Archive for category: Technology

Information and stories about technology news.

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Puralytics: The Eco-Friendly Water Solution

Puralytics
Water is necessary for life, and the poor quality of just one water reserve can undermine the health of farmers’ crops and the people in a whole community. To counteract the spread of harmful chemicals and preventable diseases, Puralytics has brought water purifying innovation to developing countries. Through LilyPads that float on pond surfaces to get rid of farm waste, and SolarBags that bring clean drinking water to households, the company’s impact will go global as they expand production.

Puralytics’ Global Impact

Puralytics’ products are known for harnessing the power of natural light to rid water of pollutants and pathogens. It’s all done by the mesh covering that disinfects water so bacteria and viruses cannot transfer to the people drinking it. Other water treatments concentrate farm run-off and pesticides, but with Puralytics, these contaminants are destroyed. Heavy metals combined with molecules of these broken-down chemicals adhere to the mesh material, and thus clean water in a way that’s kind to the environment.

This company’s products are sustainable and, unlike other water treatment technology, do not use Mercury lamps that can break and put out more hazardous waste. The company doesn’t use chemicals in the purification process either; all they need is an occasional cartridge replacement. In particular, the LilyPad reduces water usage by providing farmers with more efficient watering methods.

SolarBags and LilyPads

SolarBags brought clean water to 114 people in the Southern Moshi region of Tanzania for a case study. After interviewing some of the community members, 79 percent of respondents said they enjoyed the water’s taste while the rest were neutral. Some community members even reported less sickness caused by waterborne diseases.

SolarBags were also highly effective in Tesoco, Mexico where desire for them grew beyond the case study group. Soda, also a contributor to obesity, commonly replaced water due to lack of sanitation. After introducing the bags, participants drank between 50 to 100 percent more water and cut back on the sugary beverages.

The LilyPads have also already begun to show promise for a better future. In fact, there has been an 80 percent reduction of chemicals and pathogens in water reserves using this product — a LilyPad that’s one square meter can treat one cubic meter of pond water in a day. Plus, their sleek design is non-intrusive and only takes up one percent of the space on a farm.

LilyPads affect more people than just agricultural communities. Some farmers sell their produce through international markets, extending the positive effects of clean water to other countries. During the 2015 Global Forum in Agriculture, Mark Owen, founder and CEO of Puralytics, discussed his company’s partnership with Aneberries. This distributor based in Mexico has then used LilyPads on their farm plots and help provide half the berries shipped to the United States.

Treat Water, Treat the World

Puralytics’ LilyPad was named one of USAID’s 17 award-winning innovations through the Securing Water for Food Grand Challenge for Development program. As a result, the company will receive a grant to help fund their efforts of expanding production and finding more partnerships across Latin America.

So many factors depend on clean water: crops, livestock, community members, people in other countries, the environment and more. Owen told forum participants that when people treat one water source, it’s also treating the entire world, and no truer words could be said.

– Sabrina Dubbert
Photo: Flickr

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Fighting Malaria with Genetically Engineered Mosquitoes

Genetically Engineered Mosquitoes
This June, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation announced that it would be investing over $4 million in support of Oxitec — an Oxford-founded group that focuses on reducing insect-borne disease around the world. Specifically, the Gates Foundation and Oxitec are partnering to fight malaria with genetically engineered mosquitoes.

The Threat of Malaria

Mosquitoes kill more humans each year than any other creature — a total of 830,000 — and can carry a number of diseases including dengue fever and zika virus. The most deadly of these is malaria.

The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that there were 216 million cases of malaria in 2016, which resulted in nearly 450,000 deaths. Malaria hits the very young the hardest, and most fatalities are children under the age of 5; even the children who survive may develop intellectual disabilities.

Malaria occurs in nearly 100 nations. The world has made great progress fighting the disease, including eliminating it in much of Europe and North America, but progress has stalled. Support for fighting malaria has stagnated and the disease is starting to develop a resistance to the drugs which treat it.

