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Trucks, Lamps, Bikes, and Water Kits Among New Tools for Aid Workers
FrontLines - September 2009
By Ashtar Analeed Marcus
Humanitarian aid workers in the field from Sudan to Guatemala need all-terrain vehicles, water purification systems, solar power, and dozens of high-tech gadgets to help deliver food, water, medicine, and other assistance to the needy.
The companies that invent and produce the latest gadgets for development and humanitarian crises came to Washington’s Ronald Reagan Building July 9-10 to demonstrate and sell some of their wares to hundreds of aid officials from NGOs, contractors, and the U.S. government.
Companies display shelter, emergency vehicles, and other items produced for use by aid groups in crises and development projects around the world during the Aid & Trade convention in the Ronald Reagan Building’s atrium July 9-10.
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Representatives from InterAction, the American Red Cross, Catholic Relief Services, the World Food Program, the U.S. Army, and USAID spoke at roundtables on the latest logistics, communications, policy, and demographic factors affecting foreign aid delivery.
Temporary relief tents can be converted into permanent homes when synthetic material is replaced with natural elements like straw around the sturdy metal framework of the tents.
| | Amidst the rugged Toyota and other four-wheel drive trucks on display in the Reagan atrium, and videos of mine-resistant vehicles for the Afghan or Iraqi aid programs, were tables loaded with handy field gadgets that could be useful in aid work. |
A portable emergency solar generator
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Aid & Trade is a British group of NGOs, contractors, and others involved in foreign assistance. It held its annual convention in Washington this year to overlap with the 25th anniversary celebration of its U.S. counterpart, InterAction.
Amidst the rugged Toyota and other four-wheel drive trucks on display in the Reagan atrium, and videos of mine-resistant vehicles for the Afghan or Iraqi aid programs, were tables loaded with handy field gadgets that could be useful in aid work.
- Lightweight cotton sacks on display are used to replace traditional sandbags for flood control in hurricanes, flash floods and breached sanitation lines. The FloodBloc sacks made of jute and cotton absorb five gallons of water in about three minutes. Another product, FloodSax, can hold about 45 pounds of water. Both products are recyclable and biodegradable.
- At another booth, ArcGIS, a global information systems server, explained how it could help aid teams hone in on areas of drought and famine or map the population at risk for malaria. USAID already uses this system through the Famine Early Warning Systems Network. (See March 2009 FrontLines, page 2.)
- Another gadget uses electricity to convert a spoonful of salt into a chlorinating solution that can purify 1,000 gallons of water. The Swiss company Bulane is exporting their Watalys generator and water purification kit to 50 countries. “It’s a simple idea,” said Francois Belot, development director for Bulane. “But we are creating potable water for thousands.”
- To help grow food in arid climates, global positioning systems and new interpretive technology can tell an Ethiopian farmer the exact location of his seed on a multi-acre plot, drive his tractor to the exact location, and fertilize and water that centimeter of land, preserving the remaining water. Trimble Navigation has already introduced this product to 30 percent of commercial farms in the United States, said a company representative.
The latest tents, solar powered lamps, emergency airstrip lighting, and unfolding solar generators were also shown at the convention.
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