Volunteer Work
A brief note about voluntary work vs. research – the line between the two is often very blurry. I can take the things I learn from my research and apply it to my volunteer life, and likewise, some of my voluntary work gets incorporated into my research. But in the end I think that’s part of who we all are – beings not with clear cut lines between many separate lives, but integrated people doing our best to serve God in all aspects of our lives.
HEAL Africa ICT Projects
Paul Bakes from Australia observes as my student and fellow MUST ICS staff Zakayo terminates the fiber-optic cable we installed for HEAL Africa
In partnership with my church in Berkeley, the First Presbyterian Church of Berkeley, and Global Strategies for HIV Prevention, I first visited HEAL Africa in August 2007, and promptly fell in love with the people of Goma, and the work of the hospital. Since then, I’ve tried to help however I can, mostly by providing information technology advice over e-mail. Now that I’m living just about a 10 hour drive away by bus (instead of a 30 hour, $2000 flight over the Atlantic), I am taking advantage of my proximity by going over for about a week at a time to help when I can, assisting Paul with installation of fiber-optic cable, wireless networking (since that’s something I know well), and providing IT training to the staff and doctors at the hospital. More details are available on the HEAL Africa ICT Projects Page.
De Novo Group
I helped to found the De Novo Group (originally called tiergroup.org), which is now being led by Scott McNeil. The mission of the De Novo Group is to bridge the gap between research and impact by taking promising university research and prototypes and maturing them into viable solutions that address the great challenges of developing regions. We have a number of projects, including the above-mentioned project in Goma. Currently we are applying for 501(c)(3) status.
WE CARE Solar
I also volunteer as an advisor to Women’s Emergency Communications and Rural Electrification (WE CARE) Solar, which is working to develop a modular solar suitcase that can be used to provide surgical lighting and DC power for charging mobile phones or walkie talkies in maternal hospitals. I have deployed one kit in Uganda so far, and other kits have been deployed in Nigeria, Rwanda, and Mexico with astounding impact on maternal mortality and motivation in the health facilities. WE CARE has received media attention from a number of sources including Nicholas Kristof’s Half the Sky Foundation and PRI. You can donate to WE CARE by visiting the website.
WE CARE Solar Suit case: 20w solar module, 8ah battery (w a 55ah battery behind it), charge controller and dc plug in outlets, battery charger, led headlamps, led spotlight, led taplights
Donations
Having left industry to pursue this work – to find a way to use my computer science background to make a meaningful impact in Africa, I find that my income level just isn’t where it used to be. And yet, living in Uganda now, I find also that I’m surrounded by needs greater than my own. While I can’t fill them all, I realize that my research has a very long view and often too specific constraints on spending; I find that I’m working on things that might help alleviate poverty several years from now. Your donation allows me to bridge the gap between some of the impracticalities of getting my PhD and the very real immediate needs of the here and now, just getting things done.
Now for donation logistics. If you would like to make a donation via PayPal, just click on any of the buttons on the website. If you click on the HEAL Africa button, I will designate those funds specifically for HEAL Africa projects only, otherwise, they will go into a general fund, to be used at my discretion. Please do email me to confirm (I will also get an email from PayPal). However… since this is a personal account, these donations will not be tax deductible.
For donations made towards the HEAL Africa Project, you can also write a check to the “De Novo Group”, with a note in the memo saying “HEAL Africa ICT Project”, and send the check to:
De Novo Group
6114 La Salle Ave #508
Oakland, CA 94611
USA
The De Novo Group’s 501(c)3 nonprofit status with the IRS is pending.
All current donations will be tax deductible at a time when the IRS
officiates nonprofit status.
Undesignated Funds
Right now, undesignated funds are earmarked for the following (in semi-non-specific order):
- Remaining Goma expenses. Any undesignated funds will first go to address any shortfalls in fundraising for past and upcoming Goma trips. (Please see the Goma project page for specific budget.)
- Solar power for a few of the health facilities that I am working with, for whom communications is an issue because they are unable to charge their phones on a regular basis (one of the immediate findings of my research). This will enable the facilities to 1) have lighting for emergency consultations at night and 2) be more consistently reachable in case of emergency. While the WE CARE Solar solution is intended for larger hospitals that may have NGO sponsorship (at $800 or $900 per solar suitcase), I am looking also looking at smaller suitcases that would be suitable for non-surgical health facilities at a cost of $150/kit, or even donations of headlamp and battery charger combos for facilities who experience frequent power outages but have access to grid power. ($35)
- Tuition and Fees for my research assistants. My students take time out of their own study schedules to contribute to my research, and to learn more about mobile Java programming, PHP, and mysql. It would be great if I could make some contribution towards their fees for next term. Their tuition for each semester is about $500, not including living expenses.
- IT Training materials and workshops. As part of my research I had the opportunity to conduct an IT training workshop at my partner NGO site in November 2009. The support staff in the office had never had a chance to use computers before, and appreciated not only the training, but especially the certificate that came with it. These materials are being developed to target specifically health workers and clinicians as part of my research – but I am also looking at how they can be used outside my research, for the hospital staff at HEAL Africa, and perhaps others as well.
