Corporate Council for Africa introduction

Sunday 10 MAY 2009         20:45  - 22:00 EST

Session Attendees:         Nishi Andra, Vivek Nath Olivia Campos, Taylor Hickem, Brigitte Silver, Kenneth Simons

 

Next Session

SUN 17 MAY 21:30 – 22:30 EST

Moderator

this week 10 MAY : Taylor

Weekly Update

Kenneth Simons – Program analyst for Corporate Council for Africa - welcome!

Discussion Topics

Corporate Council for Africa - a non-profit that promotes US business investment into Africa

 

 Trekking for Kids. – Organization that organizes hikes, and helping orphanage projects in various parts of the world

 

Ideas for focus areas

–        women’s issues (fertility, equal rights) may not be as good a use of engineering skills

compared with working on water sanitation projects

-         rural electricity distribution infrastructure is important, because it allows for more productive hours in the day, among other things

-         engineering training resources are also in short supply – working on engineering training curriculum would be a worthwhile effort

-         some organizations are offering cheap solar panels ~ $100 for Africa projects – mcc.gov

-         gas flaring is damaging to the environment, waste of natural resources and an opportunity for engineers to help

New Affiliated Organizations

Millennium Challenge Corporation

http://www.mcc.gov/

 

Trekking for kids

http://www.trekkingforkids.org/

 

One laptop per child

http://laptop.org/en/

 

Conversation Transcript: (available at SustainableAfricaGroup documents)

Brookings Institute - Africa Growth Initiative

http://www.brookings.edu/projects/africa-growth.aspx

The Brookings Institute

http://www.brookings.edu/papers/2007/12_malaria_cohen.aspx

Free Distribution Or Cost-Sharing? Evidence From A Randomized Malaria Prevention Experiment

Health Care, Africa, Global Health, Global Economics, Economic Development

Jessica Cohen, Development Economics Research Fellow, Global Economy and Development 
Pascaline Dupas, Assistant Professor of Economics, Dartmouth College

It is widely believed that cost-sharing—charging a subsidized, positive price—for a health product is necessary to avoid wasting resources on those who will not use or do not need the product. We explore this argument in the context of a field experiment in Kenya, in which we randomized the price at which pregnant women could buy long lasting anti-malarial insecticide-treated nets (ITNs) at prenatal clinics. We find no evidence that cost-sharing reduces wastage on those that will not use the product: women who received free ITNs are not less likely to use them than those who paid subsidized positive prices. We also find no evidence that cost-sharing induces selection of women who need the net more: those who pay higher prices appear no sicker than the prenatal clients in the control group in terms of measured anemia (an important indicator of malaria). Cost-sharing does, however, considerably dampen demand. We find that uptake drops by 75 percent when the price of ITNs increases from 0 to $0.75, the price at which ITNs are currently sold to pregnant women in Kenya. We combine our estimates in a cost-effectiveness analysis of ITN prices on infant mortality that incorporates both private and social returns to ITN usage. Overall, given the large positive externality associated with widespread usage of insecticide-treated nets, our results suggest that free distribution to pregnant women is both more effective and more cost-effective than cost-sharing.

Willing to contribute 4 hrs / week

Sunday 19 MAR 2009 21:30 – 23:00 EST

Session Attendees: Nishi Andra, Vivek Nath, Taylor Hickem, Olivia Campos

Next Session

SUN 26 MAR 2009 20:30 - 21:30 EST

Moderator

Vivek

Weekly Update

Brigitte forwarded us a contact at UVA who knows of a lot of development projects that could use engineering work.

Discussion Topics

Details of email response to contact, Tim Redden
http://www.linkedin.com/pub/4/a52/179

Conclusion – Taylor will send draft email to group, and

The rest of the group will provide resumes and approval before sending to Tim

Each member will be willing to contribute 4 hrs/week

Contents of email draft may be found in the google group under “Engineering Project in Africa”

New Affiliated Organizations

Conversation Transcript: (available at SustainableAfricaGroup documents)

__________________________________________________________________________________

Feedback from field experience

Sunday 12 MAR 2009 22:30 – 23:30 EST

Session Attendees: Nishi Andra, Vivek Nath, Taylor Hickem, Brigitte Silver

Next Session

SUN 19 MAR 2009 21:30 - 22:30 EST

Moderator

no moderator this week

Weekly Update

World Bank Millennium Goals – Fight: poverty, hunger, infant mortality, disease,

Improve: maternal health, education, women’s rights, sustainability, global integration

Brigitte Silver – UVA Law student with experience in humanitarian projects – welcome!

Peace Corps – can be dangerous, not much positive feedback from those who have gone. A lot of manual labor. Response to applications can be slow.

