Engineers Without Borders 2021

Who We Are

Engineers Without Borders - Cornell is a group of passionate and highly motivated students who aim to create long-lasting solutions to problems in international communities. Members are given the opportunity to nurture their creative and technical expertise by designing and implementing sustainable engineering projects. Through collaboration with communities in developing countries around the world, our members are exposed to diverse cultures while gaining academic experience outside of the classroom environment.

In summer 2019, four of our team members traveled to Sunuka, Tanzania to meet the community for the second time and collect the necessary data to design an irrigation water system that will alleviate some of the community’s concerns. In 2020, the team worked on a feasibility study for the irrigation system and conducted further research to determine how we can best meet the community’s needs. Due to the travel restrictions brought on by the COVID-19 global pandemic, we have postponed the implementation trip that was scheduled for summer 2020.

Water Irrigation in Tanzania

Easy access to water is a commodity most people living in the developed world take for granted. However, many people in the developing world do not have the same access to this necessity. The community of Sunuka, Tanzania depend on their fields for their food and income but are forced to rely on unpredictable rainfall to water their crops. During the dry season farmers are tasked with the burden of bringing water from wells miles away, costing them valuable time that could be spent tending to their families, crops, or livelihood.

To enable the community with instant access to water, Engineers Without Borders Cornell is designing a gravity-fed irrigation system to transport water from the Rugufu river. Using a small pump, we will raise water from the Rugufu river to a higher elevation. From this point, irrigation canals will direct water to the fields. With the ability to transport river water to nearby fields, agriculture will have the opportunity to reach its maximum potential.

We had our first assessment trip in June 2018, and in April 2019, four of our team members traveled to Tanzania for our second assessment. The primary goal of the assessment trip was to collect data that will be used in designing the final irrigation system. However, due to the ongoing pandemic, the team is currently working on a remote implementation this summer with the assistance of text-to-image software designed by the Business subteam.

Easier access to water for irrigation would partially relieve the burden many farmers have to go through to retrieve water. With an irrigation system, the community in Sunuka, Tanzania would benefit from higher crop yields which will stimulate economic growth within the community and its neighboring communities.

SHUs (Sustainable Housing Units) in Tompkins County

The SHU (Sustainable Housing Unit) concept came about when the Domestic subteam of Engineers Without Borders: Cornell Chapter was in search of an impactful project to help both our local communities and those across the globe. As homelessness is rampant within Tompkins county and the country, our talented and diverse group of engineers were motivated to begin designing a tiny home that can be transported by car. This independence allows for individuals to travel with their homes, find stable work, have basic utilities, and save money for a future home or apartment. As these homes are temporary for individuals, it will allow the homeless individual to jumpstart their lives for the better.

Other Subteams Within EWB

Digital Agriculture Outbreaks of plant diseases, often left undetected, can be devastating for a local economy in Sub-Saharan Africa. To aid farmers, the subteam is building an airborne drone and a ground rover to assess large plots of crop fields in real time. The drone will provide a large aerial assessment of overall health which will then help the rover survey flagged parts for diseases underneath the canopy.

Software Development This subteam is partnering with a local non-profit to build a sustainability-based app compatible with both iOS and Android. The app hopes to encourage the practice of carbon-offsetting, reducing emissions of CO2 in order to compensate for CO2 emissions made elsewhere. Our team hopes that our project will impact communities both locally and beyond the Ithaca area, ultimately having a lasting impact by making carbon-offsetting more accessible and encouraging sustainable practices.

Business This subteam is responsible for raising funds for both the international and domestic projects through fundraising, sponsorship, and events. This subteam is currently focusing on two projects. First, we are developing a reimagined website for EWB - Cornell, which will propel us to continue spreading our mission, amplifying our voice in the community, and recruiting new members. The second project we are working on is growing our presence on social media to raise awareness of our activities to create a more sustainable world. Our new members are excited to spearhead this project, which will allow us to thrive. In the past, we have developed text-to-image software, which allows us to better communicate with the people we work with in Tanzania. 

How You Can Help

Your support will help our projects listed above become a reality, and we are so excited to see each of them to completion in the coming months. Any support given will greatly help our team cover the costs for future trips and materials needed. Members of EWB-Cornell have the opportunity to nurture their creative and technical expertise by designing and implementing an irrigation system to better the community of Sunuka. We are striving to create a long-lasting solution in Sunuka just as we did with our last project in Calcha, Bolivia.

Your support will help our team cover the costs for educational experiences of our members through community outreach, global involvement, and fulfilling engineering projects. 100% of the funds from this crowdfunding campaign will go towards our future projects. Only with your help can we make this a reality.