Tufts Engineers Without Borders Cultivates Creative and Service-Minded Engineers

Students in the Tufts chapter of Engineers Without Borders (EWB) returned to Malawi and Ecuador for approximately 2 weeks this summer to continue implementing clean water infrastructure projects in the host communities where they’ve been working for the past several years. From transporting a 5,000 liter tank across the Napo River in Ecuador to spotting elephants in Malawi, it was an adventurous summer for the traveling students.

In Ecuador, the group worked on installing a rainwater catchment pavilion with a 5,000 liter tank that will serve as a temporary source of drinking water in Santa Estefanía de Maltapura. The Malawi group also built a rainwater catchment system on the roof of one of the Kasupe school buildings in Makwelani and installed showers and four handwashing stations at the school.

Creative Engineering

EWB students learn how to engineer projects creatively and “on the fly.” In Ecuador, the group was unable to find the rubber they needed for their first flush system—an essential component of rainwater catchment that flushes away the initial, unusable runoff from a rainstorm. With the materials they needed not readily available, the team got creative. Using a $1 blue plastic toy ball purchased from the port market and a spare rubber rainboot, they fashioned a first flush system. Their creative solution had an unexpected benefit: several community members expressed interest in recreating the system for their own household rainwater collection, using similar items they already owned.

Although the groups do extensive design work, planning, and preparation prior to arrival, they contend with real-world constraints as they turn their plans into reality. “Even if what you end up preparing for isn’t what you end up implementing, getting practice with coming up with ideas as a group and brainstorming helped us do what we do successfully,” said Ecuador travel team member and EWB treasurer Olympe Jean, E27.  

Over in Malawi, the group quickly realized they would need to redesign their gutter system, when the 110 millimeter gutter downspouts they needed were not available in any of the nearest hardware stores. “My morning was spent climbing buildings, measuring, redoing calculations, and choosing appropriate parts,” wrote tech lead Katie Eagan, E28, in a blog post about the day. These moments where students grapple with adjusting their plans to real-world scenarios stand out for many of the participants and shape their understanding of what it really means to be an engineer.  

“Understanding what it’s like to actually build a handwashing station and what it’s actually like to go to a hardware store in Malawi connected new dots in my brain,” said Juliana Habshey, E28.  

Projects with Real-World Results

Last summer, the Malawi group implemented a 60-meter borehole in Solobala. This summer, they surveyed community members to check how the borehole is holding up. “We spoke with one woman who has more time for her mango farming business, one student at Kasupe Primary School who has more time for studying, and learned about the issues still being faced,” wrote Malawi Project Co-Lead Sophie Gawronski, E27, in a blog post. The group also noticed some new crops nearby, which can be watered with excess water from rinsing buckets at the borehole. Even those who live closer to other boreholes reported that the lines are shorter due to the new borehole easing demand.

The club has well-established relationships with the community in Malawi as the students return year after year to implement and maintain these projects. “We’ve been there since 2017. One of the coolest things to see is that people from the community recognize us and know what we do. They know the projects we’ve done in the past,” said Malawi Project Co-Lead Abel Bekalu, E29.

In Ecuador, the group is starting to build similar relationships with the people in Santa Estefanía de Maltapura. This year, their community surveys focused on assessing the water distribution system and new water source. “Although this was only our second trip, seeing the beginning of those relationships and impact is really exciting,” said Project Lead Elise Hill, E27.

Making Connections Through Food and Culture

In addition to their engineering work, the groups took time to explore the surrounding area and learn about Malawian and Ecuadorian culture. Food featured heavily on both trips. The Malawi team’s diet included local dishes like mandasi (fried dough) and nsima (a thick porridge) with cabbage and beans. “We learned a lot about Chichewa [the Malawian language], and we got to greet people in their language,” Anaise Ineza, E27, remarked.

The Ecuador team enjoyed local specialties such as a traditional Ecuadorian fish soup called encebollado, camarones con arroz (shrimp with flavorful rice), camarones a la plancha (grilled shrimp), rice with lentils, and cabbage salad.

The time they spent learning about the local culture and getting to know community members strengthened their work. “It was very much a team effort with us and the community. They taught us so much,” said Jean.

Exchanging Knowledge at Home and Abroad

Both groups have returned to Tufts but remain in contact with the in-country teams for updates relating to their projects. They plan to spend the school year doing further research and preparation for upcoming trips next summer.

They also hope to share some of their expertise with fellow EWB chapters at the Engineers Without Border-USA conference in March. According to the Ecuador team, they are the first EWB chapter to float a tank across a river. The team hopes that sharing how they worked with community members to accomplish the task will help other EWB teams who may face similar challenges in the future.

Ultimately, the projects would not be possible without the expertise of community members and non-profit organization collaborators. “It was more of an exchange of knowledge,” said Zoe Han, E28. “Yes, we’re coming in with all this engineering education, but the community members have experience that’s nothing like ours.”

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