Discussion Topics

Brigitte Silver – experience in humanitarian projects in Guyana, Guatemala Panama, and Costa Rica

New Affiliated Organizations

SOIL
http://www.oursoil.org/

Global Development Learning Network
http://www.gdln.org/

Meetup.com
www.meetup.com/

Conversation Transcript: (available at SustainableAfricaGroup documents)

Global Learning Development Network (GDLN)

From the Global Development Learning Network (GDLN) Website

Coordinated by the World Bank, the Global Development Learning Network (GDLN) is a partnership of over 120 recognized global institutions (Affiliates) in over 80 countries that collaborates in the design of customized learning solutions for individuals and organizations working in development [...]

Collectively, Affiliates put on 1000+ learning sessions a year that range from training courses and informal brainstorming sessions to multi-country dialogues and virtual conferences. GDLN learning specialists in these organizations collaborate in designing customized learning solutions for clients [...]

Sessions are designed for specific learning objectives and audiences and also draw on applied knowledge and expertise from across the network. They usually feature a combination of learning techniques, such as expert panels, case based learning and action plans, as well as information and communication tools, used in face-to-face, videoconferencing and e-learning events.

GDLN is present in most major cities and in many secondary cities. We offer direct access to local, regional and international development experts, provide tailored learning programs, knowledge or technical assistance programs, and state of the art facilities for multi-point videoconferencing and internet-based learning.

Our services fall into four broad categories: program and session design, session management and coordination, learning product development, and promotion and marketing services.

Since GDLN first opened its doors in 1999, thousands of people around the world have been inspired to improve their lives. From a group of women in Tanzania who created their own national Chamber of Commerce, now boasting 2,000 members — to the government of Nicaragua who collaborated with the United Nations Development Programme to create an emergency response plan to the Avian flu threat.

Another example

Productivity improvements through collaboration between Toyota and Mongolian textile fatories

GDLN’s Japan affiliate [organized] a course on business efficiency, entitled “Toyota Production Systems"[...] Through [the GDLN affiliate], Japan’s APO [extended] its capacity building regionally, and Mongolian companies [became] more competitive.

Team challenge - post your vision

Sunday 22 FEB 2009 22:00 - 23:00

Session Attendees:

Nishi Andra, Aditya Subramanian, Olivia Campos, Taylor Hickem, Francesca Lanata

Next Session

SUN 01 MAR 2009 22:00 - 23:00

Suggested Topics - Individual Visions
(See agenda proposal in Google Group)

Moderator

this week 22 FEB : Olivia
next week 01 MAR : Aditya

Weekly Update

The Water Project - non-profit organization that organizes donors for water projects

Corporate Council for Africa – useful forum for collaboration on Africa related issues

Harvard – One laptop per child initiative

Francesca Lanata – Intl Relations and Pol Science at UBC, Vancouver – welcome!

Discussion Topics

Individual Visions
Team challenge

post ideas on how the group will be able to

help improve peoples lives in poorer countries

group consensus on challenge

agree to post by next session

New Affiliated Organizations

The Water Project

thewaterproject.org/

Corporate Council for Africa

www.africacncl.org/

One laptop per child

http://laptop.org/en/

Conversation Transcript: (available at SustainableAfricaGroup documents)

building schools in Africa - podcast

A podcast with the CEO and founder of Building Tomorrow,
a non-profit that builds schools in Africa.

Beyond engineering and agriculture, although certainly worth a listen. He discusses some of the methods in which they operate, some of their goals, and some of the problems they have faced. also included are other Africa related podcasts from the same source.

From Kenneth Simons

http://www.econtalk.org/archives/2008/12/srour_on_educat.html

Other podcasts from econtalk.org
http://www.econtalk.org/archives/2008/02/easterly_on_gro.html
http://www.econtalk.org/archives/2008/01/collier_on_the.html
http://www.econtalk.org//archives/2008/09/karol_boudreaux_1.html

The Water Project

Organization that takes individual donations to fund water projects in Africa.

Some Key Notes

-Money comes from individual tax deductible donations, and goes completely to construction costs, and not to pay for salaries, etc.. of the organization. Organization is filed as a 501c3 IRS non profit organization and has an easy to use online donation icon.

-Most projects are well projects between $3,000 and $35,000.

-Primary strategy is to utilize social networking platforms such as facebook and myspace

-Actively seeking donors, bloggers, and project proposals.

The Water Project:
Frequently Asked Questions

1. Who are you?
2. Are you a 501c3 organization? (is my gift tax deductible)
3. How do you give away 100%?
4. Where does the money go?
5. How do I know the money was well spent?
6. Do you help dig wells?
7. How much does a well cost?
8. Can I sponsor a specific village or project?
9. Can I volunteer?
10. Are you accepting project proposals?

