing architectural, electrical, water supply and sanitation conditions serving the main Institute building and an adjacent hostel where the team members resided during their mission. The group also toured two poverty-stricken areas rarely witnessed by foreigners. In those areas, the students participated in the Bahian government sponsored graffiti program to beautify many of the cities doleful dwellings and public structures.

The Howard students’ rigorous service-learning itinerary also included visits to the Federal University of Bahia, and the Pan American Middle/High School of Bahia. The team of engineers and architects also toured Bahia’s water and sanitation agency (EMBASA) to gain a better understanding how the primary sewage treatment station utilizes ecologically friendly practices to dispose of the millions of gallons of waste water generated each day in the densely populated region. The trip concluded with a community meeting held at the Institute where the students complied a detailed site assessment report for future facility improvements from input by those who directly utilize I.C.B.I.E. and need it to continue to serve as a beacon of hope the most.

The EWB-HU Brazil team has also entered a multi-year partnership with I.C.B.I.E. They will be working within the community over the next 3-5 years.

For more information on EWB-HU visit, http://www.ewb-hu.org

Howard Chapter of Engineers Without Borders Heads to Kenya, Brazil

WASHINGTON (March 3, 2009) – For most of their peers, spring break means vacationing by the beach, but for more than a dozen Howard students the March recess means rolling up their sleeves and making a difference.

The Howard Chapter of Engineers Without Borders will travel a world away from their classrooms to help two communities plagued by HIV/AIDS and violence. They are packing their hard hats, work boots and sketches and are en route to Kenya and Brazil to help those in greatest need.

The EWB-HU contingent departs Washington on March 13 and return on March 23. They will travel to two continents and a cumulative total of 12,000 miles each way.

“This is a community centered service-learning experience focused on sustainable development and improving the quality of life in two developing countries,” said John Tharakan, Ph.D., EWB-HU advisor and professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering. “It is unique in that it contributes to the student’s own development while giving back.”

The students and their advisors began crafting the two service missions last fall, which includes a multi-phased effort with the Ribiera community in Salvador, Brazil and the Choimim community of Nandi, Kenya.

Atlanta native Alexandria McBride, president of EWB-HU, is leading her second delegation overseas. Last year, she coordinated the inaugural EWB-HU week of service to Cocle, Panama where they painted, enclosed a structure to provide additional living space, built a vegetable garden and provided a desktop computer for the orphanage.

“We are really excited about the opportunity to dedicate our spring break to service and collaborate with the local people to develop solutions,” McBride said. “As we equip ourselves for the workforce, it is imperative that we are groomed to solve national and global challenges. EWB allows us to do both.”

Kenya Project

To date, approximately 15 million children have been orphaned by HIV/AIDS. The vast majority of children living with AIDS acquire the disease through mother-to-child transmission, which can occur in the womb, during birth or through breastfeeding. According to UNAIDS, approximately 1.3 million Kenyans are living with HIV/AIDS. The disease has not spared Nandi Hills, a small rural community in the Rift Valley region. It is approximately 200 miles from the capital, Nairobi.

In conjunction with Build The Village, an organization that works with indigenous people to build self-sustaining village communities, the Nandi Village project will provide educational, nutritional, psychosocial, and most importantly a home for the HIV/AIDS orphans and vulnerable children in Choimim community. The new developments will house approximately 50 orphans; they are scheduled for completion in December 2010.

During the weeklong mission, students will paint, mix mortar and install glass for a building currently under construction. The plan also includes working at a neighboring school with lessons in water assessment and taking care of the environment.

Brazil Project

Simultaneously, the second delegation will be working in the Afro-Brazilian community of Salvador, Bahia, which has been crippled by violence in low-income areas referred to as favelas or ghettos. Neighboring Saramandaia, also in Bahia, has lost
43 children in six years to senseless killings. At the heart of this community is its culture – local non-governmental organizations are working to use visual art and music to engage young people and keep them away from violence; however, the art space is without a roof and badly in need of repairs. EWB-HU has partnered with the Institute of Culture Brazil Italy Europe (ICBIE) and Projeto Cultural Art Consciente, who will act as the cultural hub for the development of the community.