A New Strategy

This is where Oxitec’s genetically modified mosquitoes come in. Oxitec introduces a self-limiting gene in male mosquitoes. When these lab mosquitoes mate with females in the wild, any male offspring are unharmed and continue carrying the gene. Female offspring, though, will die before they reach adulthood.

Only adult female mosquitoes can bite and spread diseases. The self-limiting gene effectively targets this portion of the mosquito population while also allowing new males to survive to carry and spread the gene after the original lab mosquitoes have died.

These genetically engineered mosquitoes would be one of several vector control methods (such as mosquito netting and repellant sprays) aiming to reduce the number of disease-carrying mosquitoes in affected areas.

The Oxitec mosquitoes have already proven effective in recent field tests in Brazil where they were released to combat the zika virus and dengue fever. Areas where modified mosquitoes were released showed an 82 percent reduction of larvae and a 91 percent reduction of dengue fever cases. This may have been a relatively small test, but the lab mosquitoes were incredibly effective and even outperformed tried and true traditional methods like insecticides.

Safety and Precision

Similar to many other genetically modified products, many have met the Oxitec mosquitoes with some suspicion. In 2016, residents of the Florida Keys voted against a planned field test in their communities, and environmentalist groups have also opposed Oxitec in the past.

Concerns with protecting the earth’s ecosystems are understandable and commendable. Still, genetically engineered mosquitoes have the potential to save hundreds of thousands of lives, protect children from the risk of lifelong disabilities and accomplish all of this with minimal and controllable impacts on the environment.

The modified mosquito strategy is not intended to cause the mass extinction of mosquito species. The self-limiting gene only lasts up to ten generations, which ideally will allow for long-term reduction in disease without leading to an unstoppable downward spiral in insect populations.

Long-Term Goals

The gene is also designed to only affect a single, specific species of insect at a time. This specificity allowed Oxitec field tests to target the Aedes aegypti mosquitoes that were instrumental in spreading zika and dengue fever in Brazil while leaving other insect populations unaffected.

Whatever the case, both the precision and effectiveness of the genetically engineered mosquitoes doubtless played a role in convincing the Gates Foundation to back Oxitec. Philip Welkhoff, the malaria program director at the Gates Foundation, has affirmed that new, innovative ways of fighting malaria are necessary to eradicate the deadly disease once and for all. The second generation of Oxitec’s mosquitoes are set to be field tested by 2020, and countless lives hope for a breakthrough.

– Josh Henreckson
Photo: Flickr

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A New Solar Power: UV Water Filtration System

UV Water Filtration System
Today, nearly 850 million people live without access to clean water. Clean water, while a basic necessity and right, has become nearly unobtainable for those living in poverty around the world. In places where unsafe water is the only water available and used for washing clothes and dishes, bathing, drinking and in food preparation, it’s negative effects permeate nearly every aspect of life.

Unsafe Drinking Water In Developing Countries

Approximately 75 percent of diseases in developing countries occur from polluted drinking water. In developing countries, waterborne diseases such as diarrhea account for over 800,000 deaths per year for children under the age of 5. They also create ripple effects throughout the community, placing additional economic stresses on people already living in extreme poverty.

The need for clean water has been the target of governmental aid in many developing countries for years. However, more could be done for individual communities, particularly in rural areas, as they are often without access to the clean water systems available to more populated and typically wealthy areas.

UV Waterworks

In 1996, physicist Dr. Ashok Gagdil created a UV water filtration system known as the UV Waterworks (UVW) to supply small communities in developing countries with safe drinking water. Funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), and private foundations, Gagdil was able to design a device capable of delivering clean water to a village of 2000 for a year for under $2 per person.

This UV water filtration system is as small as a microwave oven, weighs just 15 pounds and can treat approximately 15 liters of contaminated water per minute. The contraption works simply by exposing the water to UV light, which eliminates bacterial and viral DNA and other organic particles that make the water unsafe for human consumption.

While UV water filtration systems had been in use prior to Gagdil’s UVW, the innovations involved in his creation made for a more affordable, reliable and efficient UV water filtration system for developing countries. The system was licensed in 2010 to WaterHealth International, a company focused on providing affordable, safe water to communities in need. The UVW is now used in WaterHealth International’s standard filtration system.