Who Are You?

The Water Project, Inc. is a Christian non-profit, charitable organization that works to bring relief to people in communities around the world who suffer needlessly from a lack of access to clean water.

Most of our work in advancing the effort to help bring clean water to places like Kenya and Cameroon happens online. We have very few administrative expenses. So, every dollar donated to a water project site is sent directly to organizations who are doing actual construction.

The Water Project, to date, has helped over 10,000 Africans improve their access to clean water.

Read More...

Are you a 501(c)(3) organization? (is my gift tax deductible)

YES. The Water Project, Inc. is a public charity under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Donations are tax deductible to the extent permitted by law.

How do you give away 100%?

The Water Project, Inc. works to keep our administrative costs very low. But, there are still bills to pay.

Generous "Sponsors Team" donors who recognize the importance of supporting these administrative costs make donations specifically for these purposes. It is a vital role to play and we sincerely appreciate their investments in this work. These donations are multiplied by enabling The Water Project to do a more effective job of telling the story of water and inspiring others to give.

If you would like to support the administrative costs of The Water Project, Inc. please read more here.

Where Does the Money Go?

We work to ensure that 100% of money donated to projects through this web site goes directly towards the construction of water projects. Funds raised are forwarded directly to an implementing organization who administrates the projects overseas and reports back regularly on progress. Our relationships with these partners help us carefully monitor the projects and how funds are being used.

Our administrative expenses are covered by other donors. Our staff is never compensated from donations made to projects on this or our related websites.

Donate Now...

How do I know the money was well spent?

Go see! (ok, stay and see, but going would be fun too...) We have devoted the largest portion of our web initiatives to telling the story of each project as it is implemented. We are building tools everyday to better connect supporters, aid workers on the ground, and the communities we help. Here's just a few ways to stay connected.

1. Visit our Water Projects page to see updates and photos from the field.
2. Another example is on our Cameroon project site, where you can read comments from the families who received filters from this program. Visit Cameroon.TheWaterProject.org

Do you help dig wells?

Yes we do. You can see our current well projects to learn more.

How Much Does a Well Cost?

The cost to dig a well in Africa varies greatly from one site to the next. On average the cost is between $3,000 and $35,000. We regulary fund well projects of all sizes. The variance in cost often has to do with the depth of the water and the number of people served. We aim to provide water for $10 for 1 person's water lasting up to 10 years.

We're also excited about other water solutions too. Water tanks, sand dams, biosand filters, and other water solutions all have value too.

Can I sponsor a specific village?

In many cases, yes. If you are planning a group fundraiser or are looking to make a generous donation, please contact us for a list of potential water project sites. We have many projects waiting for funding. We'll work hard to provide you a complete community profile(s) to review.

Can I Volunteer?

YES! Currently we are seeking individuals who are inspired to act.

First, we are looking for writers with an interest in the issue of access to clean water. One of our primary goals is to build a site that educates and motivates. Anyone who would like to "blog" water for us is encouraged to contact us.

Second, we are looking for anyone who is willing to tell others about TheWaterProject.org. Connecting people to this "idea" is the key to success. Everyone has the ability to tell someone else. If you have a FaceBook account, MySpace Profile, Blog, or any other social networking connections, please involve everyone you know. This is perhaps the single most important way any one person can help!

Tell Others...

Are You Accepting Project Proposals?

YES, on a limited basis. Please fill out our Partner Request Form to get started.

http://thewaterproject.org/

Green My Ride

Northwestern University's Engineers for a Sustainable World apply for a grant from MTVU to make the campus shuttles more environmentally friendly.

Proposal was to recycle waste vegetable oil from the school cafeteria to process into bio-diesel and replace 50% of the diesel fuel for their bus fleet.

Additionally there were also recommendations to make more pedestrian friendly bus stops focused on protection from weather - made from renewable resources, and GPS navigation system to improve route efficiency, and encourage increases in ridership.

Rendezvous in Atlanta - 01/ 02 MAY 2009

Sunday 08 FEB 2009 21:30 - 23:00

Session Attendees: Nishi Andra, Vivek Nath, Aditya Subramanian, Olivia Campos, Taylor Hickem

Next Session

SUN 15 FEB 2009 21:30 - 23:00

Suggested Topics - Individual Visions, Maximizing Effectiveness
(See agenda proposal in Google Group)

Moderator

this week 08 FEB : Taylor
next week 15 FEB : Olivia

Weekly Update

ESW - Biodiesel from waste vegetable oil at Northwestern

EWB - Central Texas - many opportunities for young engineers

SELF.org - organization focused on implementing solar projects in developing countries

Kick Start - profit seeking ventures for reducing poverty

Practical Action - variety of small projects in education, energy, transport, etc..

