humanitarian response work

📍ST. THOMAS 🌍 US VIRGIN ISLANDS 🕔2017

ABSTRACT:

Humanitarian engineers involves the application of engineering expertise into the alleviation of suffering in complex crises such as war, natural disasters or pandemics. FieldReady is an NGO that meets immediate & ongoing needs of peoples in humanitarian crises through innovative application of technology. As an undergraduate encouraged by my growing skillset to MAKE solutions, I joined FieldReady as a stand-by volunteer, offering my skills wherever the organization and the people they serve needed me.

PARTNERS

background.

More about FieldReady

remote support.

DESIGN: Emesis Basin/Kidney dish

3D modelled this printable kidney tray in Solidworks. It was designed whilst looking at how to supply Health Posts in Nepal with equipment after the earthquake. The design was developed in collaboration with various medical practitioners in Nepal. It has a wide stable base, but a smooth inner curvature to aid easy access to tools.

The file is openly available here.

training.

Trained under the University of Minnesotta's International Humanitarian Crisis Simulation, a '48-hour learning experience is relevant to professionals and graduate students of all backgrounds, and aims to prepare learners to work in a humanitarian crisis; assess their personal career alignment with humanitarian aid work; and to develop a greater understanding of the refugee experience'.

deployment.

WIRING UP A HUB WITH TEAMMATE DARA DOTZ

PREPPING A PANEL FOR SALVAGE

Deployed to the US Virgin Islands as member of Rapid Emergency Deployment (RED) Team to conduct initial disaster assessments in the immediate aftermath of hurricanes Maria and Irma. During our time there, our team realized many parts of the island remained without power & connectivity. We salvaged and upcycled damaged solar panels into power hubs for remote regions of the islands.

To ensure knowledge transfer, we trained local carpenters how to process salvages solar panels to provide power.

Working with My Brother's Workshop, a local NGO offering on-job-training to youth in the USVI community, my teammate & I conducted hands-on workshops to ensure the ability to recreate the power hubs remained after the end of our deployment.