IDDS 2007 Alumni

Zubaida Bai is an Associate at Innovation Incubation with the Chennai based Rural Innovations Network Foundation (RIN). Zubaida offers technological & business advice in the areas of product development and design to rural innovators. RIN aims to identify and nurture innovators from rural India whose works impact rural communities and the society at large. Zubaida is also involved in offering training programs on various aspects of Product Innovation. She holds a M.Sc in Mechanical Engineering (Product Development) from Dalarna University, Borlange, Sweden.

Gina Maria Balcarcel Barahona was born in Guatemala city. She graduated from the Austrian School in Guatemala in 2002 and started a year later her studies in Shoe Design in Leon, Guanajuato, Mexico at the CIATEC. She worked in the design department of FLEXI, one of the biggest shoe factories in Mexico. After finishing her one-year program in Mexico, she went back to Guatemala and started working as a shoe designer at her family`s company. In 2004 she started her major in Product Design at the Universidad Rafael Landivar. She took part in different projects including one that helped craftsmen design better crafts. She also works with an orphanage through a youth group, 180 GRADOS, and provides food and clothing to homeless people.

Tombo Banda was born in Malawi, a small beautiful country in southern Africa. As she was growing up, she was inspired by the innovative and creative ways that people employed to survive despite poverty. This led her to her current position studying Mechanical Engineering at Imperial College in London. Through her studies, she hopes to acquire knowledge that would enable her to make significant contributions to the development of her country. She has become increasingly aware of the effect that simple appropriate technologies can have on improving the quality of life of many. She hopes to expand her knowledge in this area, and make a profound impact on Malawi.

Omar Crespo Cardona was born in Guatemala. He is the youngest of three brothers. He went to the Guatemalteco Bilingue School, where he did his primary and high shool studies. He currently is in the fourth year of Industrial Design in the Universidad Rafael Landívar. He also studies guitar at Poliritmos on the weekends. He likes surfing, volleyball and listening to live music, especially, rock, blues, jazz and funk. One of his goals in life is to be able to use industrial design as a tool for helping people in poor communities all over the world.

Royce Chew is a Singaporean, currently studying Engineering at Cambridge University, UK. He received a full scholarship from the Housing and Development Board of Singapore, for his university education. He has been actively involved in community work in Singapore and UK, ranging from teaching and playing with underprivileged children, rebuilding a school ravaged by fire and accompanying old folks to hospital appointments. He has never done any projects in developing countries, but was inspired to do so, after seeing and speaking to Bangladeshi construction workers. He hopes this summit would spur him on to help out in this field of work.

Alistair Cook is a final year Civil Engineering with Architecture student at the University of Glasgow, Scotland. He works part time for a civil engineering consultancy working in the railway sector and also volunteers with student charity Engineers Without Borders -UK. His role with this charity is both as publicity coordinator for the organization and also as Glasgow Branch President. Following graduation he hopes to be chosen for one of the EWB-UK development placements in Nigeria and would eventually work with Registered Engineers for Disaster Relief.

Deepa Dubey completed her bachelor in Architecture from Priyadarshini College of Engineering and Architecture in Nagpur, India. After graduation she worked as an architect in a couple of architectural firms for 2 years. Currently she is pursuing a master's in Product Design from the Indian Institute of Technology -Kanpur. Her interests lie in the field of design. She enjoys exploring new things.

Sachi Findlater is an undergraduate engineer at Cambridge University in the UK studying manufacturing engineering. In her free time she volunteers with the charity Engineers Without Borders UK where she is the current Training Coordinator, overseeing and organizing training courses for students and young professionals. The charity aims to facilitate human development through engineering. She is hoping to pursue further studies after graduation to help her in her pursuit of involvement in appropriate technology and development.

Jef Gluckstein is a third year student at Olin College of Engineering in Needham, Massachusetts. Fond of new experiences, Jef chose to pursue engineering partially because he had never considered engineering before and partially because Olin is so far from his home in Claremont, California.

Fernando Berretta Guimarães is a Brazilian currently at the 3rd year of electro-mechanical engineering at University of Sao Paulo. He speaks Portuguese fluently, and is studying French and Spanish. He has had two experiences that he can bring to IDDS. First, he acquired design experience by taking part in an international robot competition called "IDC-Robocon" that took place in Japan, in Aug. 2006. Second, he worked as a volunteer and helped establish water treatment and a solar concentrator in a poor community in Brazil, in January 2007. Fernando loves sports and regularly bikes and runs. He also likes to travel and meet new people and cultures.

