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WHAT ARE WE TALKING ABOUT?

Nowadays, technologies are everywhere. Anybody who lives in a develope country is using devices, equipment, phones, computers... from he gets up (toasting bread for breakfast) until he goes to bed (programming the alarm clock for the next day).

But this doesn't happen in all the countries. Developing countries lack of resources to live like us; because of that, we must help them and bring our technologies to these countries. Making that, we will achieve a more equal world and they will be able to progress with independence.
So we are going to show you some projects that are taking part nowadays.

BIOTECHNOLOGY AND HUNGER

The food insecurity is a recurring problem in most parts of the developing world. Among the many potential biotechnologies that are available, and the different ways in which they can be applied, genetic modification (GM) of crops demands particular attention. Genetically modified crops possessing genes from different species, could possibly relieve global food shortages. Although initial excitement surrounded the use of GM crops, (that they will provide bigger and better harvests for farmers there are still questions about the benefits of such crops). In addition, the general public may not welcome the creation of "super plants" as a viable option in solving global hunger.





Combating Hunger and Malnutrition

Malnutrition is the related term in medicine for hunger. The most recent estimate of the Food and Agriculture Organization says that 854 million people worldwide are undernourished. This is 12.6 per cent of 6.6 billion people in the world. Many of the 854 million that are undernourished, children being the most visible victims, live in developing countries. Undernutrition magnifies the impact of every disease, including measles and malaria.

One example tells us how biotechnology can contribute to combating global hunger and malnutrition:


Golden Rice:

Approximately 140 million children in 118 countries, (especially in Africa and Asia), are deficient in Vitamin A.. The World Health Organization reports that an estimated 250,000 to 500,000 Vitamin A-deficient children become blind every year, half of them dying within 12 months of losing their sight. Golden Rice, created by researchers in Germany and Switzerland, contains three new genes that helps it to produce vitamin A. This rice is available as a possible option for mass distribution, in part due to the waiving of patent rights by biotechnology companies. This is just one among the hundreds of new biotech products, which point to the contributions of biotechnology to society.

Possibilities

Biotechnology holds a lot of possibilities for the developing world. The use of high-yielding, disease- and pest-resistant crops will have a direct bearing on improved food security, poverty alleviation and environmental conservation. GM crops will hopefully produce more yield on less land. This may increase the overall productivity and may offer developing countries a means to sustain themselves and reduce worldwide hunger. Ninety per cent of the world's 13.3 million "biotech crop farmers" are from developing countries. India, with 7.6 million hectares, is the fourth among the 14 "mega-biotech crop" countries. For instance, five million farmers in India are engaged in planting 7.6 million hectares of Bt or Bacillus thuringiensis, cotton, which protects itself from insects without requiring external pesticide.

BIBLIOGRAPHY:

The chances of the food GM crops in developing countries.
https://unchronicle.un.org/article/biotechnology-solution-hunger

What about GM food crops and how can we use them?
http://www.plantphysiol.org/content/124/2/487.short

THE EOLIAN ENERGY IN AFRICA

 


The wind sector is concentrated in two countries, Egypt and Morocco, where 169 MW were installed in 2009. Africa is maintained even at a level comparatively low, and even the rate of growth was again below the world average of 31.6%.

Part of the new wind turbines installed in the continent are of the company Spanish Gamesa. However, more and more African Governments become aware of the potential of wind energy in their countries and They showed interest in establishing an appropriate framework that facilitates the development and use of wind resources.

The most significant advance was the introduction of the first support mechanism fixed rate or premium on the Mainland by the national regulator of electricity from South Africa NERSA, whose effective implementation will be crucial in 2010, and in the next years.

With the new regulations, South Africa has the possibility of being the wind leader of Africa Sud-Sahariana and become an example for other countries in the region.



New wind projects are progressing in leading countries, Egypt and Morocco, and in new markets in Ethiopia, Kenya, Namibia, Tunisia, as well as in Cape Verde.

