ENGINEERS WITHOUT BORDERS  -IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY -  

FALL 2019 NEWSLETTER

 

 

 

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EWB - IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY  In 2013, the Iowa State Chapter of Engineers Without Borders was

paired with Ullo, a community in Northern Ghana. Since then, EWB-ISU has

sent travel teams to Ullo in the Summer of 2014 and Winter of 2016-’17 to

assess the community’s needs and decide the best water project to implement.

Ultimately, we concluded that a water distribution system for the boarding

high school in Ullo was the best option. A team in the Winter of 2017-’18

determined the best source of water, and the Winter 2018-’19 team completed

implementation of the system. In addition to monitoring the system, new

projects have been started in Ullo, including cook stoves, a clinic, and an

agriculture and irrigation project.

Winter 2018 - Ullo, Ghana  

 

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Fall 2019  With clearer directions for projects after initial research during the

spring semester and summer trip, the engineering teams began work on the next phases of each project to prepare for the Winter ‘19-‘20 trip. This trip will include monitoring for the water distribution system, implementation for the cook stoves project, and assessments for the agriculture and clinic projects. Every engineering team has worked this semester on the required written reports for the current phase of their project. This has involved more in-depth research on the criteria for the clinic and agriculture projects. The cook stoves team has finalized designs for both school kitchen stoves and household stoves. They have also built and tested prototypes and have begun construction plans for the travel team. The club held design reviews before the report deadlines, so each team could receive feedback from other club members and our advisors.

In addition to engineering work, the EWB-ISU club members have been working hard on fundraising for the many projects. The major fundraising event for the fall semester was Deal’s Orchard. This year 30 club members spent a weekend working at the Fall Festival, raising money for EWB-ISU.

Club Members at Deal’s Orchard    

Throughout the fall semester, club members have also presented about our work, recruited new members, and held outreach and social events. Five members were able to attend the EWB-USA National Conference in Pittsburgh in November. At the conference, EWB-ISU member Michelle Friedmann was awarded the 2019 Exceptional Leadership Award, one of only three awards given to individual students from over 150 student chapters.  

John Jennison, Anna Bilek, Abby Dolejs, Emily  Hou, and Jack Hanley - National Conference  

 

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Zack Saeed Visits Iowa State

Zack Saeed, the son of the Chief of Ullo, came to Iowa State as a visiting scholar for two weeks at the beginning of October. Zack is a physician assistant in Ghana where he focuses on maternal and child health and nutrition, so he was able to take nutrition classes during his time at Iowa State. He also attended EWB general and executive meetings and met with club members to help them learn more about Ullo and to answer questions they had about projects. Zack spent time at the World Food Prize in Des Moines, Iowa, and was able to visit his sister in Ohio for one weekend. This was an exciting visit for Zack to reunite with past travellers, to meet other club members including the upcoming travel team, and to strengthen the partnership between Ullo and EWB-ISU.

 Prototyping with the Cook Stoves Team

 

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Zack tailgating with EWB-ISU members and alumni  SPECIAL THANKS TO OUR SUPPORTING DONORS   

         

Interested in donating? Visit http://www.ewb.stuorg.iastate.edu/donate/