Caroline Bastholm is leaving her position as Secretary General of Engineers Without Borders Sweden.
After 5 years as Secretary General of Engineers Without Borders Sweden, Caroline Bastholm is leaving her position. Caroline has been instrumental in shaping the organization in her role as Secretary General and in previous volunteer based positions.
Inspired, impressed, humbled, and motivated! Those are the words I want to use, to sum up, my intense and relatively short work trip to East Africa with Engineers Without Borders Sweden this summer. I'm humbled to finally be able to travel here to learn more about the situation and about the challenges many people are facing in both Tanzania and Uganda. But most importantly, I'm motivated to do more.
In Uganda, I got to meet six young, smart, passionate, and ambitious newly qualified engineers who themselves are trying to improve life for the next generation through humanitarian engineering. Together with the team on-site, we conducted workshops to find out more about their work and how we can collaborate in the matter - very much connected to the research I myself (try to) conduct here in Sweden.
In Tanzania, the mission was to evaluate and try to improve a digitalization project that was carried out about two years ago in collaboration with Sandvik. A computer room has been installed at a girls-only secondary school with the aim to improve the opportunity for young girls to gain digital literacy. This led to a series of interviews and workshops with both students and teachers.
Before my trip, I was told some 'prejudices' and I had quite some expectations. Some were true, such as that the people of Uganda and Tanzania are incredibly friendly and that there are many challenges related to the UN's Sustainable Development Goals. In conclusion, I´m writing this primarily to raise awareness about EWB-SWE different projects and possibilities to engage and possibly inspire others to get engaged.
By: Adam Mallalieu, team member Digitalization Project, Engineers Without Borders Sweden
End of May, Marlene (Head of International projects) and Mara (Leader of monitoring and evaluation) traveled to Uganda and Tanzania to visit the EWB East Africa in Kampala and EWB-SWE's established partners Mavuno in Karagwe, Tanzania.
The purpose of the visit to Uganda was to initiate a collaboration between EWB-SWE and EWB East Africa. A partnership that possibly will lead to creating a more substantial impact in the region. The aim is also to mobilize and strengthen the partnership between other EWB organizations active in the East African region.
In Karagwe, Tanzania, Marlene and Mara participated in a workshop organized by Mavuno, a non-government grassroots organization working to improve the quality of rural lives by addressing community needs in Karagwe, Tanzania. The meeting was about evaluating the last five years of collaboration and setting new directions for the coming years. It was a five-day-long workshop that included field visits to meet with women and youths to learn about the effect of the project on empowering women. There were also visits with the farmers and their villages, and meetings with various government officials. The workshop was very well planned and had a good participatory and inclusive approach.
The participating farmers shared their views on what has been successful during the last 5 years, the various challenges they are facing, and what they would like the focus to be in the coming five years. During the visits, many of them showed appreciation for the increased access to water in the schools. They also lifted the increased knowledge they have received through the training on agriculture and nutritious diet that has resulted in both better health and more sustainable agricultural methods. Leading to improved income for the families. Some also expressed that their family relations have improved due to the empowerment of women.
Many government representatives at the workshop expressed intense gratitude for Mavuno and its members' work over the last five years. Mavuno and its members have for example ensured water access to schools and villages, food security, and capacity strengthening of farmers to increase their productivity.
“I am happy that Mavuno has enabled a better dialogue between the farmers and the government. This is very important for the sustainability of the work as the government is the ultimate rights bearer”, says Paskazia Rweshereka, one of the village's local farmers.
MArlene & MAra with representatives from EWb East africa
Paskazia Rweshereka
Marlene, Head of International projects, summarizes the trip:
"It was really nice to be able to do this field trip to Uganda and Tanzania and participate in this workshop. I'm amazed to see the great participation of farmers, specifically women, during the workshop. It was also great to see how the Mavuno project has ensured participation and inclusiveness in the villages. I am proud of our collaboration with Mavuno and to see how EWB-SWE through the collaboration achieved a great social impact over the last five years. The results Mavuno has achieved are extensive. They have not only ensured water access in 25 schools and electricity access in 121 schools, many villages refer to the great support in improving the general agriculture in the village. Some women, even referring to themselves as individuals, have strengthened their confidence thanks to the seminars on agriculture the Mavuno project has provided. For me, it's clear that Mavuno has gained a strong trust in the village”.
