Mapping roads in Tanzania will fuel economic growth and development as well as improve healthcare and response to natural disasters.
Like many developing countries, roads and cities in Tanzania were previously off the grid from GPS devices and Google services such as Street View. With no map data, it is difficult to deliver aid and supplies to communities in need. Lack of map data affects virtually all transit in a country, from farmers transporting food to markets to residents of cities finding routes that avoid traffic on their commute.
However, recent efforts from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the World Bank have begun to put Tanzanian roads on the grid.
In an effort to improve how health supplies are delivered, USAID began mapping roads in Tanzania that connect more than 5,600 health centers. So far, more than 30,000 kilometers of roads have been mapped across the nation.
Previously, transporting medical supplies between these health centers and the communities that needed them was difficult because nearly half of Tanzania roads were not mapped online. This meant that if drivers did not know their delivery route, they had to rely on directions from locals. Drivers also did not know the road conditions or how long routes would take.
To map large amounts of roads quickly, USAID installed tracking devices on trucks from Tanzania’s medical stores department (MSD). USAID and MSD were able to determine the quickest routes possible to distribute medical supplies based on the data. The organizations also released the data to the public so all those looking to travel in Tanzania have access to the information.
The Ramani Huria community mapping group in the city of Dar es Salaam helped upload this data. The group has also begun mapping the streets of Dar es Salaam, where map data will become crucial to help the city better prepare and respond to natural disasters.
To map the city’s streets, local volunteers attach camera rigs to their vehicles and take pictures as they travel the streets. They can also use the Swedish app Mapillary to take photos as they walk or hitch rides around the city.
So far volunteers have helped map 300 miles of the project’s 2,000-mile goal. Images captured with Mapillary become 3D digital maps that show real-time data of Dar es Salaam.
Aside from the maps providing data about traffic and travel times, they can also be used to help locate areas that are in danger of flooding, develop plans to prepare for heavy floods and assess which routes can be taken to deliver aid in case of flooding.
Rising sea levels and heavy rainfall from March to May leave Tanzania prone to floods. Each year floods leave hundreds to thousands of Tanzanians homeless and cause many deaths. While the poverty rate is 28 percent, mapping roads in Tanzania will help combat some of the issues that lead to poverty.
– Cassie Lipp
Photo: Flickr
10 Facts About Mexican Drug Cartels
Continual and sensational news coverage of Mexican drug cartels may have desensitized people to the realities and sources of the violence. It is easy to forget how long the crisis imposed by the cartel has gone on and how far it is from over. To place the issue back into perspective, discussed below are 10 facts about Mexican drug cartels and the ways through which the government has attempted to deal with them.
Mexican Drug Cartels: Facts and Figures
By demilitarizing the war on drugs and reestablishing faith in the government, Mexico can begin to heal. The DEA recently emphasized the importance of coupling strategies: the targeting of high-profile cartel members by law enforcement and the provision of community outreach programs to end the opioid epidemic in Mexico and the United States. Long-term solutions must integrate security with social services to pursue prosperity.
– Robin Lee
Photo: Flickr
Underwear for Hope, by Naja
Fast fashion products are meant to imitate trends from major fashion events, such as New York Fashion Week. Naja’s products are stylish and resemble these trends, but are unique in that, like slow fashion trends, those working to make the products are paid fairly and empowered to create sturdy, quality products.
Female empowerment starts with economic independence. Naja employs economically-marginalized single mothers and female head of households. Fair pay and health benefits are included in the package, but the real beauty of Naja’s model comes in that it offers flexible scheduling and full support for its workers’ children, including paying for school lunches and other necessities. In addition, the company has vertically integrated parts of its supply chain, enabling it to have greater control over conditions for the productive processes.
Naja also combines advocacy with businesses by raising consumer awareness of the difficult realities of living in war-torn and violent countries. The main program it does this through is the Underwear for Hope program. Half of the proceeds from this program are taken home by the women making the products, and the other half is donated to the Golondrinas Foundation, which teaches women micro-entrepreneurship. This is in addition to the two percent of total revenue from all sales Naja donates to Colombian education charities.
Underwear for Hope provides a stable, living income and a chance to work from home for impoverished women in Colombia. The program teaches women to sew, a skill useful both at home for supporting a family and as a primary source of income. The women in the program make the lingerie wash bags Naja includes when a customer orders a bra. This helps to spread the message about Naja’s goals and to humanize the products women wear by matching a face to the product, just as Naja does on its website when customers look at a specific product.