How It Works

In Gagdil’s UV water filtration system, the UV lamp is positioned above the tanks of water, reducing residue in the water supply, and the water flows evenly without a need for a pump system — an expensive and temperamental part of many UV water filtration systems. This process then exposes the water to more UV rays for maximum decontamination.

The UVW system addresses the needs of rural communities disconnected to grid power by using a 12 V car battery or a photovoltaic solar panel as system’s power source. These two power sources were tested with support from the US Department of Energy in locations without access to grid power with great success.

Other UV Water Filtration Systems

At an even smaller scale, there are UV water filtration systems that operate without power sources all together and are tailored for personal or family use. The SteriPen is a UV water filtration wand capable of cleaning up to 32 ounces of water in 90 seconds. This wand is popular among those traveling in areas where clean water is scarce, as is it light, portable and lasts for 100 treatments before requiring new batteries.

Similar to the SteriPen, the Pure Water Bottle filters a small amount of water for the individual. Relying on a dual process of mesh filtration and UV water filtration for cleaning water, the entire process of the Pure Water Bottle takes 2 minutes and removes 99.9 percent of contaminants. Water is collected and filtered to remove particles larger that 4 microns before being sterilized by a hand-crank-powered UV bulb.   

A Filtered Future

While the SteriPen and Pure Water Bottle are more expensive UV water filtration systems suited for smaller scale family or individual use rather than village scale, they can help address the needs of families in urban areas, or with somewhat better economic means. This group, while not suffering the most extreme poverty, is still a large and growing number in developing countries such as China, India, Brazil and others.

By providing a number of options with a range of costs and applications, innovations in small scale UV water filtration systems are helping to address one of the most pressing needs of the world’s poor.

– Anna Lally

Photo: Flickr

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Tackling Poverty Alleviation Through Technology Programs

poverty alleviation through technology

Although breaking the cycle of poverty is difficult, poverty rates around the world have been improving. According to a report issued by the World Bank, 35 percent of the world’s population lived in extreme poverty 1990. In 2013, that number was down to 10.7 percent, which means the U.N.’s first Millenium Development Goal, to cut poverty in half by 2015, has been accomplished.

However, while many have moved out of extreme poverty, statistics show that the end of poverty is far from over. As a potential way to help speed up the process even more, many companies are helping with poverty alleviation through technology programs.

Companies Tackling Poverty Alleviation Through Technology

  1. Microsoft 365: Microsoft teamed up with the United Nations Development Programme on Jan. 23, 2004, to help with poverty alleviation through technology in Africa. It strongly believes that technology is a crucial aspect that can bridge the gap between schools in urban and rural areas, eventually eliminating world hunger and poverty. Co-founder of Microsoft Bill Gates hopes to end poverty by 2030 by launching his software in more developing countries around the world.Microsoft set up a three-pillar model in order to make sure the technology was applied correctly in schools. The first pillar provided the appropriate service for the individual based on their technological ability or age group. The second pillar equipped more than 200,000 teachers with the software in order to make sure the teachers were trained and familiar with the technology before it was introduced to students. The third pillar encouraged participation and creativity. The students were introduced to programs such as Skype or OneNote.
  2. GeoPoll: GeoPoll is a company that is taking advantage of mobile phones becoming more common in developing countries. Since 2012, it has partnered with more than 85 mobile network operations and has had connectivity in 64 countries of the world. Its purpose is to send a survey text through those living in the developing countries. Once citizens fill out the survey, the results are sent to the government and NGOs, allowing them to help with poverty alleviation.An example of when a GeoPoll survey was used was during the outbreak of Ebola in 2014. GeoPoll conducted food security surveys in countries that were affected and helped gather data on food prices and wages. From these results, it was able to decipher which areas needed more aid and which areas should continue to be monitored.
  3. Humanitarian Accelerators: Humanitarian Accelerators was launched in 2016 by the Ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum. It is meant to help with cultural, social and environmental issues in the region by connecting businesses all around the globe to United Arab Emirate’s humanitarian sector. Humanitarian Accelerators has set up its technology in over 116 different countries with the hopes of improving the lives of those in developing countries.In the past, the company has worked to provide educational technology to refugee students in order to ensure they receive the same level of education as other children. One of the company’s current initiatives is to employ technology in order to provide job opportunities to refugees.
  4. Poverty Spotlight: Poverty Spotlight is a program that is currently working in 18 countries and is most advanced in South Africa. It is meant to help with poverty alleviation through a mobile app that enables those in poverty to self-diagnose their own level of poverty. Its mission is to help individuals and families in poverty discover innovative solutions to lift themselves out of their situations.Individuals complete a survey about what they are in need of, then their neighbors fill out the same assessment and together they work on achieving them. The app allows individuals to become aware of their situation and build motivation and support from others to overcome it. The staff behind Poverty Spotlight also creates a personalized plan for every family.