The multipurpose theatre design and development in Salvador, Brazil will provide the Afro-Brazilian Community access to cultural activities and development activities previously lacking. The 35 x 12 meter space, currently an abandoned area, will be used for film, poetry, capoeira, dance and plays. This area of Brazil in the “low city” has long been excluded and this will provide a center for academic and artistic excellence. Phase one includes site and community assessment, concept designs for a temporary roofing to provide functional use of the space and appropriate technology research.

EWB-HU spearheaded a fundraising campaign, which raised nearly $30,000 to offset the travel cost, food, lodging, and to purchase work materials as well as school supplies. The sponsors include Unilever Foundation, Swinerton Foundation, U.S. Steel, the Office of the Provost as well as the Dean of the College of Engineering, Architecture, and Computer Sciences.

Howard University is a private, research university that is comprised of 12 schools and colleges. Founded in 1867, students pursue studies in more than 120 areas leading to undergraduate, graduate and professional degrees. Since 1998, the University has produced two Rhodes Scholars, a Truman Scholar, a Marshall Scholar, 19 Fulbright Scholars and 11 Pickering Fellows. Howard also produces more on-campus African-American Ph.D. recipients than any other university in the United States. For more information on Howard University, call 202-238-2330, or visit the University’s Web site at http://www.Howard.edu.

Engineers Without Borders – USA (EWB-USA) is a non-profit humanitarian organization established to partner with developing communities worldwide in order to improve their quality of life. This partnership involves the implementation of sustainable engineering projects, while involving and training internationally responsible engineers and engineering students.

HU Chapter of Engineers Without Borders Test Local Water Body

 

EWB-HU spearheaded a World Water Monitoring Day initiative along with their counterparts at neighboring universities at the McMillan Reservoir in Washington D.C. on Sunday, Oct. 12, 2008

WASHINGTON (October 20, 2008) – Howard University Chapter of Engineers without Borders (EWB-HU) spearheaded a World Water Monitoring Day initiative along with their counterparts at neighboring universities at the McMillan Reservoir on Sunday, Oct. 12.

The project, World Water Monitoring Day is observed annually. It commemorates the anniversary of the U.S. clean water act, enacted in 1972, by the U.S. Congress to restore and protect the country’s water resources. Part of a worldwide effort, it encourages citizens to conduct basic monitoring of their local water bodies.

“World Water Monitoring Day was a great opportunity to learn about our drinking water and test its quality,” said Alexandria McBride, president of EWB – Howard Chapter. “It also served as a reminder about something we take for granted: potable water.”

According to the United Nations more than 1.1 billion people lack access to safe drinking water. EWB-USA implements projects to increase access to safe drinking water in developing communities around the world.

Howard University students, joined by other students from George Washington and Catholic Universities studied water quality using simple test kits. The effort involved testing some parameters including temperature, acidity (PH), clarity (turbidity), and dissolved oxygen (DO). The results were uploaded to the World Water Monitoring Day website along with test results of other participating countries.

This past spring the EWB-HU skipped traditional spring break destinations and headed to Cocle, Panama, where they helped to renovate an orphanage for young girls — Hogar de Niñas de Penonomè — badly in need of repairs. After this successful mission and numerous donations, the orphanage is beautifully renovated to accommodate additional girls, has additional computer equipment, and a thriving vegetable garden.

The Howard Chapter of EWB plans to visit Brazil in December and Kenya during spring break 2009 to participate in further development projects.

EWB-HU is an interdisciplinary humanitarian organization established to partner with developing communities to improve their quality of life via construction of sustainable systems, empowering communities by enhancing local, technical, managerial, and entrepreneurial skills.

Howard Students to Spend Spring Break Helping Orphans in Panama

WASHINGTON – For many college students, spring break means ditching the books and heading south for sun and sand. But, the Howard University chapter of Engineers Without Borders (EWB-HU) will skip the beach and trade their swimsuits for work boots and hard hats to help others in rural Panama.