Crossman Mathias Hormenoo works as a Workshop Manager of the Suame Intermediate Technology Transfer Unit, which is a part of the Kwwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology in Kumasi, Ghana. His duties include the design and manufacture of a wide range of machinery and processes used in agriculture, food processing, wood processing and general industrial processing. He has attended engineering courses in Japan, Thailand, India and Kenya. He is interested in learning more about the manufacture of equipments capable of improving the grassroots industrial landscape of Ghana.

Clarel "Guito" Jerome grew up in Haiti in the village of Fonds des Blancs. After finishing primary school, he became an apprentice in carpentry and has now cumulated more than ten years of experience in the field. He is also an electrician and a plumber. Clarel has been working with the Saint Boniface Hospital for more than eight years. In 2006, on behalf of the Saint Boniface Haiti Foundation, he worked with the MIT Development Lab (D-Lab) on a project that creates charcoal from sugar cane waste. In his spare time, he plays soccer.

Fernanda Maluly Kemeid studies civil engineering at the University of São Paulo. In December 2006, she collected and analyzed soil samples to study the feasibility of a cheap pavement system for the city of Machadinho D`Oeste. She also researched and recommended cheap latrines to install in the same city, in order to improve the poor sanitary conditions. Her academic research focuses on minimizing the impact of structural concrete in the climate change by decreasing the consumption of cement. Her favorite hobbies are painting, reading and going out with her friends. She likes to travel a lot and meet new people. She is an only child.

Saira Khowaja lived most of her life and received her schooling in Karachi, Pakistan. She completed her Bachelors degree in Chemistry and Psychology from the University of Rochester in 1999 followed by a year long stint at an advertising and event management company in Pakistan. In 2006 she completed her Masters of Science in Social Administration and Planning from Columbia University. In her second year of graduate school she interned for 9 months at the UNICEF HQ Health Division Program on Mother and Child Health. She is currently working at a public health research organization as a social mobilization coordinator. One of the projects she is currently working on is the mapping of groups at high risk for HIV in 12 urban cities in Pakistan.

Jeff Kranski graduated in June 2007 with a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Caltech. While a junior, he participated in the course ME 105: Product Design for the Developing World, and helped develop a $0.25 hand-held corn sheller for Guatemalans. In 2006, he worked as a teaching assistant for ME105 and helped establish a partnership between Caltech and the Universidad Rafael Landívar in Guatemala. He also coordinated a speaker series for ME 105. Jeff has traveled to different regions including Peru, Bolivia, and several countries in Europe. He is excited about working at IDDS with a diverse group of people and would like produce useful final products.

Lhamotso is from Hainan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in China. She graduated with an Associate degree in English from Qinghai University in 2005. Now she is a program director and financial officer for Shem Women's Group. She has successfully completed five small-scale development projects. The first was a solar cooker project, in the summer of 2004, which provided 20 solar cookers where the village clinic project is located. During the same year, Lhamotso managed another solar cooker project which provided 30 solar cookers for Heluoshi. Lhamotso also successfully completed two second-hand clothing projects in 2004 and 2005 in which she distributed boxes of second-hand clothes. Moreover, Lhamotso completed a greenhouse project and a solar cooker project in 2006.

Ismat Lotia was born in Karachi, Pakistan, and lived there until her final year of high school which she completed in Toronto, Canada. Ismat attended McGill University where she pursued a double major in Biology and International Development. After graduating, Ismat chose to work in public health. She is currently a Research Assistant at InterActive Research & Development, a non-profit public health NGO based in Karachi, where she conducted microbiology trials of a portable incubator. She also coordinated a group of health workers whom she trained in the use of the MIT charcoal press invented by Amy Smith. Ismat has also served as a key member of the coordination team responsible for piloting PDA-based question forms in a survey of sex workers in 12 urban centers in Pakistan. In her spare time, Ismat likes to visit different parts of Karachi and sketch.

Carlos Enrique Marroquin Machan is a Native American from the village of San Andres Itzapa in Guatemala. For the past 11 years he has been designing pedal-powered machines through Maya Pedal, an NGO that promotes the use of recycled bicycle parts to create income generating technologies. Carlos works in an organic farm and is passionate about the protection of the environment. He is also passionate about improving the living conditions of those in his community. Every Christmas, he organizes activities for poor children in rural areas. He also participates in the local rescue team especially in times of disaster.

Emmanuel Matsika holds a master's degree in Thermofluids Engineering, a postgraduate diploma in Management Studies, and a bachelor of engineering degree in mechanical engineering. After working in the transport sector from 1995 to 1997, he joined the School of Engineering at the University of Zambia as a lecturer in the Department of Mechanical Engineering. He specializes in Thermofluids, with a particular bias to energy, environment and automobile engineering. He is responsible for modeling at the Centre for Energy Environment and Engineering Zambia (CEEEZ). He has worked under CEEEZ on several projects covering energy and environment. He has also worked on development initiatives in Zambia under the University to University program linking Havard, MIT and UNZA.