Technology allows for many things today that were impossible in the past. The more technology advances, the more opportunities it gives us to learn, educate and help poverty alleviation through technology around the world.

– Negin Nia

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SOLS 24/7 Promotes Technology and Education in Malaysia

SOLS 24/7
SOLS 24/7 is an international humanitarian organization dedicated to ending poverty in Malaysia. It aims to provide poor and underserved people with technology and education to which they otherwise would not have access. The nonprofit runs five social enterprises to help eradicate poverty in Malaysia.

Five Ways SOLS 24/7 Promotes Technology and Education

  1. SOLS Energy
    SOLS Energy believes that solar panels are the best way to alleviate poverty in Malaysia in a lasting, sustainable way. Malaysia is the world’s third-largest producer of solar panels; local production makes solar panels affordable and their purchase supports the domestic economy. Malaysian homes with solar panels get, on average, a 16.9 percent return on their investment annually from being able to sell excess solar power to the electric grid. In total, the solar panels distributed by SOLS Energy have prevented more than 162,000 pounds of CO2 emissions from electricity generated by fossil fuels. SOLS Energy also runs Solar Academy, which trains Malaysians in solar technology to create jobs and spread the knowledge of how to maintain, install and repair solar panels.
  2. SOLS Tech
    SOLS Tech has a twofold goal: eliminate e-waste and spread digital literacy in Malaysia. As a licensed electronics refurbisher, SOLS Tech collects, repurposes and distributes discarded electronic devices. In 2015 alone, Malaysians discarded 44 million electronic devices. Rather than let this waste sit in landfills and pollute the environment, SOLS Tech fixes discarded electronics and shares them with those in need. Approximately 10 million Malaysians do not have access to a computer. SOLS 24/7 believes that computer literacy skills and computer ownership will widen economic opportunities and help alleviate poverty.
  3. SOLS Smart
    SOLS Smart aims to provide high quality and affordable education to all Malaysians. It teaches English and computer literacy, two skills that SOLS 24/7 views as essential to thriving in the modern economy. SOLS Smart is a certified Cambridge English Language Assessment Centre, meanings its students can take the internationally recognized Cambridge English Exams. Learning English and passing these exams opens new opportunities in employment and further education. To date, English classes have reached more than 10,000 Malaysians, and another 5,000 have received training in computer skills. SOLS Smart is one of seven Google for Education partners in Asia. Students are taught to use Google software and products and, at the end of their training, can receive an official certification from Google.
  4. SOLS Scholars
    SOLS Scholars works to help promising students from underprivileged Malaysian communities pursue higher education. It has held more than 100 development workshops, at which students receive academic coaching, job preparation training and college counseling. It has provided more than 450 scholarships to universities across Malaysia for students who otherwise would not be able to afford higher education.
  5. SOLS Edu
    Combining SOLS 24/7’s interests in education and technology, SOLS Edu is a digital learning platform that can be accessed by app or online. The idea behind SOLS Edu is to offer Malaysians, newly equipped with technology through the SOLS Tech program, another way to receive an education. The digital platform is interactive; students learn in a variety of ways (games, videos, etc.) and teachers remotely track students’ progress. SOLS 24/7 believes that access to education and technology will give Malaysians living in poverty new economic opportunities and a brighter future.