Discussion Topics

Rendezvous in Atlanta
Dates : GT graduation - Fri/Sat 01/02 MAY
No concerns from anyone - assume OK for now
Reminder to mention in future session in March/April

New Affiliated Organizations

ESW - Biodiesel from waste vegetable oil at Northwestern University
Northwestern University "Green My Ride" Youtube video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9cMznd4Kw3w
MTVU "Break the Addiction"
http://www.mtv.com/thinkmtv/features/environment/break_the_addiction/index_12steps.jhtml
Grant from MTVU "GreenMyRide" to improve the bus system
by converting waste vegetable oil from the cafeteria into biodiesel,
saving petrodiesel consuption by 50%, in addition to other green additions for the
bus system.

EWB - Central Texas
Central Texas Professionals Chapter of Engineers without Borders
www.ewbcentraltexas.org/
planning on sending a group of students to Ecuador in May
also projects in cameroon, panama, and mexico
mostly focused on water distribution
many positions available, from technical mentor, project lead, liason, or just member

SELF.org
Solar Electrical Light Fund
http://Self.org
Good resource for instituting solar projects in the developing world

Kick Start
http://www.kickstart.org/
Corporate model for developing marketable products that help relieve poverty in the
developing world

Practical Action
http://practicalaction.org/
Projects focused on simple improvements around energy, transportation, health, education, ..
for systematic and wholistic impact on communities - also is involved in
campaigning and public policy and advocacy

Conversation Transcript: (available at SustainableAfricaGroup documents)

What does "moving forward from here" mean to you ?

Sunday 01 FEB 2009 22:30 - 23:30

Session Attendees: Nishi Andra, Vivek Nath, Aditya Subramanian, Olivia Campos, Taylor Hickem

What was discussed:

• The role of a moderator will be rotated between people in the group.
• The next moderator is Olivia.
• Considering a limit on how long the discussion.
• Google group was created by OliviaDiscussed about family planning education for developing community and possible implementation issues.

Action Items:

A Google Group Invitation was set out by Olivia so be sure to accept it because it will help with keeping in touch and gathering information.

Provide Opinion about:

Comments or suggestion about next proposed meeting time:

Date: SUN 07 FEB 09 start at 21:30 and End 23:00

A description of what does “moving forward” from here mean to you?

Sustainable solutions for Southern Africa

Sunday 25 JAN 2009         22:30  - 01:00

Session Attendees:         Nishi Andra, Vivek Nath, Aditya Subramanian, Olivia Campos, Taylor Hickem

Conclusions

Chat ettiquite

assign a moderator with large groups to ensure that conversations do not diverge 
and everyone feels included in the discussion

type what you want to say ahead of time in notepad 
so that it doesn't show up as "so-and-so" is typing - 
if you want to speak up, just type "spacebar" in the google chat.

Personal Statements:

Nishi - help build sustainable solutions for developing communities
Vivek - engineering solutions for sustainability in developing countries
Taylor- making a positive impact on the quality of life for underprivileged societies
Olivia- devoting my time to improving quality of life in developing nations
Aditya- engineering solutions for global sustainability

Project Objective and Focus Areas

• We want to provide sustainable engineering solutions for improving the quality of life and a viable future in developing communities
  
• Build with the community and not just for the community
  
• Projects focused on infrastructure will require a great deal of collaboration between many organizations and institutes
  
• Political stability is a key factor in selecting our focus region
  
• Southern Africa is a good place to start
  

Types of organizations that will need to be engaged

governments
NGOs
Universities
local community resources - farmers
for-profit corporations
banks
etc...

Reasons why Southern Africa would be a good start

• Opportunity to demonstrate the full potential of sustainable technology in "green field" projects
  
• Relatively stable economy - potential to grow
  
• Others who have tried projects in these areas have been successful
  
• Ability to make a large impact due to the size of the need
  

Open Questions

What is the name of firm that supplies medical equipment for the professor? - for Nishi 
Who are some contacts of people involved in the projects in Zambia? - Aditya

Group Discussion Topics for future sessions

Current focus projects

Sustainability (Energy)
Infrastructure

Current focus countries

        Botswana
        Zambia
        South Africa
        Lesotho
        Swaziland

Other future possibilities

Health Care
Fertility
Education

Topic Questions:    How will we 

Gain the commitment from the underprivileged communities we are trying to help?
Be able to clearly state what we want to do and how we intend to do it?
Be able to demonstrate that our project will be effective at accomplishing its objective ?