Today, we are pleased to release our 2021 Annual Report, Strengthening Capacity for a Sustainable Future, where we reflect over the past year and share the work that supports our mission and vision.
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Accurate maps play a critical role in understanding communities, particularly for populations at risk. While some countries are already mapped with incredible detail, it is not the reality for billions of people in vulnerable areas around the globe. Mapping places 'missing' from open and accessible maps allows humanitarian organizations to meet the needs of vulnerable communities by providing valuable information for navigation, decision making and sustainable community development.
The session will focus more particularly on supporting the organization Tumaini which is currently setting up an Open School in Tabora, Tanzania, to ensure that girls excluded from education due to pregnancy get a second chance at an education. The organization needs our help to map local areas to be able to find the way to villages and reach out to the girls and give them a chance for education. No prior knowledge is assumed and all training is given. Join us!
As a self-dependent organization, EWB-SWE relies on funding from corporations, foundations and donors to realize our mission. While taking part in a democratic process and influencing the future of Sveriges Ingenjörer, your vote will directly strengthen our ability to carry out our work towards the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
“When Engineering for Humanity in Sweden and around the globe, our most important resource is our knowledgeable and engaged volunteers and supporting organizations. We are hence very grateful to Sveriges Ingenjörer for spreading awareness about our work to all members and the potential for significant donation”, says Caroline Bastholm, Secretary-General of EWB-SWE.
EWB-SWE is committed to designing and implementing sustainable engineering projects for a better world. Besides voting this spring, there are a variety of ways to get involved with EWB-SWE, influence our work and ensure that we make a valuable difference in people’s lives.
We invite everyone who shares our vision and commitment to join our community of members. Every contribution helps us take another step towards making our work possible and engineering for long-term sustainable solutions.
To read more about Sveriges Ingenjörer, visit their website here.
Together with openhack, EWB-SWE is delighted to open up for registration to join Engineering for Humanity Weekend 2022 on March 11-13. The 42-hour virtual event is focused on developing sustainable solutions to challenges related to the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Participation in the event offers a unique chance to collaborate with people of varied backgrounds, design solutions for real-world challenges and compete for the opportunity to realize your solution after the event. The cases are derived from ongoing projects within national Engineers Without Borders organisations in Sweden, Norway, Finland and Germany.
Anyone is welcome to join for a fun and rewarding weekend! At this moment, registration is open for participants, mentors, jury members and partners.
Contribute as a Participant
As a participant, you will join a team of designers, developers, innovators, industry experts, project managers and others ready to find solutions to global challenges. With your team, you will brainstorm, start sketching or building a prototype. All teams will receive guidance from highly skilled professionals and industry experts. In the final hours, you will submit your solution to a jury, who will identify doable, scalable and impactful solutions to support for further implementation.
Help out as a Mentor
To provide the participants with the best resources possible, mentors play a key role. As a mentor, you will be assigned a team to guide, either through scheduled checkpoints or with supportive input throughout the event (minimum time commitment is 2h in total). Additionally, each mentor will be able to respond to questions from any team via the event platform’s chat forum. If you are a subject matter expert, project manager or got experience that can help out, you are welcome to join the event as a mentor and help the participants with their mission.
Be part of the Jury
In order to bring forth the best suitable submissions for further development and implementation, competent jury members are crucial. As a jury member, you will spend 1-3h reviewing submissions at the end of the 42-hour weekend event. As a jury member, you will be part of a jury group consisting of subject matter experts, key partner representatives and project owners.
Partner with us
Companies and organizations are invited to actively take part in the event and support the development of the most promising solutions. As a partner you may contribute with mentors, jury members, prizes, spreading the word and, most importantly, supporting the teams to further develop their ideas after the event. This can be done by mentoring a team in the idea-implementing phase, providing office space, financial support or supervision. Gain recognition for your sustainability goals and get unique recruiting opportunities while helping us engineer for humanity! Get involved as a partner by reaching out to partners.e4h@ewb-swe.org.