Is encouraging see that those activities industrial directed to the manufacturing of turbines wind have begun in the continent, mainly in Egypt, and Vestas has open office in South Africa.

The creation of stable wind power markets in the continent has a potential which will allow to establish national wind turbine manufacturing industries in several African countries.

In the light of the fact that the majority of the inhabitants of Africa still do not have access to electricity from the network, the decentralized and remote wind energy systems, in combination with other renewable energies, such as photovoltaics, will play a key role.

This process of implementation of technologies for the electrification rural are found even in stages early.
The main factors restricting it are the lack of access to knowledge and accumulated experience (know-how), as well as financial resources.

 

BIBLIOGRAPHY:

The evolution of the renovable energy and the environment in Africa.
www.esi-africa.com

The birth of the eolian energy in the african continent.
www.africa.com

TIC FOR REFUGEES

The Syrian refugee children along with their mother trying to remove water from in front of their tent before reaching inside.

Torrential rain, snow storms and flooding hit the Middle East during the month of January, creating more difficulties for millions of refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the region.

UNHCR staff worked around the clock to help people endure the cold freezing temperatures by delivering emergency supplies including cash vouchers to help the most vulnerable refugees purchase needed items, as well as provision of fuel, stoves, blankets and weatherproofing kits.

UNHCR’s regional winter plan for the Syria situation will address the winter needs of 2.7 million Syrians (1.6 million refugees and 1 million IDPs). As of 20 January, UNHCR has distributed winter core relief items to more than 600,000 Syrian refugees in the region and over 700,000 IDPs in Syria. Additional cash assistance for the winter months was provided to almost 1 million Syrian refugees.

Damascus, Rural Damascus, Hama, Al-Hasakeh, Quneitra, Dar’a, Tartous and Lattakia governorates were assisted with winter supplementary items (not all beneficiaries were assisted with the entire winter package as beneficiaries are assisted only with the required items). Although the target for winter support provided from inside Syria remains 750,000 individuals (150,000 families), due to the emerging needs in hard-to-reach and besieged areas, UNHCR has decided to make additional 50,000 kits of winter clothing available. Furthermore, families living in skeleton buildings and other sub-standard shelters in Aleppo were provided with additional sleeping bags and winterized shelter kits.

 Cross-border intervention from Jordan UNHCR has completed distribution of winter CRIs including hygiene kits.

To his  scope there was the aim(lens) to distribute mas of 13000 winters equipments(winters teams,winter equipments,winter teams) the familas needed in Dar'r's center and in Governorte's south.

The group in charge of this they continue being regularly and helping 155.00 individuals in Syria for a coordinated distribution of seven organizations.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Syria and Iraq situations. Regional winter assistance progress report.
https://www.google.es/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=2&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwiYgJPr6arQAhVMXhoKHfPwBbwQFggoMAE&url=https%3A%2F%2Fdata.unhcr.org%2Fsyrianrefugees%2Fdownload.php%3Fid%3D10345&usg=AFQjCNGsAvwGYG9oQrZHLjjluf3WO3QBDw&sig2=fOJW-RKKwWfR3nn5bX7Dsg

TECHNOLOGY FOR 'NEWBORNS'

Everybody knows that birth rate is so much higher in developing countries than in developed ones.

Not everybody has birth control resources, and not everybody receives education about that; due to, not all children are wanted.

In addition, controlling the population is a hard work. In these countries, many times women don’t have the power to decide anything about their lives. That means that anyone can give orders to their bodies, marriages, sexual relationships…

On the other hand, we can find many diseases; like pneumonia, diarrhea, Malaria…
As a result, the lack of education and safety resources brings the death of about 9’2 million children under the age of 5 every year.
When these children are born, they do it prematurely or with low birth weight, and they also have to face a society that lacks the tools to live properly. Because of that, many of them end up dying.

In response to this, different associations have designed projects to improve the birth conditions.