Through its many social enterprises, SOLS 24/7 is working to alleviate poverty in Malaysia. Its focus on both education and technology is reflective of the highly globalized, highly electronic modern world of today. By offering classes, job training and education opportunities, as well as providing people access to electricity and electronic devices, SOLS 24/7 is helping millions of poor Malaysians shape a brighter future for themselves.

– Abigail Dunn
Photo: Flickr

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Better Farming: How to Support Farmers in Developing Countries

Farmers in Developing Countries
While the discussion about fair trade with foreign countries can become complicated fairly quickly, and how citizens can support local and global farmers just as much so, there are a few steps people can take that can make a difference. Here are three options that help support farmers in developing countries.

Buying Fair Trade Products

Fairtrade International is a nonprofit organization that certifies different product supply chains that focus on fair trade with international farmers. While the organization is not a grocery store in itself, it lists brands and products that have the Fair Trade certificate.

The organization has specific standards that it looks for in everyone it works with, from traders to small producers to contractors. Some universal standards include acceptable health and safety conditions, workers being able to join a union to discuss working conditions and that the wage is equal to or higher than minimum wage. 

This is a great starting point for someone who wants to become more conscious of which corporations and brands they should support. The list also provides direct links to the brands’ various websites where customers can order online. Supporting these brands and looking into the impact different corporations have is an easy way to help support farmers in developing countries.

Investing in Technology Advancements

Technological advancements can help farmers in developing countries finish their work faster and allow them to complete more work in less time. However, many new inventions need financial help to get off the ground.

One group working to support farmers in developing countries is KickStart International. The company specializes in irrigation pumps that are affordable and can filter and spray water efficiently. The company accepts donations in order to support its goal of making and sharing its inventions.

Another invention, known as the Hippo Roller, is able to collect more water and transport it much more easily than the traditional method of carrying one bucket for miles. By rolling a larger but lighter bucket, the Hippo Roller has helped more than half a million people access water faster and easier.

Like KickStart International, Hippo Roller accepts donations to help promote its invention. Financially supporting inventions that help farmers working long and grueling hours is one way to help support farmers in developing countries.

Support Farmers in Developing Countries by Volunteering

Multiple organizations exist specifically to help local and global farmers. World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms (WWOOF) is an organization that allows volunteers to live on a farm (nearby or internationally) and be a worker for a season.

After originating as Working Weekends on Organic Farms in England in 1971, the organization grew to include 42 national groups across the world. By working closely with host families, WWOOF allows people to travel to another country for a season and lend a helping hand with farm work. This program offers a great opportunity to see firsthand where the majority of food comes from and how much work goes into producing it.

While some examples may not be available to everyone because of price or convenience, it is good to be aware of where the money being spent on food is going. Looking further into the treatment of farmers from different companies can be a simple step that goes a long way. Choosing one brand over another, lending a hand in technology advancements to ease the workload and physically going to a country to help out are all great ways to support farmers in developing countries.

– Marissa Wandzel
Photo: Flickr

SunSalutor: Providing Energy and Water to Impoverished Countries

SunSalutor: Providing Energy and Water to Impoverished Countries
Worldwide, there are about 1.5 billion people without electricity and about 750 million people who do not have access to clean water. These are life’s basic necessities and people are unfortunately lacking in these resources. Thankfully, there is a new piece of technology called the SunSalutor that is providing energy and water to impoverished countries.

Solar panels are a popular solution when discussing how to bring energy to those in poverty. Solar panels have been successful but they are not as energy efficient as many would like them to be. Eden Full Goh, the founder and creator of SunSalutor, has made it possible for solar panels to track the sun which allows for more energy to be collected.

How the SunSalutor Works

A single axis tracker with a water weight at the east end and a counterweight on the west end allows for a solar panel to track the sun. The tracking is powered by gravity and water. The water weight drips water throughout the day, making itself lighter.

As the water weight becomes lighter, the solar panel begins to shift thanks to the counterweight. With the appropriate adjustment on how quickly the water weight drips water, the solar panel will track the sun throughout the day and collect more energy than it would if it was standing still.