As part of the earlier two-year partnership, Vattenfall participated in activities towards EWB-SWE´s local groups, and employees supported the organization´s capacity building by lending their expertise within the group on partnership assessment, competence groups on energy and construction, as well as risk-management and policies evaluation.
“Our work is powered by the support of our partners, and we are extremely pleased with the renewed support from Vattenfall towards our mission“, says Jan Byfors, Chairperson of EWB-SWE.
The current partnership will foster deeper collaboration between EWB-SWE and Vattenfall by involving more employees and participation in workshops and webinars organized by EWB-SWE with a specific focus on diversity and inclusion work.
About Vattenfall:
Vattenfall is a leading European energy provider which for more than 100 years has electrified industries, supplied energy to people's homes and modernised our way of living through innovation and cooperation. The company is committed to attaining a life free from fossil fuels within one generation through innovation and cooperation.
During the past year, the organisation has strengthened its capacity to provide sustainable solutions and improve the living standards of people today and in the future. Together with supporters, members and volunteers, EWB-SWE is ready to take on 2022 and keep working for everyone´s right to a sustainable future.
During the annual meeting in May, the members of EWB-SWE will elect the new board for the following period of one full year. This year, there will also be an election for a new chairperson of the board.
What is the Board?
The Board is the body within EWB-SWE that represents all members through operative decisions. Their role is to coordinate the work of the different focus areas, support local groups and lead the work from a strategic perspective. The Board meets regularly (approximately once a month) either online or physically. Each board member is elected for one full year and is usually responsible for a focus area or an internal function. Read more about the board here.
Who is the Chairperson?
Besides being the official representative of EWB-SWE as an organisation and an employer, the chairperson is overall responsible for annual and member meetings, as well as for the board's strategic work and monthly meetings. The chairperson works in close cooperation with the Secretary-General.
Who can nominate and be nominated?
Anyone can nominate either themselves or someone else. As to provide a good representation of the organization, the aim is to maintain a dynamic group of different backgrounds and competencies. Experience of similar work and/or previous engagement within the organization is valued but not required - more important are the values, commitment and aspiration of the candidate, to help lead the organization through further development and growth. After interviews and evaluation of the nominees, a proposal is presented by the election committee to the annual meeting. Any candidate can still be nominated and considered during the meeting before the election is made jointly by the members. Existing members of the board are allowed to run for re-election. To be elected, the candidate has to be or become a member of EWB-SWE.
How do I nominate a candidate?
The election committee warmly welcomes nominations for the board by email to election.committee@ewb-swe.org, by the 14th of February 2022 at the latest.
For questions about the work within the board or the role of the chairperson, please contact Caroline Bastholm, Secretary-General (caroline.bastholm@ewb-swe.org) or Jan Byfors, chairperson (jan.byfors@ewb-swe.org).
Giva Sverige is a professional membership body for fundraising organisations in Sweden. Their aim is to increase giving in Sweden by improving the conditions for organisations to fundraise in a trustworthy way.
Giva Sverige is a leading provider of fundraising training in Sweden. By offering supporting activities, such as fundraising specific training courses, seminars and research, member organisations are able to enhance fundraising activities based on three main areas - professional development, governance and compliance, and advocacy.
This membership allows EWB-SWE to develop and improve its fundraising activities to advance the mission of #EngineeringforHumanity. As members, EWB-SWE is also part of supporting better conditions for transparent, ethical and professional fundraising in Sweden.
We are delighted to be part of this important initiative!
Read more about Giva Sverige > https://www.givasverige.se/in-english/
EWB-SWE and openhack’s advisory board met with representatives of both organizations on October 4 to take stock of the organization’s progress over the last year and discuss opportunities to improve our fundraising activities. This was the third meeting of the Advisory Board which was put together in 2020.