DESIGN THAT MATTERS

One of them is Design that matters, by Timothy Prestero.

He says that he does’t work in order to obtain a prize, he works to help people.

'Everybody loves a beautiful baby, so I will start with an example from a project we did about a newborn health. Here is a problem.'

Prestero tells us that millions of babies die in their first year of life and we could reduce this number, if they could be kept on warm during the first days.



A hospital of Japan gave an incubator to Kathmandu (Nepal) because they bought new equipment. Things like that try to improve the safety in poor countries, however these end out becoming junk.
But, if we stop and think… keeping a child warmed doesn’t need much science. It’s here where it starts our project.

Design that matters began a research with a group of Boston and they asked what people wanted. What is necessary in countries that lack of the most of the essential things?


They created and designed lots of prototypes and only one of them became convincing: NeoNurture incubator. So, the idea was marry something beautiful with something that actually works. Because of that, the inventor couldn’t think in prizes, nor in make a useful product.

They felt great, but finally the incubator wasn’t used, just in the front of the magazine.
'The outcome is always to improve the society and make the world a better place.'

Designing a machine like that could be very slow and ineffective… and it has to be used in poor hospitals, developing countries…

• Firstly, they have to think about: Who wants the costumer? Who is going to buy the product?

In these countries, the business hardly ever buys its own products, another multinational does it.

They founded an organization called MTTS in Vietnam that makes newborn technologies for South-east of Asia. His socio is an American foundation that distributes technology to poor hospitals whereabouts.

• Secondly, they have to find out the problem: What problem do they want to solve? Jaundice.

Jaundice (babies with yellow skin) affects two thirds of newborns around the world and it has serious consequences. Sometimes it causes different incapacities but children can even die. Its treatment is expensive and dangerous, but… it exists another cure. Maybe this one is so technological and complex but it can have success.

It’s called phototherapy. You’ve got to shine blue light on the child (bright blue light on as much of the skin as you can cover).

It shouldn’t be difficult, but it is. In USA this dispositive of phototherapy is used, but not like it should be used.


We realized that it isn’t efficient; as well as, there are more problems. When a mother sees her baby uncovered under a strong light, she will put a blanket over him. Maybe that’s not the best behaviour. But as a conclusion, it doesn’t exist silly users, there are only dump products.
So we’ve learnt that the product has to have an actually use.

Workers from MTTS have developed technologies to treat newborn diseases (baby heaters, systems to control the breathing…) So they have achieved the making of something cheap, resistant, with an easy and clear use, for many children, efficient…

Now, over fifty thousand children in Vietnam enjoy these devices.

The problem is: everybody knows how medical devices look, so a good appearance is so important too. Many hospitals prefer not to have any equipment, before having something that works well but doesn’t look so good. And the costumers have the power, they have to trust in the product.

• So lastly, we’ve tidied up all this information given to make it properly this time. This is the Firefly phototherapy device.

Since we began; we talked with the manufacturers. The outcome was create an innovative product, something they could make and repair with resources they have access to; made for a single baby, an obvious device, easy and correct to use, sealed and if mothers covered their children, the Firefly has lights above and below the baby.

Anyway, WE HAVE TO DESIGN FOR:

- Inspiration (have influence over others manufacturers).
- Outcomes (make the world a better place).

- Manufacture & Distribution (know who wants the product and who buys it).

- Appearances (it has to be attractive and a product you could trust in).

- Actually use(think about how it will be used).


'DESIGN FOR THE WORLD THAT WE WANT, THAT WE HAVE, THAT IS COMING.
WE HAVE TO DESIGN OUTCOMES AND THAT’S THE DESIGN THAT MATTERS.'

For more information:http://www.designthatmatters.org/firefly


BIBLIOGRAPHY:

The main causes of child mortality in developing countries.
http://borgenproject.org

Why is birth-rate higher in developing countries.
https://www.quora.com

Project, Design that matters.
http://www.designthatmatters.org