        Next scheduled session:

               Sunday 01 FEB 2009     22:30    GoogleChat

Affiliated Organizations

Volunteer Morocco

Organization in Morocco that Nishi's Professor contact is involved in 
Schools
Heath Care
Orphanages / Childcare
$300,000 medical equipment

http://www.volunteermorocco.com/

Barefoot College

http://www.barefootcollege.org/enroll1.htm

Engineers for a Sustainable World (ESW)

Helps to coordinate engineering talent within the US to 
apply sustainable technology to the developing world

http://esw.affiniscape.com/

Engineers Without Borders (EWB)

Similar to ESW, appears to be more focused on 
having the engineers involved in the implementation of the projects.

http://www.ewb-international.org/

University of Texas
University of Zambia

Conversation Transcript: (available at Discussion Summaries under Project Documents)

Why GDP per capita (PPP) ?

Why GDP per capita (PPP) ?

GDP per capita (PPP) is a convenient number to use as a way to measure average quality of life. 

Other variables may prove more effective; I suggested this specific one for a few reasons:

Familiarity

It is well known variable that is available for many countries, 

and is a variable that government leaders are not only familiar with, 

but usually have a vested interest in raising for their own political purposes.

Unifying Focus Towards a Common Goal

I saw it as an opportunity to attract the attention of not only NGO's and international organizations, 

but also the political leadership and individuals within the community. 

Since having multiple variables could cause more confusion and open the possibility of conflicting agendas, it seems like a good way to focus all stakeholders towards a common goal.  

Given that the actual projects may only be focused on variables that merely correlate with GDP per capita, 

such as health, fertility rates, and literacy -  one may ask why the goal would not to be simply to focus on those variables instead of trying to tie them into GDP per capita.

The idea is that if any one particular project looks like it may conflict with other agendas that the stakeholders have. 

It allows for more flexibility to shift the attention to other projects (ex: infrastructure or health care vs fertility education), while still making progress on the overall objective, which is to improve quality of life.                        

Good Measure of Standard of Living

It does appear to correlate well with other variables that are typically associated with quality of life.

ex: infant mortality, education levels, etc..

My personal experience in various parts of the world led me to develop my own subjective, qualitative intuition as to

what the relative quality of life was for any particular place I visited.

Once I had a list of places ranked by quality of life in my head, 

I researched around the web for lists of countries ranked by a single economic variable. 

GDP per capita (PPP) struck me as the closest way to reproducing this ranking in my head.

 The list --->                   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_GDP_(PPP)_per_capita

Economic variables that correlate with GDP per capita (PPP)

Oil consumption            +76 

                        

May also be negative at times, but still highly correlated.

  http://cvjugo.blogspot.com/2008/03/gdp-per-capita-and-oil-imports-strong.html

                       

 This is a good measure of the industrial progress of a country.  

 Projects that should impact this variable:        traditional capital investments, manufacturing, infrastructure, etc.. 

                       

Life Expectancy          + 0.63

               

 Does not correlate above 30,000 (GDP pc) because life expectancy appears to caps out around 78

    http://www.indexmundi.com/g/correlation.aspx?v1=67&v2=30&y=2003

 Projects that should impact this variable:        targeting health care, such as AIDS, water quality, etc..

Total fertility rate           -0.55 

Varies with GDP per capita, -0.79 for <>

suggesting that high fertility rates are bad for poorer societies, but good for wealthier ones.  

 http://www.indexmundi.com/g/correlation.aspx?v1=67&v2=31&y=2004        

                        

Projects that should impact this variable:        women's rights, fertility education, women's health, planned parenthood

                    

Literacy                       + 0.55

                        

Does not correlate above 30,000 (GDP pc) because literacy caps out at 99% 

 http://www.indexmundi.com/g/correlation.aspx?v1=67&v2=39&y=2003

Projects that should impact this variable:        education initiatives - English, Math, Science, etc..

HDI                            +0.77

                       

Human Development Index - mathematically combines life expectancy, literacy rate, 

and GDP per capita into a single variable.                     

 http://www.erin.utoronto.ca/~w3psyuli/WellBeingScience/WellbeingHDI.htm              

list of countries by HDI

 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_Human_Development_Index

Mission Objective

Mission Objective

To positively impact the quality of the lives of citizens of an underprivileged African nation and to increase the gross domestic product of that nation

Mission Strategies

Implement needed and desired engineering practicalities in citizens’ lives

Educate citizens on the sustained operation and maintenance of these practical implementations

Expose citizens to fertility education and birth control options.