The Advisory Board consists of Hans-Olov Olsson, Emma Rozada, Sofia Appelgren, Joakim Hedin, Carl Lindberg, Johanna Lakso. From EWB-SWE and openhack, Jan Burenius, Caroline Bastholm, Jan Byfors, Lukas Scheffer Leander participated in the meeting, held at Techno Creatives’ office in Gothenburg – a huge thank you to Emma Rozada for hosting us.
One central topic discussed during the meeting was if and how EWB-SWE could benefit from narrowing down the scope of our work to establish a clearer identity and avoid spreading ourselves too thin.
Today, EWB-SWE works both within Sweden and internationally. In Sweden, we primarily focus on activities that serve to make the engineering sector more equitable, just and accessible. We also engage in capacity building activities. Internationally, we focus on providing know-how and hands-on assistance in primarily construction, digitalization, and water and sanitation projects. You can learn more about the different areas here.
In the next few months, we will continue to discuss how we can strengthen existing partnerships and initiate new collaborations that ensure our activities have a lasting impact in the communities they serve.
Strengthening our bond with openhack
EWB-SWE and openhack aim to work closer together in the future. How this can be achieved was another main topic discussed during the Advisory Board meeting. A concrete example of how the two organizations can collaborate is the upcoming Engineering for Humanity hackathon on November 12-14, 2021. The aim is to make the hackathon an annual event. The advisory board pondered how we can grow this event format through creative partnership structures.
Beyond discussing concrete activities by the EWB-SWE team, the Advisory Board also examined how we can become better at communicating about our work to both partners and the general public. One question asked during the meeting was whether EWB-SWE should keep English as our main language of communication, or if we should instead communicate more in Swedish on social media and other external communication channels.
If you are a member of EWB-SWE and want to share your thoughts on how we can improve, please take five minutes to fill out our member survey (closing on October 31, 2021.)
This year's International Day of the Girl, under the theme "Digital generation. Our generation,” aims to shine a light on the need to widen the pathways for this generation of girls to become a generation of technologists.
Womengineer’s work is centered around two major events each year, Womenginee Day on November 19 and IGEday (Introduce a Girl to Engineering day) on March 25. EWB-SWE will take part in the next editions of both events.
Womengineer Day 2021 is an online recruitment and networking event where female or non-binary engineering students and early-career engineers are introduced to companies and organizations operating in the engineering field. More information about the event and how you can register for it can be found here.
IGEday is an annual event during which companies and organizations in the technology and engineering sectors open their doors during one day to young girls and non-binary people aged 13-19 years. Participants are provided insights into the engineering profession and advice on how to choose and apply for higher education in the field of engineering. IGEday 2022 will offer both physical and digital company visits, more information about the event can be found here.
At EWB-SWE we work to support and inspire young people and early career professionals to engage with technology and consider a career in engineering through our programs Inspire Youth.
Beyond inspiring younger generations to enter the field of engineering, EWB-SWE also works to support people with an engineering background or passion who are new to Sweden through the Engineer to Engineer program. The program supports this group to navigate the Swedish labour market and land a job in the field of engineering.
"I strongly believe that greater equity will improve the practice of engineering. Engineering solutions should be designed for everyone. Therefore they cannot and should not be developed by a homogenous group. Collaborating with Womengineer and participating in Womengineer Day and IGEday is a great opportunity for us at EWB-SWE to further our work with making the engineering sector more inclusive and diverse," says Caroline Bastholm, Secretary General of EWB-SWE.
Nepal is located in one of the most seismically active regions of the world, a matter that is made worse by the fact that over half of all buildings in the country do not meet safe housing standards. Build Up Nepal was founded after the devastating 2015 earthquake in Nepal, which cost over 9,000 lives and is estimated to have wounded more than 15,000 people.
The organization aims to empower rural entrepreneurs and communities to build safe, affordable homes and resilient incomes. One way they do this is by providing rural entrepreneurs with brick-making machines, training, and support to start and build micro-construction companies.
EWB-SWE began working with the organization back in 2016 and the collaboration between the two organizations has grown over time. For more information about EWB-SWE’s work with Build Up Nepal, check out the project page.
