A continuation of our first EWB-UMN Guate­mala project, we are again partnering with Long Way Home and EWB-Minnesota professional chapter to bring potable water to over 3000 resi­dents in the rural Mayan community in Simajuleu, Guatemala. Currently, the village is obtaining drink­ing water conveyed through a 36 year old system of PVC pipes from mountain springs 10 km away. This fragile infrastructure along with non-existent source protections have led to contamination, shortages, dysentery and other microbial infections for the village. EWB-UMN plans to address these issues with a solution that will provide a sustain­able and adequate supply of safe, potable water for Simajuleu. Four students and three professional members traveled to Simajuleu in January 2008 to perform the site assessment. We hope to bring a clean water supply to the residents of Simajuleu by the end of the year.

Become A sponsor, help supply potable water to Simajuleu.

At a glance:

• project status: In progress
• surveying trip: January, 2008
• implementation trip: January, 2009
• project cost: $45,000

Shada, an urban slum outside of Cap Haitien, Haiti, is a densely populated neighborhood of over 20,000 residents. The people in this commu­nity live without access to clean water, sanitation or garbage collection. EWB-UMN is partnering with Sustainable Organic Integrated Livelihoods, SOIL, a non-profit providing ecological sanitation and edu­cation in Haiti, to comprehensively address these conditions. The first solution is the design of indoor sanitation systems that will economically bring dry composting systems into the homes of Haitians. The second is the design of safe, locally constructible batch systems for recycling of plastic in Haiti for the production of toilet molds for S.O.I.L.'s composting systems and for sandals and sporting equipment. Two student teams are currently preparing prelimi­nary designs for each focus and we hope to send six students to Shada, Haiti to complete the site assessment in the summer of 2008.

Become A sponsor, help build ecologicaly hygienic sanitation in Haiti.

At a glance:

• project status: In progress
• surveying trip: TBA
• implementation trip: May, 2009
• funds raised to date: $1,000
• required funds: $10,000

EWB-UMN is working with the Uganda Rural Fund USA (URF-USA) Inc., a registered 501(c)(3), to develop a plan to address water and sanitation needs of the Hope Integrated Academy in the Masaka District in Uganda. Hope Integrated Academy's mission is to provide well-rounded quality education for the under-privileged children of Uganda, particularly AIDS orphans. In August of 2007, two students from EWB-UMN and one professional mentor traveled to Uganda for two weeks to perform the assessment duties. Since that time, seven students, the project mentor, and a water resources engineer, have been working to design the water supply and sanitation systems to serve this school. In order to address the water supply needs of the school in this dry region of Uganda we plan to implement a rainwater harvesting system collection system, as well as a water filtration system and large storage system

Click on the links to find out more about the Hope Integrated Academy and the Uganda Rural Fund - USA.

Find out how to sponsor the supply of potable water and ecological hygienic sanitation to the Hope Integrated Academy

At a glance:

• project status: In progress
• surveying trip: August, 2007
• implementation trip: June, 2008
• funds raised to date: $22,000
• required funds: $20,000

Completed EWB-UMN Projects

Amponsah Akroase is a town of 2,000 in Agona Swedru, Ghana, with one school, the Minnesota Academy, started by Minnesota teachers in 1998 and supported by a growing number of Minnesota individuals and organizations. Today, it numbers 900 children in K-8th grade. Neither the town nor the school had a source of clean water for drinking.

In March 2006, Minnesota Academy in Ghana approached EWB-UMN to see whether our organization could help them with their urgent water quality needs. After a series of meetings with directors from the Minnesota Academy in Ghana and the president of the Minnesota Professional EWB chapter, our chapters agreed to work with the Minnesota Academy to help solve their water supply problems traveling to Ghana in the summer of 2006 to perform the project assessment duties. In August of 2007, the six EWB students from the University of Minnesota and one project mentor from the professional chapter traveled to Ghana to implement the solar powered submersible pump system and water tower. We are proud to have helped the Minnesota Academy in Ghana and the surrounding community improve their quality of life with an improved source of potable drinking water.

At a glance:

• project status: Complete
• surveying trip: July 29 - August 6, 2006
• implementation trip: August, 2007
• project cost: $50,000

The Long Way Home (LWH) is a dynamic organization that seeks to bring together resources to empower Guatemalan Mayan youth to realize their full potential. They do this by fostering civic interaction, creating educational opportunities and encouraging healthy lifestyles through extracurricular activities. To reach their goals, the LWH maintains a soccer field, a sapling nursery for a national reforestation project, a community garden, and an indoor community center.

EWB-UMN, EWB-MN, LWH volunteers, and local community members collaborated to install a pump system that delivers clean water to the LWH site. This was EWB-UMN's first project implementation and the experience exceeded our expectations. In addition to designing and installing the system, EWB-UMN students participated in local events, became immersed in rural Mayan culture, and developed what we hope will be a lasting relationship with LWH and the Chuwi Tinamit community.

With a clean supply of water, Proyecto Chimiya can now expand into the community environment envisioned by LWH staff. EWB-UMN will stay involved with LWH in hopes that we can again collaborate on the park improvement.

At a glance:

• project status: Complete
• surveying trip: March, 2006
• implementation trip: January, 2007
• project cost: $15,000