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Remember walking to class at Cornell? Imagine, there are no more bridges. Every day you would have to scale down the gorge and climb back up again in order to go to class. This is the reality for many members of rural communities worldwide.
Rural isolation, or the inability to access essential resources such as hospitals, schools and markets due to geographic barriers, directly contributes to global poverty. The mission of the Engineers in Action (EIA) Bridge Program and our University Chapter is to help rurally isolated communities gain access to these essential resources with sustainable infrastructure by harnessing local expertise and global partnerships. On top of the physical bridges, we hope to inspire members of the community to continue building bridges in neighboring communities.
The Cornell University Chapter of Engineers in Action is a student run project team with the College of Engineering that works with the non-for-profit organization Engineers in Action to design and build pedestrian footbridges for rurally isolated communities. Over the past two years, the Cornell Team has designed and successfully built 2 bridges in the Kingdom of eSwatini for communities that have lost many lives over swollen rivers. This year, the team is working on a new bridge to help out a new community during summer of 2020. The team plans to send 8 students to oversee the construction process and help the community construct the bridge, providing both technical experience and physical labor. While they work, the team will be fully immersed in the community and culture and live with a host family in camping-like conditions.
Cornell Engineers in Action hopes to continue moving forward on this year’s project with the help of your donation. With your help, we hope to expand our efforts to make Cornell Engineers in Action a team that completes builds on a consistent basis and has strong relationships with multiple communities in eSwatini and other countries in need.
Visit our website for more information: https://eia.engineering.cornell.edu
This summer's project: https://cornellengineersinaction.exposure.co/2019-mdlasomi-cornell-build?source=share-cornellengineersinaction
With $10, you will be supporting the purchase of the small hardware that is critical for constructing our bridge. Every lag screw, drop forged clamp, and length of iron rebar helps bring us one step closer to building a bridge.
With $25, you will be supporting the purchase of wooden planks and steel fencing that span the length of the bridge. People will be walking along these for decades to come!
With $50, we will be able to buy the safety equipment that is necessary to keep our students and community members safe while constructing the bridge. This donation will go towards purchasing hard hats, work gloves, safety glasses, retractable lanyards, and harnesses.
With $100, you will be supporting our purchase of bridge cables which will not only connect our two support towers to create the main frame of the bridge but will it create a stronger connection between our team and the community.
With $250, we will be able to pay for the full amount of food and water for one student for 2 months!
With $500, you will be providing the salary for a local mason that works with us in building the foundation of the bridge towers.
With $1000, you will be covering the airfare for one student to our bridge site where they will excavate, mix concrete, and see the impact of our work first hand.
With $2000, you will be supporting the bulk of our materials which will give us the ability to finish the bridge and go back next year to build another!