In 2020 Build Up Nepal supported 65 micro, small, and medium enterprises and 20 communities, creating 348 jobs and building 272 houses. Having proven their model, they now need support to refine their approach further and find efficiencies to scale.
Within the framework of EWB-SWE and Build Up Nepal existing collaboration, the two organizations now launch a new initiative with the Australian Government, supported by BPP. The new initiative aims to scale Build Up Nepal's operations through active collaboration between the partners.
COVID-19 prompted a reverse migration of Nepali migrant workers from around the world. The flow of remittances has stopped, and unemployment and under-employment is on the rise. Meanwhile, the brick industry in Nepal is booming, creating a unique opportunity to create jobs for low-income families and support a green recovery from COVID-19. In the new initiative, a particular focus will be placed on empowering women, youths, returning migrants, people with disabilities and other vulnerable groups.
Build Up Nepal’s operating model improves the environmental impact of the construction industry in Nepal. No fuel or burning is required, and less cement usage means 39 percent less CO2 emissions. By strengthening local businesses, this initiative aims to replace five percent of carbon-intensive fired bricks with Build Up Nepal’s bricks by 2024, saving 10,305 tonnes of CO2 emissions.
“This vital partnership is perfectly in line with EWB-SWE’s operational and strategic goals. Over the next few years, we aim to deepen and expand our collaborations with our core partners, of which Build Up Nepal is one. I firmly believe that our organization can have a more positive and lasting impact in the communities where we work when we collaborate with others that complement our strengths and share our values – Build Up Nepal fits perfectly into this description,” says Caroline Bastholm, EWB-SWE Secretary-General.
Summertime is here and we are already halfway through the year!
We want to take this opportunity to acknowledge and celebrate our achievements so far by sharing our 2021 half-year review video 🎉 We are proud of our achievements and our focus will remain on empowering the communities we engage in. We are looking forward to the next half year of 2021, which promises lots of exciting news and developments.
We are pleased to release our 2020 Annual Report, Empowering Communities in Challenging Times, reflecting our achievements over the past year and our continued commitment to deliver humanitarian engineering in these unprecedented times.
As an organisation with an engineering focus, our projects often concern construction, water access or energy availability. Through consciously selecting, planning, and implementing projects, we can advance gender equality. By engaging in projects that improve female education in areas where it has a low priority or by addressing work areas that are predominantly women's responsibility, we can contribute to advancements. As an organisation with equal gender distribution among volunteers and in the steering group, we can inspire other women to enter the male-dominated engineering sector. Diversity among engineers will result in a variety of identified engineering problems to solve and proposed engineering solutions.
Caroline Bastholm, Secretary-General Engineers Without Borders Sweden
One of EWB-SWE’s focus areas is education. In many of EWB-SWE’s international educational projects, there is a specific focus on girls' education. EWB-SWE has worked together with the Tanzanian aid organisation Mavuno Project for over ten years to improve the educational situation in Karagwe and Kyerwa. Currently, an extension of a girl's secondary school is being built. Some of the girls are orphans or come from impoverished families. The boarding school enables them to reach a high-level education and reduces the risk of being forced into early marriage.
"I got to know a girl whose father did not think it was worth to educate his 13-year-old daughter, and she was at risk of being forced into early marriage. Today, the girl is living at the boarding school and studies very hard with a dream to become a lawyer to help girls and women protect their rights", says Marianne Grauers, Vice President at Engineers Without Borders Sweden
Girls at the Mavuno secondary school Using the new computers
Access to computers and technology is very limited among the population of north-western Tanzania, especially among girls. Computers and internet access provide access to knowledge and are a significant part of improving education. In January 2020, EWB-SWE implemented the project Computer for Schools at the Mavuno Secondary School for Girls. The aim was to increase the accessibility and interests in technology. The roughly 400 girls at the school can now gain computer literacy, access information, practice programming, and more.
