Located across Sweden, our 10 local groups form a network of like-minded engineers engaging in some or all of our activities. Our local groups play a crucial role in EWB-SWE’s work. During 2022-23 Uppsala Local Group has besides organizing various activities also worked a lot with the team.
Here are parts of their activity report from the past year.
“I’m delighted with this opportunity to become part of the important work of EWB-SWE, contributing to sustainable, global development with the organization’s great efforts in strengthening communities worldwide. I hope my previous experiences can contribute to the growth of the organization and I’m looking much forward to working with the Board, EWB-SWE’s management team and all our active volunteers throughout Sweden engaging in our projects”
- Caroline Edelstam
As a registered runner of Göteborgsvarvet 2023, you can choose to run for a good cause and make a difference. We are calling all runners to support EWB-SWE and help fundraise to improve the quality of healthcare for thousands of families in Tanzania.
Access to a safe and adequate health care system makes a huge difference in people's lives.In Tanzania, EWB-SWE aims to support hospitals facing infrastructural challenges limiting them to provide safe health care. By implementing sustainable and effective technical solutions, we increase access to satisfactory healthcare and reduce mortality.
For over 15 years, we've been driven by a single goal - build a sustainable future for communities around the world.
Your fundraising means we can mobilize our engineering expertise to provide lasting solutions and engage in the long term - empowering communities today and ensuring their resilience tomorrow.
No matter how much you raise, your fundraising will have an impact and help us engage where the needs are the greatest to engineer even more sustainable change.
Get set, launch your campaign and rally your family and friends to join you in your goal to raise funds for improved quality of healthcare in Tanzania!
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A school for pregnant and teenage mothers in Tanzania
Since gaining independence in the 1960s, the Tanzanian government has had a policy of expelling pregnant students and adolescent mothers from school. Tens of thousands of young women have been forced to abandon their ambition of completing primary and secondary education. In late 2021 the Tanzanian Ministry of Education officially granted adolescent mothers the right to return to school. Even so, due to the extensive expelling of adolescent mothers over more than six decades, it will take a considerable amount of time before the stigmatisation of the adolescent mothers disappears and their situation improves in Tanzanian society.
Benefits for teenage girls and the community
The main objective of Tumaini is to offer the abandoned mothering and pregnant students in rural Tanzania, a second chance by constructing an Open school with primary and secondary education as well as vocational training. The majority of the students will not be required to pay a tuition fee and the school is planning to provide facilities for child care, kitchen and dining hall, auditorium and dormitories for students needing to be boarding school students, etc. The completed school is planned to have a capacity of at least 450 students both day students and boarding school students.
Collecting data for a deeper understanding
The initial aim has been to collect as much data as possible to get a full understanding of the situation the young mothers are coping with as well as try to listen attentively to the Tumaini organisation what the needs really are. From a visit in August 2022 to Tabora, Malin Sandström, Leader of the Construction collected a great deal of information and specific project requirements. In interviews with some of the girls as well as their parents, they shared dreams and wishes for the future that they hoped the school could help them to accomplish.
A multidisciplinary and holistic approach
The project itself is technically challenging and will run over a long period of time. Therefore a multidisciplinary team with a holistic approach is being recruited amongst volunteers. The project also has a need to include angels from both education, socialisation and communication within the school and its vicinity. As well as environmental impact, cost effectiveness and sustainability perspective.
I have worked as a partner coordinator for Build up Nepal on a volunteer basis for the last two years. During these years the collaboration between EWB-SWE and Build up Nepal has flourished and developed into a strong established partnership. I have had the pleasure of working closely with Björn, Founder and Managing Director of Build up Nepal, and very skilled engineers volunteering for EWB-SWE. We have had several projects focusing on developing the technical aspect of Build up Nepal's work.
Due to the pandemic, our visit to Nepal had been postponed, but at the end of November last year we finally had the opportunity to travel to Nepal to learn more about the project and visit our colleagues at the office in Nepal.
Meeting with Build up Nepal staff
The journey started by encountering Petrus, our newly recruited project manager at a cafe at Arlanda airport. We were both overly excited about the trip and I think Petrus in particular was unsure about what he had just thrown himself into head first. The flight was quite exhausting, but we arrived safely in Kathmandu where we were greeted by one of the Build Up Nepal staff.
Meeting Björn and his wife Bina was like meeting an old friend, having worked with him for a long time, it was amazing to finally see him in person. Together with members of his team - Kajal, Angana, Indra among others - we went through the details of our field trip, and the material testing that Petrus was going to assist with and were shown around the premises of their new office and workshop.
Highlighits of the trip
Together with Marlene, Head of international projects, who arrived the next day, we shared a wonderful week in Nepal. Besides sticking to the planned agenda we had time to experience the chaotic but beautiful city of Kathmandu, eat the most fantastic food in the world and get to know the all too friendly Nepalese people. But when people ask me what was the highlight of the trip, it is without hesitation meeting and being incredibly warmly welcomed by all the entrepreneurs, school staff and families during the field trip. Each one is a unique encounter that will never be forgotten. We were simply amazed by their ingenuity, charisma and hard work dedicated to creating jobs, businesses and enabling education and safe housing.
A collaboration since 2016
During the years since EWB-SWE started the cooperation with Build Up Nepal, I believe our partnership has had room to deepen a lot and we are lucky to have a partner where the contribution of our engineering expertise really makes a difference. I hope that we can maintain this strong cooperation and of course hope to see Björn and his team soon again!
Namaste,
/Oskar Örling - Partner Coordinator Build Up Nepal
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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