But that is not all the SunSalutor does. The dripping water can also be filtered to create clean drinking water. So, not only is the SunSalutor providing energy to impoverished countries, it is also providing water.

Benefits of the SunSalutor

One of the great benefits that come with the SunSalutor is the low cost. At most, an entire SunSalutor costs around $10 to $15. The main frame is built from local materials such as bamboo or wood. Because of this, the SunSalutor can be maintained and fixed locally. The cost for a SunSalutor set is 30 times cheaper than traditional panels.

The SunSalutor also eliminates the need for kerosene gas generators. Buying kerosene gas can become expensive over time and generators can create a lot of noise. Furthermore, they produce CO2 emissions which can end up polluting the air. The SunSalutor eliminates all of these issues.

Providing Energy and Water to Impoverished Countries

According to the official SunSalutor website, in Mpala, Kenya, there was a village that did not have electricity. The inhabitants had to rely on kerosene gas to have electricity in their village. Villagers had to travel two hours round-trip to receive the necessary kerosene gas. They also had to do this to charge their cellphones. Thanks to the SunSalutor, these villagers can now stay within their village and produce electricity locally.

Providing energy and water to impoverished countries can have a lot of benefits. Thanks to the electricity gained, children can now study for longer and be prepared for school the next day. If these children do well in school, they can possibly break the cycle of poverty that they have been in. The SunSalutor is not only providing energy and water to impoverished countries, it can also provide people a way out of poverty.

– Daniel Borjas
Photo: Flickr

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Three Companies Building Houses Made of Plastic

houses made of plastic
When it comes to environmental preservation, plastic represents a huge global problem. The average American or European throws away 100 kilograms of plastic per year, as reported by the Worldwatch Institute in 2015. The plastic waste issue not only affects the environment but also increases poverty. Fortunately, initiatives all around the world are trying to fight plastic pollution by promoting recycling while also reducing poverty by building houses made of plastic.

Conceptos Plasticos

This Bogota-based company produces low-cost houses made of plastic; each one averages around 430 square feet. Since 2010, Conceptos Plasticos has been building temporary and permanent homes, shelters, classrooms, community rooms and other buildings in Colombia.

Founded by Colombian architect Oscar Mendez, the company transforms the recycled plastic into Lego-like bricks that are easy to assemble and contain additives that make them resistant to fire and earthquakes. Its clients are the government, non-governmental organizations, foundations and private companies, who pay for housing solutions in the communities where the houses are built. Each house costs the equivalent of $130 per square meter.

Conceptos Plasticos provides the materials to be used by the communities and gives people training on how to build the houses. A home for a single family is built by four people with no experience in construction and takes only five days to be built. In 2015, the Colombian startup helped build a shelter for 42 families displaced by the violence in Guapi, Cauca, recycling a total of 120 tons of plastic.

EcoDom’s Innovative Houses Made of Plastic

In Mexico, every year 800,000 tons of plastic waste is produced and only 15 percent is recycled. To minimize this problem, Carlos Daniel Gonzalez founded the Mexican startup EcoDom, which means “Eco House”. The company recycles everything from soda bottles to toys and turns it into material to build houses made of plastic. It works with local trash collectors in Puebla to achieve its goals of reducing plastic waste as well as improving Mexico’s economy through affordable housing.

EcoDom turns plastic, as well as cardboard, into four different products to structure a house: thermal wall, concrete roofing, thermal roofing and structural beams. Weekly, the company recycles 15,000 kg of solid waste and turns it into 1,200 prefabricated walls, flooring and structural roofing.

EcoDom is helping reduce the number of Mexican people living in poverty, which currently stands at 63 million. So far, the startup has built more than 500 houses out of recycled plastic at a cost of less than $300 each.

Fundación Eco-Inclusion

The Eco-Inclusion Foundation is an Argentinian network of NGOs that manufactures ecological bricks made of plastic. Founded in 2014 by entrepreneurs Leandro Miguez, Leandro Lima, and Fabio Saieg, the organization works to reduce plastic waste and have a social impact by building houses out of the recycled plastic.

