Making a Difference in Faraway Places: Lessons from Engineers without Borders

Engineers Without Borders was founded in 2000 as an organization where interested students and professionals could connect directly with communities around the world to help solve pressing infrastructure needs.  After one decade there are 280 student and professional chapters around the Country. Each year hundreds of water, sanitation, irrigation, renewable energy, bridge and road projects are implemented in dozens of countries. Principles for successful and sustainable local projects have been refined over the decade and present a valuable roadmap for organizing and carrying out projects in faraway places. Applicable lessons for Ecologists Without Borders will be presented and the possibility for joint ventures between the two organizations explored.  Opportunities exist for volunteers with a wide variety of technical skills and experience on projects of this nature. Organizations such as ours provide a unique opportunity to apply our experience to address the urgent needs of less fortunate communities and making a meaningful difference. The speaker’s own experience with working in several remote communities in the Bolivian Andes will be high-lighted.