Nearly twenty Howard students and their advisors will travel 2,000 miles to Coclé, Panama, 71 miles west of Panama City, where they will spend seven days (March 16-23) making a difference in the lives of the 28 girls who call the Hogar de Niñas de Penonomè orphanage home. The shelter houses children ages 7 to 18 years, many of whom have been removed from abusive and incestuous homes. The students will be traveling under the institutional umbrella of their partnering organization, Global Business Brigades.

After months of planning and assessment, international conference calls with local universities and business owners, the volunteers are ready to implement. The participants whose majors range from business to engineering, will tackle several projects from building a rain cover to fixing washing machines and enhancing the girl’s esteem through a “Make me Beautiful” campaign.

“The 21st century engineer now must have more than just technical knowledge of their field. He or she must also be business savvy and globally aware,” said Alexandria McBride, junior, civil engineering major and president of EWB-HU. “What is different about this trip is that we are implementing sustainable projects and more importantly we are not only giving the girls a fish, but we are teaching them to fish,” the Atlanta native added.

According to World Bank statistics, one in three people or 37 percent of the population live below the poverty line. Children are most affected; in fact, half of all Panamanian children are poor.

An assessment visit to Panama during December was a life changing for Vallejo, California native Jomari Peterson. He returned to campus motivated to revisit to Coclé. Peterson’s energy was contagious. Before long he had more than a dozen of his peers interested in the Panama mission.

“That is what Howard is truly about,” Peterson said. “We are prepared to be leaders not only at home, but abroad. After my visit in December, I knew it was important for Howard to be a part of this important project and use our skills to change people’s lives.

The trip to Central America is the inaugural international project for EWB-HU, the first chartered at a Historically Black College or University. The organization, while engineering centered, has participants from a broad range of fields.

“Engineering is key to international development and Engineers Without Borders was started with the idea of providing technical and developmental assistance to communities around the world,” said John Tharakan, Ph.D., EWB-HU advisor and professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering. “However, no real problem in this world can be solved through a single discipline.”

The students spearheaded a fundraising campaign, which raised approximately $20,000 to offset the cost of the trip for 15 students and to purchase work material, school supplies and four computers for the orphanage. The sponsors include Swinerton Builders, Malcolm Pirnie, EnPro Industries, and United Black Fund. The Howard University College of Engineering, Architecture, and Computer Science (CEACS) also rallied behind the cause.

During the club’s pre-departure presentation, Anita Moore-Hackney (B.A. ’50) lauded the students for their exceptional work and selflessness.

“As an alumna and native of Panama, I am truly proud,” Moore-Hackney said. “What you are doing for this community is amazing. It is worthy of high commendation that you are willing to use your spring break to serve.”

Howard will partner with Global Business Brigades and Plan 4 Success, two non-profit organizations that focus on the development of micro-enterprises in rural areas of Panama. The mission of Global Business Brigades is to facilitate student travel to developing countries to assist in local economic development by providing business solutions to micro-enterprises in rural villages with limited access to resources. The other partnering organization, Plan 4 Success, is a nonprofit aimed to prepare undergraduate minority students for meaningful career-focused positions.

Howard University is a private, research university that is comprised of 12 schools and colleges. Founded in 1867, students pursue studies in more than 120 areas leading to undergraduate, graduate and professional degrees. Since 1998, the University has produced two Rhodes Scholars, a Truman Scholar, a Marshall Scholar, 19 Fulbright Scholars and 11 Pickering Fellows. Howard also produces more on-campus African-American Ph.D. recipients than any other university in the United States. For more information on Howard University, call 202-238-2330, or visit the University’s Web site at http://www.Howard.edu.

Engineers Without Borders – USA (EWB-USA) is a non-profit humanitarian organization established to partner with developing communities worldwide in order to improve their quality of life. This partnership involves the implementation of sustainable engineering projects, while involving and training internationally responsible engineers and engineering students.

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EWB Works in Cocle, Panama

Howard Students from Across Nation Spend Spring Break Helping Needy in Panama