For the 2011 trips, all four teams traveled over the summer to build or maintain their designs in their respective countries. Most teams also took on a teaching role this year, teaching the communities to maintain and control their own projects when EWB leaves.

In May, the Tacachia, Bolivia team traveled and worked to finish several existing projects. The biosand team took surveys and spoke with each family about issues with the filters or their implementation to see how the filters could be improved upon. The community members dug the trenches for the main line of the water distribution system, and the distribution team completed two of the three branches of the main line and worked on a third. A community member was shown how to maintain and construct the system when the team leaves, so the third branch should be completed by the community. The ram pumps and galvanized steel delivery line were completed. The community was taught how to clean and maintain the pumps on their own in the future, and the erosion control team finished an extensive survey of the Rio Palca river and its banks, allowing for further design decisions to be made next year.

The Erquis Sud, Bolivia team traveled in July to begin work on an erosion control system, which will protect the eroding river bank from further damage. One wall of the gabion system was completed, a second was started, and two more should be completed during the dry season next year. The team also took extensive surveys of the area’s topography in order to assess the flooding damage and devise a solution.

The Santiago, Honduras team split into three sub-teams this year: tank, health and education, and water distribution. The tank team spent the trip improving and maintaining the community water tank by cleaning and sealing the 40,000 gallon tank and ensuring that it remains protected from environmental hazards in the next year. The health and education team collected data on the water consumption and overall wellness in the community, working with the local water committee and the community itself. The water distribution team surveyed the land for a location to build a new tank and assisted in collecting water-consumption data. They also built a 500 ft pipeline to provide water to the community of Almendros.

Finally, the Nahualate, Guatemala team traveled in August for assessment and implementation of last year’s designs .The team took topographic data of the community to finalize the pipeline design. With the help from the community, a well house was built to store and protect electrical equipment for the well. The well itself is currently being dug by a Guatemalan drilling company hired on the previous trip where work is continuing at a steady pace. The team met with the local water committee to keep them up to speed on the projects and discuss future plans for implementation next year.

2010 has been a busy year for EWB at Missouri S&T! At the beginning of the year, the Nahualate, Erquis Sud, and Tacachia Projects went on assessment trips to help finalize their designs for the summer. After a busy spring of finalizing design, the projects made final travel plans.

Read more: Summer 2010 Update

Internship with EIA: Feb. 2009 through May 2009

In 2006 I made one of the best decisions of my life, to go to a meeting.  I went to learn about a place called Inka Katurapi in the rugged mountains near the Altiplano of Bolivia.  Months later I would find myself gasping for oxygen and sipping coca tea.  This was the start of it all for me, and when I learned of a chance to return and spend several more months in the mysterious and beautiful country that is Bolivia, I jumped at it. Having worked on multiple EWB projects as a student at Missouri S&T, I become very familiar with the process and workings of the projects from our side.  I was constantly in contact with the NGOs we worked with in order to keep things moving along as smoothly as possible.  So for me, it was a very interesting proposal to work from the other side, trying to help out the student and professional EWB chapters with their projects.

Read more: Graduate in Civil Engineering from Missouri University of Science and Technology

At the Rice and Beans Banquet, Dr. Amadei told us about this site which contains tons of interesting videos relating to the Engineering for Developing Communities program at Colorado University.

Dr. Amadei used many statistics to describe the plight of the world but he reminded us that every number had a person attached to it.  Paraphrasing Ghandi, he challenged us to be the instruments of change that we wish to see in the world.  He reminded us that not all the worlds problems were technical.  If they were, he said, we would have solved them already.

Most of the problems we face are soft problems; problems that are solved with communication, compassion, and understanding. Of course, we also solve problems with bricks and mortar and electricity, but that is not the true beauty of Engineers Without Borders, or the secret to its success.

Don't just make stuff.  Make a difference .