"In the countries where EWB-SWE works, women and girls suffer from unequal access to technology. There is a clear global trend towards digitalisation, with everything from the job market and politics to media and news moving to digital platforms. Unequal access to those platforms will have devastating effects on the move towards gender equality", says Christian Naccache, Head of Digitalisation Competence Group at Engineers Without Borders Sweden
EWB-SWE engage in the design and construction of sanitary facilities at schools. Apart from being a toilet and a place to wash your hands, these facilities provide a safe and hygienic place to change sanitary pads and thereby enable girls to attend school when having their menstruation.
By engaging in water access and cooking projects, we target work that is predominantly women’s responsibility. In Chonyonyo, women walk for several hours to reach natural water sources. By bringing clean water to Chonyonyo and Rukole, the women can avoid the long walk that sometimes puts them at risk.
Sweden currently has a shortage of engineers, a profession that historically has been a very male-dominated group. Inspire Youth is one of the EWB-SWEs initiatives that, through workshops, study aid and school visits, aim to inform and inspire children to seek an education in engineering or technology. During the autumn, Inspire Youth and the creative meeting place Agora in Skäggetorp, Linköping started holding coder dojos, where young girls could test programming. CoderDojos focus on improving the severe shortage of women in technology by engaging girls in tech-related activities to incite interest in technology. Furthermore, it challenges the social stigma among young women and computer sciences.
“By introducing programming in a fun and interactive way, we can show young girls that programming can be both powerful and creative”, says Alice Paulsen, Head of Inspire Youth at Engineers Without Borders Linköping
As we look back at 2020, we see that the potential of our community is extensive. Thirty active international projects, twelve new ones and initiated activity towards limit the spreading and impacts of Covid-19. Together we have the ambition to reach further and operate towards everyone's right to a sustainable future.
Bengt Dahlgren and Engineers Without Borders Sweden (EWB-SWE) are pleased to announce that they are renewing their strategic collaboration for two more years. Based on shared-values, this renewed partnership seeks to strengthen Bengt Dahlgren’s commitment to engineering for humanity, and further engage their specialist competences in the projects and activities that EWB-SWE implements in Sweden and abroad.
As a gold partner since 2015, Bengt Dahlgren has been supporting EWB-SWE with expertise, knowledge sharing and financial contributions, especially towards projects in Tanzania. Lending further support to EWB-SWE, employee engagement will be expanded towards international projects and national activities connected with local groups.
“The collaboration with EWB-SWE is rewarding for both our company and our employees, and fits well with our sustainability work. This renewal is very exciting for both organizations and confirms the long-lasting relationship that has been established.“ - Sofie Jansson, Bengt Dahlgren.
“Bengt Dahlgren was our first corporate partner, and we are proud of the collaboration we have built over the years. EWB-SWE´s work with Bengt Dahlgren is an example of how partnerships through collaborative and hands-on activities are essential for our mission. We are very pleased with this renewal.” commented Jan Byfors, Chairperson at EWB-SWE.
For more information, please contact:
Sofie Jansson
HR Director – Bengt Dahlgren
sofie.jansson@bengtdahlgren.se
Noemie Gonzalez
Corporate Partnership Coordinator – EWB-SWE
noemie.gonzalez@ewb-swe.org
About Bengt Dahlgren:
Bengt Dahlgren is a privately-owned technical consultancy company active within the field of civil engineering. We provide qualified engineers in a variety of disciplines, including installation, fire & risk, building & property, and energy & environment. We are also certified in accordance with ISO 14001 and 9001.
We at Engineers Without Borders Sweden have joined forces with The Swedish Institute in the Sweden-India Mobility Hack on February 26 - 28 to innovate and co-create the future of mobility. For a 42h digital marathon sprint, hackers will work on industry challenges and develop ideas and solutions. Are you a creative problem solver? Sign up today or join as a mentor. Let’s change the way we move!
Sign up and read more: https://lnkd.in/d_M6F8i
#SwedenIndiaMobilityHack #ChangingtheWayWeMove
Through humanitarian engineering, we engage, inspire, and unite people to build sustainable communities.
Ingenjörer utan gränser mobiliserar teknisk expertis för att skapa hållbara lösningar som stärker samhällen världen över.
E-mail: info@ewb-swe.org
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