Eco-Inclusion has 45 plastic collecting spots in four cities. They turn every 20 plastic bottles into one brick and can produce 20 bricks in one hour. The plastic bricks have the same characteristics as a regular brick. They are also light, insulating and are made with a production process that does not damage the environment.

The bricks, built in partnership with Ceve-Conicet, are used to build community spaces that help the most impoverished people of Argentina. Right now, with the help of volunteers, the trio of entrepreneurs is building a dining hall and bathroom for an Argentinian soccer club, attended by hundreds of children.

If more people support these projects, two huge global issues can be minimized: plastic waste and poverty. It is a way of both helping the environment and improving people’s living conditions.

– Júlia Ledur

Photo: Flickr

Three Amazing African Technological Innovations

African Technological InnovationsOver the last few years, innovators and inventors have been springing up across the African continent to deliver buzzworthy technological advancements to the world. Though Africa is not conventionally thought of as a global tech powerhouse, the continent is certainly on the rise and gaining recognition for developing original and important technologies. There are a lot of brilliant minds coming out of African countries, and they are using their intellect, resolve and resourcefulness to introduce groundbreaking inventions to the world. These three contemporary African technological innovations are the first of their kind and well worth learning more about.

The First Recycled 3D Printer

With a population of just 7.6 million people, Togo is one of the smallest countries in Africa. In recent years, this small nation gained worldwide recognition for accomplishing an incredible feat. In the city of Lome, a team of young innovators operates Woelab, a fablab launched in 2012 where local makers come together to collaborate and create. In 2013, Woelab developed the world’s first fully-functional 3D printer made entirely from recycled parts. Made from used computer parts and other finds, the Woelab innovation is one shining example of resourcefulness, sustainability and ingenuity.

In the years after this impressive first, several creators throughout the African continent have followed in Woelab’s footsteps, creating recycled 3D printers and putting them to use in their own countries. Buni Hub in Tanzania and KLAKS 3D in Ghana have sprung up in recent years, creating and dispensing their own 3D printers to benefit national industries. Kenyan startups Micrive Infinite and African Born 3D are currently using 3D printers to help hospitals cut production costs and become more efficient.

African Technological Innovations Include the First Digital Laser

Another exciting example of African technological innovations comes out of South Africa. Dr. Sandile Ngcobo, a researcher for the country’s Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, developed an important invention that could revolutionize the worlds of science, medicine and information and communications technology. In 2013, while working on his PhD, Ngcobo created the world’s first digital laser.

Traditional lasers use beams of light that can only be modified with various shaping devices like lenses and mirrors. Ngcobo’s laser does not require these devices. Rather, this laser beam is shaped electronically via computer. The digital laser has applications across several disciplines and is making all the meticulous effort that goes into producing technology using lasers a good deal simpler.

The First Neurotechnology Device

Perhaps the one of the most profound African technological innovations to be introduced to the world in recent times comes from a Nigerian physicist. Oshi Agabi brought forth a groundbreaking innovation called the Koniku Kore in 2017. Named for the Yoruba word for “immortal”, the Koniku Kore is the world’s first neurotechnology device. It combines live neurons and stem cells from mice into a silicon chip, and it has applications for several real-world problems. The device may have the ability to detect cancer cells and explosives alike, an infinitely useful technology in contemporary times.

These outstanding innovations are just three in a growing sea of inventions coming to the global market from Africa. Each of these technologies has useful applications for reducing poverty within their countries of origin and the African continent as a whole. Furthermore, they have great potential to impact the world, revolutionizing ICT, science and medicine across the globe.

– Chantel Baul

Photo: Flickr

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From Watt-r to Vodafone: Top 10 Inventions That Fight Poverty

10 Inventions That Fight Poverty
If necessity truly is the mother of invention, then never before has the world labored so hard. Indeed, our world faces many challenges, and nurtures many needs, but none so basic as those ventured every day in developing countries. Innovators the world over have taken this challenge to heart and have created practical inventions that both fight poverty and have the ability to change our perception of the possible.