Fast fashion works by attracting a customer base looking for on-trend clothing while supporting a cause. Naja competes for this customer base by creating runway-worthy products with unique artistic designs, showing that fashion can be both slow and trendy. Naja also incorporates eco-friendly materials, such as recycled plastics, and eco-friendly production methods, such as digital printing, to attract and build their socially-conscious consumer base.
– Lucas Woodling
Photo: Flickr
Five Space Inventions Helping the Developing World
From non-stick frying pans to squirt guns to keeping our homes warm, innovations that originated as space inventions are used each and every day right here on earth. But, some space inventions have become even more useful than ever imagined, and are now helping fight poverty in the developing world. Here is a look at five space inventions and some of the ways each helps to alleviate human suffering.
Baby Blankets
From NASA’s efforts in the 1980s to create a material that could both insulate and cool astronauts facing extreme temperatures during spacewalks came phase-change materials, or PCM’s. Although this material never made it into astronaut’s gloves, the space invention that emerged proved effective for insulating. In 2013, Jen Chen created a company called Embrace Innovations, which makes swaddles and blankets using PCM technology. The Embrace business model is simple: buy a blanket or swaddle for your baby and one is donated to a baby in need in the developing world. To date, 200,000 babies have been reached across 10 countries.
Solar Energy
When NASA began studying Environmental Research Aircraft and Sensor Technology (ERAST) to develop uninhabited aircraft that could sustain long-duration flights without interruption, the need for new innovative solar power sources became paramount. Among the space inventions that resulted: single-crystal silicon solar cells that significantly reduced the cost of solar power. With billions still living without electricity worldwide, solar power has proved effective in helping get clean water, mobile charging, and general illumination to the developing world.
Freeze-dried Food
Through an alliance with Nestle, in the pre-Apollo era, NASA developed a technique for freeze-drying food which made the transportation of numerous orbital delight feasible. Today, freeze-dried food is used to prevent spoilage while providing life-saving nutrient-rich substance to people suffering from hunger in the developing world. For example, Stop Hunger Now, a non-profit based out of Raleigh, North Carolina, operates meal-packing programs in 20 cities worldwide. They ship dehydrated rice and soy meals that are fortified with 23 nutrients and vitamins to not only help solve the problem of hunger in the world but also help provide essential nutrients to those living with a vitamin or mineral deficiency.
Baby Formula
In an effort to alleviate some of the challenges of eating in space while also reducing waste, NASA, with the contracted help of Marietta Laboratories, worked with micro-algae to develop a special three-in-one food source. The invention didn’t work out as space-food; however, Marietta’s research provided the technology used to place nutritional supplements into infant formula and baby food. One in four children around the world suffers from chronic malnutrition that stunts their growth. And, due to poverty and poor nutrition, an estimated 200 million children under age five suffer from under-developed cognition. With nutrient-enriched baby food, organizations helping to fight poverty and malnutrition in the developing world have a better chance to reach children during the most critical stages of development — conception to two years.
Satellites
Some space inventions have not only changed the world but also changed the way we look at it. While the link between satellites, NASA and space are obvious, their ability to help feed those living in the developing world is a bit more complex. Satellites can generate images of vegetation that, in turn, can measure “greenness” and provide real-time rainfall data and imagery. Thus, this space invention helps officials and policy-makers monitor for potential crop failures throughout the developing world. With better prediction capabilities comes better awareness, and with better awareness comes the ability to prevent food shortages. NASA has even teamed up with the USAID through a new environmental monitoring program in West Africa called SERVIR-West Africa. The program plans to enhance the use of data collected from satellite imagery to help fight hunger by helping officials better manage climate issues that affect crop harvesting and nutritional planning.
– Ashley Henyan
Photo: Flickr
Ten Facts About the Iraq War
The Iraq War, also known as the Third Gulf War, began on March 20th, 2003. Causes of the war are the Global War on Terrorism in response to the attacks on September 11th, the intention to eliminate weapons of mass destruction and the intention to arrest Saddam Hussein and then abolish his regime.
Here are 10 facts about the Iraq War:
Both the U.S and Iraq suffered severe financial and human life losses by the time the war officially ended in December 2011. Although Saddam Hussein’s government was officially overturned, no weapons of mass destruction were found. Nevertheless, the war has made lasting impacts on U.S. and Iraqi relations for years to come.
– Liliana Rehorn
Photo: Flickr
Global Education in 2016
Global education in 2016 has seen many successes and many challenges. Advances in technology have increased many children’s access to education and educational materials, but the ongoing refugee crisis has created an education crisis for children in much of the world. Above all, two landmark pieces of legislation, the Education for All Act and the Protecting Girls’ Access to Education in Vulnerable Settings Act have aimed to expand and protect access to education for those all over the world.
