The Dartmouth Engineers Without Borders are uniting with an up-and-coming acoustic roots rock band to raise money for their current project in Kenya. The Adam Ezra Group, recipient of the 2004 Boston Music Award's Local Album of the Year, is working to help D-EWB aid a village in Kenya plagued by water-borne diseases.
Alley Welsh '05, D-EWB's Fundraising Coordinator, first saw the group perform in Boston over the summer. Welsh said the group's talent struck her first.
"I heard him singing, I immediately sat down, stayed till 2 a.m., and bought 2 CDs that night," Welsh said, additionally noting a shared passion for international service between Ezra and herself.
Ezra graduated from Colgate University in 1998 and has done relief work in Africa. His group took immediate interest in D-EWB's project.
"He's very interested in linking the promotion of his music to causes he believes are important," Welsh said.
Prior to initiating this project, which the greater national organization provided information about, D-EWB had been fairly inactive.
"[D-EWB] was founded three years ago but hasn't had much activity until this year when Hannah Murnen '06 and Katie Muse '05 took over the program," according to Michael Bolder, a fifth year student from Middlebury.
In the future, Welsh plans to partner "with disadvantaged communities and improv[e] their quality of life through the implementation of environmentally and economically sustainable engineering projects."
Other plans include projects in Costa Rica, Tanzania, Pakistan, as well as local initiatives here in the Upper Valley.
The current plan will take place in Nyamilu, a town in southwestern Kenya with a population of near 10,000. The town has no reliable water supply other than rain water, making the villagers susceptible to prevalent water-borne diseases.
The group first learned of the Kenyan water project from the national organization's online database. They applied for the project in the fall of 2004 and were accepted along with engineering students from Louisiana State University.
Seven Dartmouth students and one professional engineer will travel to Kenya and be hosted by local families there where their principle task will be the construction of a solar-powered water pump. The pump will help provide the village with a dependable source of clean water, improving village health and augmenting crop growth.
In addition to constructing the system, the group hopes to educate the villagers on its use and maintenance to make it self-sustainable.
Welsh described the project's design and implementation as allowing,"The people of Nyamilu to survive and flourish on their own with minimal external intervention."
Bolger says the group's first priority is fundraising.
"Right now the most important thing for making this project come to reality is fundraising," he said.
Total cost of the project is $20,000, including travel and materials. The group has been seeking grants from companies and individuals.
Interestingly, Trustee T.J. Rodgers '70 donated the solar panels which will power the pump for the system.
The group hopes to raise even more money from the concert at Canoe Club this Sunday, where they will be auctioning gift certificates to local businesses. The event will also highlight a bigger performance by the Adam Ezra Group during Green Key weekend.
"[This project is] one of the most important things I've spent my time on here and it's remarkable that a small group of people with relatively little money can make such a difference," Welsh said.