Laura Meneses grew up in Costa Rica until the age of 12. She then moved to Guatemala where she continued her studies. After her second year in university, she went back to Costa Rica to work at the Instituto Tecnologico de Costa Rica (technological institute of Costa Rica). After two years she returned to Guatemala to continue her studies in Industrial Design and married the man of her dreams. After a year of marriage she became the mother of her son, Luis Diego. She currently works in a design house and is finishing her last year at the Rafael Landivar University.

Eddy Mintela is a student from the University of Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of Congo. He is currently in his third year in computer science. In 2005, Eddy was a First Data Western Union Fund for Africa winner. The resulting $10,000 prize enabled him to create “The friends of computer science”, an NGO that teaches English and computer skills at a low price. Eddy has worked as volunteer English, French, Spanish translator. He has also worked as an independent monitor of the vaccination campaign against Poliomyelitis and tuberculosis in his home country. In 2007, Eddy was the first student from his country to attend the Education Without Borders International Students Conference at the United Arab Emirates.

Mohamed Mashaal was born in Cairo, Egypt before moving to England when he was one year old,. He is fluent in English and Arabic. He graduated with a Master's Degree in Mechanical Engineering from Cambridge University in 2007. As a student he was involved with the University Arab Society and with Engineers Without Borders. Mohamed was in the 'Outreach' sub-team with EWB Canada, taking the message of water conservation to school-kids and running the 'Water for the World' activity that gathered teams to construct a basic water filter. From September 2007,Mohamed will be working as a Trainee Drilling Engineer with BP Exploration at their North Sea base in Scotland.

Sumit Pahwa is a student from India. He completed a two year Diploma in Welding Technology and is currently pursuing an undergraduate degree in Manufacturing Engineering at the Sant Longowal Institute of Engineering & Technology (Punjab, India). His academic projects include the 'Design and Mechanization of the Welding Table'. He did an internship with Maruti Udyog India Ltd., the largest manufacturer of automobiles in India. Sumit has also worke in collaboration with MIT's D-Lab and local NGOs in community projects like the design of a smokeless chullah, and the design of a community radio station. His hobbies include dancing, playing and listening to music.

Anita Paul did her BA in Sociology followed by a Masters in Social Work from Delhi University, India. Since 1980, she has been working as a Development Professional in rural India. She started her career in the Operation Flood Program, as the first woman Spearhead team member with the National Dairy Development Board at Anand, Gujarat. For eight years, she encouraged the participation of women in dairy development by forming a three-tiered farmers organization. She also incorporated healthcare programs into the milk cooperative infrastructure. Anita has devoted part of her life to Spearhead holistic mountain development programs in the Himalaya. Her strategy is to empower local communities to network as effective change makers in order to improve their lives and restore languishing ecosystems.

Juliana Poco Ramos was born in Sao Paulo, Brazil. During high school, her interest in science helped her earn a bronze medal in 2004 in a regional chemistry competition, the Olimpiada Paulista de Quimica. In 2005, she enrolled in University of Sao Paulo, where she is studying industrial engineering, and will finish in 2009. Her areas of interest include production management and planning, design of products, logistics, information technology, financial management and enterprise administration. Her leisures include swimming, jogging, in line skating, and volleyball. She also enjoys reading books, watching movies, going to music shows and concerts, and hanging out with friends.

Renqingka is from Quma Village in Tibet, China. His English name is Enrico. Unlike other people he does not know his precise date of birth because his mother does not remember it. Currently, he is working in English Training Program as an assistant, mostly responsible for financial work. He has also been working on a major solar energy project for three years. He personally completed ten small scale development projects in rural Tibetan communities. He also completed six second hand clothes projects in rural Tibetan villages where he distributed clothes to impoverished villagers.

John Quansah is a Research Fellow in the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology(KNUST) in Kumasi, Ghana. He did his undergraduate studies at KNUST and pursued his graduate education at Cranfield University in England. He has been involved in appropriate technology for use in the farming communities for the past 25 years, particularly technologies for food and agro-processing. John is also the Manager of the KNUST's Intermediate Technology Transfer Unit.