While many parts of the world suffering from poverty have limited access to resources such as textbooks and other school supplies, technology has been making strides to replace these things in countries all around the world. E-readers, smartphones and online libraries have been used in places like Sub-Saharan Africa and Haiti, and these advances aim to make education more accessible to children in impoverished regions.
This year has been notable for the refugee crisis, with 2.1 million Syrian children among the many global refugees. School enrollment rates for Syrian children remain lower than those in Sub-Saharan Africa, and refugee children remain five times more likely to be out of school than non-refugee children. This has been a serious challenge to global education in 2016, and it will likely continue well into 2017 and beyond.
Male students globally remain more likely to receive an education than their female counterparts, and this problem is what the Education for All Act hopes to solve. This bill is a bipartisan effort to advance and encourage basic education for all while prioritizing groups who have been marginalized or denied an education due to conflict.
Another effort to improve girls’ access to education worldwide is the Protecting Girls’ Access to Education in Vulnerable Settings Act. This legislation hopes to protect girls who are in danger from conflict or who are refugees by improving their access to education. When they are not enrolled in school, refugee girls are especially vulnerable to dangerous situations such as trafficking, child marriage and underage labor.
Global education has seen both improvements and increased challenges in 2016. While the refugee crisis has seen an uptick in children who are not enrolled in school, the Education for All Act and the Protecting Girls’ Access to Education in Vulnerable Settings Act aim to combat this problem and improve access to education for the most vulnerable and stigmatized.
– Eva Kennedy
Photo: Flickr
Robin Food App Cuts Down on Food Waste and Helps the Poor
Teens in Malaysia won the first Sime Darby’s Young Innovator’s Challenge with the Robin Food App, which connects businesses ready to donate surplus food to local food banks.
The Robin Food App is innovative because it presents a simple solution to two problems Malaysia and many other countries face: hunger and food waste.
Each day Malaysians produce 3,000 metric tons of avoidable food waste—enough food to feed 2.2 million people. About four percent of Malaysians live below the poverty line.
Cutting down on the amount of food wasted worldwide is an essential step to stopping climate change. Agriculture produces more greenhouse gasses than emissions from all cars, trains and airplanes combined.
Grocery stores, hotels, restaurants and other businesses can post on the Robin Food app when they have surplus food. Food banks are then notified of the surplus food in real time, pick up the food and distribute the food to those in need. The app also automatically generates statistics so that users can gain a sense of the impact their donations make.
Robin Food is available both as a web and smartphone app. The mobile app can even be accessed offline in areas that do not have internet access.
The Sime Darby Young Innovator’s Challenge is a new contest that challenges children aged 13-16 to think of a problem and come up with a solution that makes the world a better place. Applicants have the opportunity to participate in regional and national innovation workshops to gain the skills to develop their ideas further. The theme for this year’s contest was tackling poverty.
Sime Darby is a Malaysia-based multinational business conglomeration that has sectors in the plantation, industrial, property, motor and logistics sectors. The corporation is dedicated to bettering society while minimizing the impact on the environment and delivering sustainable development to all stakeholders.
Sime Darby will continue to challenge teens to generate innovative solutions to tackle major issues the world faces with creative solutions. The 2017 Young Innovators Challenge will begin in January. As the Robin Food app saves surplus food and feeds hungry Malaysians, many are excited to see which problems Malaysian teens will solve next.
– Cassie Lipp
Photo: Flickr
Teaching Children About Global Education and Development
Entering “pen pal in developing country” into a search engine will display results with at least five different organizations that offer this type of service. Parents and teachers may do this to find pen pals for their children and students, while at the same time trying to teach them about global education and development for those who are much less fortunate than they are. However, Virginia Fresne who is Director of programs for the nonprofit organization Flying Kites, says that this is not always mutually beneficial or educational for either writer.
Founded in 2007, Flying Kites believes that the way out of poverty is through education. They run a leadership academy in the foothills of Kenya’s mountains where they help some of the world’s most desperate children. Flying Kites believes that education is a human right; they believe in children, and they believe in children’s rights and dreams. They invite others to “believe with us.”
Fresne says that she often receives letters written by people who hope to become pen pals with her Kenyan students. However, she feels that “letter exchanging with ‘disadvantaged’ children in an effort to remind our own children to appreciate privilege doesn’t work for our students in Kenya.” Students may not know enough about the person who they are writing to, specifically about their vulnerabilities. This can lead to the use of phrases such as, “I’m sorry you are poor.” According to Fresne, wording such as this, “would be confusing, offensive or hurtful to our students in Kenya.”