1. Watt-r

Basic access to clean water shouldn’t be the challenge it has become. In truth, 663 million people do not have this access. Watt-r is the solar-powered water delivery cart, that while it is still in development, would be able to carry a dozen 20-liter containers of water at a time.

What does that mean for someone in a developing nation? It means that inventions that fight poverty also save time and lives. Instead of 25 women or children walking to get clean water, one person operates the machine, which while idle, can charge items like phones, lamps and tools.

2. SALt Lamp

For those living in poverty in developing countries, finding renewable energy is a key to survival. The SALt Lamp requires simply two tablespoons of salt and one glass of water for an entire night of light. As it can also run on seawater, it is a nearly limitless energy source.

Currently, production of the SALt Lamp is aimed at nonprofit organizations for its possibilities in developing countries, where electricity is not always a guarantee.

3. The Aspara Cardboard Drone

It’s a bird. It’s a plane. No…it’s life-saving medical supplies falling from the sky. The Aspara cardboard drone has GPS and two wing-flap motors, and it can deliver two pounds of life-saving materials without needing to be retrieved.

The industrial paper airplane can accurately deliver supplies to even the most remote of places. With refinement, it is hoped that the flyer can be scaled to carry up to 22 pounds of cargo, with new prototypes aimed at humanitarian groups.

4. MetaFridge

Inventions that fight poverty do so by meeting needs where the needs exist. The MetaFridge keeps vaccines safe during long power outages, which in developing countries, can plague an already ravaged land. With more than 40 units tested in Kenya, Nigeria and Ethiopia, the MetaFridge keeps temperatures stabilized for vaccines.

Researchers have explored this idea even further and are now working on a portable cooler for vaccinators to reach kids in the remotest of places.

5. LifeStraw

Imagine all the contaminants that thrive in an unclean water source. Now imagine 99 percent of these contaminants being defused by the simplest of devices — a straw. Sometimes inventions that fight poverty do so in ways that seem too simple to be able to work.

The LifeStraw is a device that filters water through narrow fibers that trap unwanted contaminants. In places around the world where expensive filtration systems are not readily available, the LifeStraw can live up to its name.

6. Hans Free Electric Bike

Piloted in India in 2016, the Hans Free Electric Bike provides so many ‘no’s’ that are easy to say ‘yes’ to — no utility bill, no waiting for the elements to cooperate and no pollution.

The hybrid bicycle runs on a flywheel, which then turns a generator, which finally charges a battery. Power is literally put in a person’s hands — or rather, their legs. How effective is this? One hour of pedaling on this bike provides 24 hours of electricity.

7. Paperfuge

What can $.20 buy nowadays? How about an on-the-spot diagnosis. The Paperfuge centrifuge costs $.20 to make and can diagnose diseases like malaria and HIV within minutes.

That’s life-saving power without the aid of electricity. The toy-like device holds bloods samples on a disc, while someone pulls on strings to spin the disc at fast speeds, separating blood from plasma in mere minutes. Cheap, lightweight and effective, the Paperfuge is one of the inventions that fight poverty in a way that benefits all.

8. Tarjimly

Facebook’s translation bot, Tarjimly, provides a new face for altruism. Used in real time on Facebook Messenger, Tarjimly connects refugees with volunteer translators.

This potentially life-saving capability could provide a needed voice for those whose voice has been taken from them. Whether doctors or aid workers, a need is only a translation away.

9. Petit-Pli

Around the world, children often outgrow their clothes too quickly, and in developing countries this usually means wearing clothes that simply do not fit. Petit-Pli is a clothing line that grows with a child for up to seven sizes.

The waterproof, lightweight material reduces waste and saves families money. With Petit-Pli, parents of those without much will have less to worry about.

10. Vodafone

In the rural Lake Zone of Tanzania, inventions that fight poverty sometimes come in the form of programs like Vodafone, an ambulance taxi program that uses the mobile money system M-PESA.

Vetted taxi drivers respond to hotline calls from pregnant women in health emergencies. Where there are few ambulances available, lives are saved.

Inventions that fight poverty do so through the power of innovation, but this particular kind of innovation is fueled by a desire to help — the only real requirement for progress.

– Daniel Staesser

Photo: Flickr