HELP-ing Africa

This summer, rather than heading to the beach or renting a summer house with friends, a group of students from Dartmouth’s college of engineering are using their education to help better society.

Nine students made the long trek to Tanzania as members of HELP (Humanitarian Engineering Leadership Projects) Worldwide. Their goal this summer is to use what they’ve learned in their engineering studies to help develop better water systems and cook stoves for African citizens.

According to the HELP Worldwide Website, their main goal is to address “[…]the development needs of the third world with solutions that are fully sustainable using local materials with a low environmental impact.”

The students soon found that HELP Worldwide wasn’t the only program working to better Africa’s energy sufficiency. While in Kigoma, they discovered that their water system was made by a Spanish Engineers Without Borders program. They also encountered a group of American doctors who were working with the Jane Goodall Institute with funding provided by Green Mountain Coffee Roasters.

HELP Worldwide’s efforts remain strong, and their work will not end with the summer. The humanitarian engineering leadership program is intended to be a “multi-year collaborative project.”

So as America strives to become more energy efficient, American students will continue to strive to help Africa in the same effort.