Instead, she suggests other methods that she feels are more effective in teaching children about global education and development. One is having children write to their state representatives about issues that are affecting the world’s poor. To do this requires them to first learn about some of the challenges and difficulties faced by people who live in poverty. Another way is sponsoring a student, with the help of an adult, using an organization such as Flying Kites. This supports the education of a student in need and may initiate correspondence between the student and the sponsor, depending on the level of sponsorship.
Among Fresne’s other suggestions for teaching children about global education and development are helping them to coordinate a bake sale to use the proceeds as donations, or encouraging them to read about global poverty. They can then take what they learn and teach others, spreading awareness. Fresne notes how much braver this generation is, and says, “They will be a force in this world, but it won’t be because they sent letters to ‘poor children.’”
– Kristin Westad
Photo: Flickr
Mapping Roads in Tanzania Improves Healthcare
Mapping roads in Tanzania will fuel economic growth and development as well as improve healthcare and response to natural disasters.
Like many developing countries, roads and cities in Tanzania were previously off the grid from GPS devices and Google services such as Street View. With no map data, it is difficult to deliver aid and supplies to communities in need. Lack of map data affects virtually all transit in a country, from farmers transporting food to markets to residents of cities finding routes that avoid traffic on their commute.
However, recent efforts from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the World Bank have begun to put Tanzanian roads on the grid.
In an effort to improve how health supplies are delivered, USAID began mapping roads in Tanzania that connect more than 5,600 health centers. So far, more than 30,000 kilometers of roads have been mapped across the nation.
Previously, transporting medical supplies between these health centers and the communities that needed them was difficult because nearly half of Tanzania roads were not mapped online. This meant that if drivers did not know their delivery route, they had to rely on directions from locals. Drivers also did not know the road conditions or how long routes would take.
To map large amounts of roads quickly, USAID installed tracking devices on trucks from Tanzania’s medical stores department (MSD). USAID and MSD were able to determine the quickest routes possible to distribute medical supplies based on the data. The organizations also released the data to the public so all those looking to travel in Tanzania have access to the information.
The Ramani Huria community mapping group in the city of Dar es Salaam helped upload this data. The group has also begun mapping the streets of Dar es Salaam, where map data will become crucial to help the city better prepare and respond to natural disasters.
To map the city’s streets, local volunteers attach camera rigs to their vehicles and take pictures as they travel the streets. They can also use the Swedish app Mapillary to take photos as they walk or hitch rides around the city.
So far volunteers have helped map 300 miles of the project’s 2,000-mile goal. Images captured with Mapillary become 3D digital maps that show real-time data of Dar es Salaam.
Aside from the maps providing data about traffic and travel times, they can also be used to help locate areas that are in danger of flooding, develop plans to prepare for heavy floods and assess which routes can be taken to deliver aid in case of flooding.
Rising sea levels and heavy rainfall from March to May leave Tanzania prone to floods. Each year floods leave hundreds to thousands of Tanzanians homeless and cause many deaths. While the poverty rate is 28 percent, mapping roads in Tanzania will help combat some of the issues that lead to poverty.
– Cassie Lipp
Photo: Flickr
The Five Best Ways USAID Helped Nigeria in 2016
As 2016 ends, USAID has announced encouraging news in regards to their long-time relationship with the country of Nigeria. Going forward, USAID plans to add $92 million to their humanitarian assistance program for the country. This move is symbolic of the year the two partners have shared; one rich with progress in support of refugees displaced and suffering from the Boko Haram insurgency. Here are five more ways USAID helped Nigeria in 2016:
Since 2015, the U.S. has been the largest donor to Nigeria, giving $291 million in the 2016 fiscal year toward humanitarian aid. With the incredible news of their upcoming $92 million increase, USAID has extended help to tens of thousands more people and strengthened a partnership that will continue to improve the lives of millions of Nigerians.
– Emily Marshall
Photo: Flickr
Ten Facts About Refugees in Slovakia
Over the past several months, the influx of migrants in Europe has notoriously prompted headlines about the manageability of refugees and illegal immigrants on the continent. To explore the details about one country in particular, here are 10 facts about refugees in Slovakia:
As a relatively poorer nation of Eastern Europe, Slovakia’s concerns for accommodating a large number of migrants socially and economically may prevail, but it is important to also ensure that refugees in Slovakia are welcomed to the highest possible degree. As the UNHCR rhetoric reiterates, Slovakia’s cooperation with resettlement arrangements is greatly needed for the most vulnerable citizens around the world.
– Zachary Machuga
Photo: Flickr