Samtsogye is from Xiahe County, in Tibet, China. She graduated in 2006 with an Associate degree in English from Qinghai University. She is now working as a program director of Shem Women's Group. She has successfully completed seven small-scale development projects in Lhabrang County. In 2002-2004, she completed three clothing projects, where she distributed second-hand clothing to over 200 people. In 2005, she implemented a solar cooker project, bringing 45 solar cookers to the monks of Lhabrang Monastery. In 2006, she distributed 14 solar cookers to the Nuns of Tawa Gongma Nunnery. She also implemented an Aluminum Milk Churn project for two nomadic villages, increasing the families' income while reducing their labor. In 2007, she led a cultural preservation project.

Miguel Chaves was born and lives in São Paulo. He is a third year student at Escola Politécnica – University of São Paulo. He studies Mechanical Engineering and is interested in renewable energy, product innovation, and social responsibility. His research focuses on the integration of wind energy production and biodiesel production. Prior to university, Miguel studied computer science for two years. He enjoys sharing solutions with communities and improving their quality of life. In his free time, Miguel likes to play sports, travel and discover other cultures.

Ankit Sharma is from India and at present pursuing his bachelor at Dehradun Institute of Technology in Industrial and Production Engineering. As a member of the National Service Scheme in India, he has attended various camps that provided a platform to interact with the poor and understand the challenges they face. He loves to play badminton, cricket, and basketball. In the future he would like to pursue a Master's and a Ph. D. because he thinks there is no end for learning.

Arun Sharma was raised in Canada and studied Electrical Engineering at the University of Waterloo. Through the course of his Bachelor's and Master's degrees, he gained work experience in industries ranging from defense electronics to national government. After completing his studies at Waterloo, he joined a consulting firm in Toronto where he worked on business-process efficiency improvements for utility customers. In 2005 he joined Medecins sans Frontieres as a logistician working in Sudan where for 9 months; this experience was the basis for his interest in water supply. On his return, he took a 3 month position as a water & sanitation technician in Cote d'Ivoire. In 2006, he began a one year MPhil course in Engineering for Sustainable Development at the University of Cambridge; he is currently completing his dissertation which identifies factors affecting the success of rural water supply programs.

Laura Stupin grew up in Santa Fe in the US, and is now a member of the second class to ever graduate from Olin College. She intends to use her B.S. in Engineering to work on solving challenges in the developing world. Laura studied for a semester in Thailand, where she worked with the Coastal Preservationd and Development Foundation to find alternative waste water systems for the island of Koh Tao. She delights in thinking about neuroscience and cognition and is an avid Argentine tango and swing dancer. In addition to being a participant in IDDS, she has been one of the organizers for the event since September 2006, and is absolutely thrilled to finally meet everyone.

Sham Tembo is from Chipata, Zambia. He finished high school at Chizongwe Secondary Technical School and went to University of Zambia in the School of Natural Sciences and then in the School of Engineering. He studied Electrical Engineering specializing in Electrical Machines and Power, and graduated in 2005. In the same year, he worked with MIT D-lab teams under a program called U2U and did a number of projects in health, agriculture, engineering, and education. He is currently working for the ORET Project, which aims to rehabilitate the infrastructure of government hospitals in Zambia.

Shahbano Tirmizi lived most of her life in Pakistan and moved to Canada in high school. She recently graduated from McGill University with a BA Honors in International Development. She wrote her thesis on the Paradoxical Dynamic of HIV/AIDS for Women in Urban East Africa. The past few years she has worked on social and development issues with several international organizations including the UN (New York), UNEP (Nairobi), and CARE (Lahore). She is particularly interested in water, slum and livelihood issues across the developing world.

Christopher Toledo was born in Guatemala. After graduating from The Montessori International School, he took a series of courses in Graphics Design, Web Page Design, and obtained a Diploma in Photography. In 2001, he started his own web page design and marketing company PUBLIDIGITAL. In 2004, he started his studies in Industrial Design in Universidad Rafael Landívar in Guatemala and will graduate in 2008. This year he has started his own design company INDIGO whose goal is to commercialize products designed and manufactured in Guatemala, especially products made from waste materials.

Jessica Vechakul was raised in suburban New York. She received her BS in mechanical engineering from MIT in 2005 and will finish her masters in 2008. Jessica's research is focused on the design of appropriate technologies. In 2005, her D-lab team won an IDEAS award for their prototype of a pedal-powered washing machine. Jessica also helped to re-design Maya Pedal's bicimolino (pedal-powered grain grinder) to reduce weight, manufacturing time, and cost. Since 2005, Jessica has been working with Disacare in Lusaka to design, build, prototype, and test three generations of Zambulances - bicycle ambulances for Zambia. She has also been involved in various rural development projects in Mwape, a rural chiefdom of Zambia. One day, Jessica hopes to become a professor inspiring more students to do socially relevant work. She is addicted to dancing, pottery, and rock climbing.