The Lesotho Sustainability Assessment Project
Ongoing international outreach venture between the Energy Forum and
the Beyond Traditional Borders and Rice
360° Initiatives of Rice University |
| |
RICE University students who participate in the Spring 2009 BIOE 409 course in Sustainable Development will be considered for internship positions on the next Lesotho Sustainability Assessment Project, summer 2009. For more information, please see the attached flyer for the course and registration instructions.  Flyer
About The Project
The goal of this project is to develop integrated, multi-disciplinary approaches to sustainable development, including improved energy efficiency, air and water quality, and adaptation strategies for climate change that can be implemented at the community level in developing countries. |
Funded by the Baker Institute Energy Forum, the Lesotho Sustainability Assessment Project will send Rice faculty and six Rice students to Maseru, Lesotho to conduct an on-site, four-week community needs assessment in Maseru, Lesotho in Summer 2008. While in Maseru, the team will identify and implement a few immediate solutions to small-scale problems identified on the ground, interacting and educating locals and students. However, the target goal of the summer 2008 assessment project is to identify large-scale problems, needs, and obstacles to implementing sustainable, cost-effective solutions in order to promote development. Upon return to the U.S., the team will strategize and develop proposals for future projects. The team will then return in summer 2009 to implement, test, and evaluate the impact of its proposed solutions. After this initial period, the overall success of the project will be evaluated and plans for future projects and sites will be developed.
|
| |
Project Development in Maseru, Lesotho
Initially focusing on projects in Lesotho, a developing country in sub-Saharan Africa, faculty-student teams will conduct community-level assessments to identify energy, environmental, technological, health, and educational adaptations that when implemented could provide improved, sustainable, and cost-effective adaptive capacity.
Building on the success of this experience, the Lesotho Sustainability Assessment Project proposes to expand efforts to consider a broader range of adaptation technologies that encourage sustainable development. |
| |
| Masianokeng High School: Pilot-Project for 2008 |
In summer 2007 BTB and Energy Forum staff identified Masianokeng High School, located just outside Maseru, for the summer 2008 pilot location. With support from the Irish government in the 1970s, Masianokeng developed a focus on environmental sustainability. The school has a dedicated staff of administrators and science teachers, some of whom have taught for more than 20 years at this location. The school serves one of the poorest communities near Maseru. Of the 853 students enrolled in the school, 89 are double orphans (having lost both parents), and 104 are single orphans. For many students, the only meal they receive each day is the one provided by the school. Most students walk to school, many traveling 10 km or more. |
| |
In summer 2007, Rice faculty, staff, and interns worked with teachers at Masianokeng to collect baseline assessment data for the families whose children attend the school. There are two sources of water in the village: community taps provided by a company called WASA, and a well owned and operated by the village. The water from the community taps is very unreliable: water pressure is frequently poor, and it can take hours to collect water. The water that comes from the tap is believed to be clean. The water that comes from the well, however, is not properly purified and people take no steps to purify it. |
| |
Approximately 50 percent of villagers have access to electricity, of which the majority is dedicated to cooking. Those without electricity use parafin or firewood to cook. Parafin can be bought at a small café in the village. However, it may take three hours to gather firewood, a task that is usually performed by girls and women to the detriment of their studies and income-generating activities. Many people cook indoors with firewood and do not have properly ventilated stoves. The students found it very difficult to breathe in these homes. While not complete, these informally collected data provide a picture of some of the important needs in the community and will serve as a guide when building survey tools for a comprehensive assessment of community needs. We have also begun to identify some locally available resources to meet these needs. For example, an organization called Stock Aid is teaching many Basotho areas close to Mafetang district how to build ventilated stoves. |
|
About the Beyond Traditional Borders Initiative
The mission of the Beyond Traditional Borders Initiative is to foster the creation of globally appropriate health technologies that address the pressing health needs of the developing world. By engaging students through a novel multi-disciplinary educational program, we will challenge them to reach beyond their usual geographic and disciplinary experiential borders and to gain the knowledge and skills necessary to advance such innovative technologies. The program establishes a new curriculum for the middle school, high school and university levels that broadens understanding of disease processes and associated advancements within the health technology field, incorporating this understanding with important world health issues. Furthermore, the program presents real-world global health design challenges to students, encouraging the development of meaningful solutions with the potential to make a real impact today.
|
