After 2 years of service as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Mali, I spent 5 months traveling in Ethiopia and Kenya. When people heard that I'm an engineer, they would express their technical problems to me, most of which I found utterly helpless to solve given my American education on large scale systems. The more I thought about it, however, the more I developed ideas for simple devices and technologies to meet these needs. Little did I know at the time that these technologies have a name, “appropriate technologies” (AT), a rapidly growing industry.
I first heard Dr. Moses Musaazi, founder of Technology for Tomorrow (an AT company) and Electrical Engineering Professor at Makerere University in Kampala, Uganda speak at the U-M STEM-Africa Initiative Launch Conference in early May 2010, only a couple months after I returned from Africa. When I heard Dr. Musaazi speak, I was inspired by the work he was doing, and approached him after his talk. I doubt that he remembered me amongst all the eager professors and students waiting to speak with him but it was then that I became determined to learn from him first hand. In September I was introduced to Dr. Abigail Mechtenberg, a post-doc in the Applied Physics department at U of M, who is currently working with Dr. Musaazi on a Bicycle Electric Generator (BEG). Through this connection, I traveled to Uganda in December 2010 to meet him and discuss a potential internship. I then applied for and received, a student initiated summer internship fellowship through the William Davidson Institute (WDI), and funding for materials from the African Studies Center (ASC). I am extremely grateful for these sponsorships, without which I wouldn't have this amazing opportunity.
About the Company
Technology for Tomorrow (T4T) is dedicated to “making life easier while protecting the environment.” They use readily available materials to create solutions focused in three categories: sustainable building materials, health and fuel conservation. They aim to create appropriate technologies that work with traditional customs and habits, making them more transferable. Below are some examples:
ISSB
The Interlocking Stabilized Soil Blocks (ISSB), which use regular soil, don't need to be fired like traditional bricks, and only use a small amount of cement. The bricks are formed by loading soil, a small amount of water and a small amount of cement into a hand operated press. When the block is removed, it is strong enough to stand on and can be used after only 4 hours of curing building. This option is cheaper and faster than concrete bricks, reduces the amount of deforestation for fuel in fired bricks, and is more durable that regular mud bricks. Furthermore, because they are interlocking, the bricks don't need mortar in the vertical spaces, and only require a small amount in the horizontal spaces. The ISSB can also be made using a circular mold press, which are used to construct water tanks. Combined with a roof and gutter system, these tanks can easily and inexpensively be built on-site to harvest rainwater. Capturing rainwater can reduce erosion and flooding and provides easy access to water, reducing the amount of time and effort usually spent on gathering efforts.
Water Purification
Water purification technologies developed by T4T include the SolRay passive solar water panel to pasteurize water, and the Natru filter, adapted from a design by Canadian Professor David Manz. The Makiri hybrid stove improves on the traditional cookstove by replacing a clay portion with a metal portion that effortlessly circulates, pasteurizes and stores water while the user is cooking.
Sanitary Napkins
The most well-known invention of T4T are the Maka Pads; sanitary napkins made from papyrus. There are currently four production facilities in Uganda including one in Kayaka Refugee Settlement. Because it is a product for women, approximately 95% of the employees are women, including managerial roles. The pads are currently sold in bulk to the UN High Commission on Refugees (UNHCR), and other non-governmental organizations.
My contribution to new technologies
My time in Uganda will be spent working on the final phases of a Bicycle Electric Generator (BEG) prototype. I also will be helping with an improved design for a municipal waste incinerator, which uses only a match and some waste paper to ignite, at which point it uses only the waste for fuel. The new design will add a pipe which heats water into steam to run a turbine for electricity generation. I will be working on teaching a workshop to technicians in a rural area so they can design their own BEGs, and conducting rural and urban market analysis for the product. Pictures will come when I get a cord to connect my camera.
I first heard Dr. Moses Musaazi, founder of Technology for Tomorrow (an AT company) and Electrical Engineering Professor at Makerere University in Kampala, Uganda speak at the U-M STEM-Africa Initiative Launch Conference in early May 2010, only a couple months after I returned from Africa. When I heard Dr. Musaazi speak, I was inspired by the work he was doing, and approached him after his talk. I doubt that he remembered me amongst all the eager professors and students waiting to speak with him but it was then that I became determined to learn from him first hand. In September I was introduced to Dr. Abigail Mechtenberg, a post-doc in the Applied Physics department at U of M, who is currently working with Dr. Musaazi on a Bicycle Electric Generator (BEG). Through this connection, I traveled to Uganda in December 2010 to meet him and discuss a potential internship. I then applied for and received, a student initiated summer internship fellowship through the William Davidson Institute (WDI), and funding for materials from the African Studies Center (ASC). I am extremely grateful for these sponsorships, without which I wouldn't have this amazing opportunity.
About the Company
Technology for Tomorrow (T4T) is dedicated to “making life easier while protecting the environment.” They use readily available materials to create solutions focused in three categories: sustainable building materials, health and fuel conservation. They aim to create appropriate technologies that work with traditional customs and habits, making them more transferable. Below are some examples:
ISSB
The Interlocking Stabilized Soil Blocks (ISSB), which use regular soil, don't need to be fired like traditional bricks, and only use a small amount of cement. The bricks are formed by loading soil, a small amount of water and a small amount of cement into a hand operated press. When the block is removed, it is strong enough to stand on and can be used after only 4 hours of curing building. This option is cheaper and faster than concrete bricks, reduces the amount of deforestation for fuel in fired bricks, and is more durable that regular mud bricks. Furthermore, because they are interlocking, the bricks don't need mortar in the vertical spaces, and only require a small amount in the horizontal spaces. The ISSB can also be made using a circular mold press, which are used to construct water tanks. Combined with a roof and gutter system, these tanks can easily and inexpensively be built on-site to harvest rainwater. Capturing rainwater can reduce erosion and flooding and provides easy access to water, reducing the amount of time and effort usually spent on gathering efforts.
Water Purification
Water purification technologies developed by T4T include the SolRay passive solar water panel to pasteurize water, and the Natru filter, adapted from a design by Canadian Professor David Manz. The Makiri hybrid stove improves on the traditional cookstove by replacing a clay portion with a metal portion that effortlessly circulates, pasteurizes and stores water while the user is cooking.
Sanitary Napkins
The most well-known invention of T4T are the Maka Pads; sanitary napkins made from papyrus. There are currently four production facilities in Uganda including one in Kayaka Refugee Settlement. Because it is a product for women, approximately 95% of the employees are women, including managerial roles. The pads are currently sold in bulk to the UN High Commission on Refugees (UNHCR), and other non-governmental organizations.
My contribution to new technologies
My time in Uganda will be spent working on the final phases of a Bicycle Electric Generator (BEG) prototype. I also will be helping with an improved design for a municipal waste incinerator, which uses only a match and some waste paper to ignite, at which point it uses only the waste for fuel. The new design will add a pipe which heats water into steam to run a turbine for electricity generation. I will be working on teaching a workshop to technicians in a rural area so they can design their own BEGs, and conducting rural and urban market analysis for the product. Pictures will come when I get a cord to connect my camera.
Ini Tie Chelsea
ReplyDeleteMy name is Mohamed and I currenlty am working in Mali for an NGO called MFC-nyetaa (www.malifolkecenter.org) on rural development. I am actually working on developing an " Appropriate Technology and Center of Excellence" in the region of sikasso and I beleive the techonologies developed vy T4T fits right with the vision I have. I would like if possible to have a phone or skype chat with you to explore possible partnership. my email is sokonamohamed@gmail.com
Cheers