Brief description of project with historical context

blueEnergy is a multinational organization working in Nicaragua, France and the US. On the ground, work documents such as technical reports and community diagnostics are usually written in Spanish or English. However, for communication purposes we need some of these documents (or summarized versions) in English and/or French. People on the ground very rarely have both the skill and time to create different versions in different languages of a same document.

Name the beneficiaries

blueEnergy and its funders

Explain the mission within the project

To overcome the lost in translation problem we need several interns with great language skills in Spanish as well as English and/or French and are interested in translating and summarizing important bE documents for external communication.

Qualities required by prospective SLI

The SLI will need to be fluent in Spanish and English or French. They will also have to bring their own computer

SLI arrival/work timeline

This project is scheduled to begin ASAP and will require a 2 – 4 week stay.

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Brief description of project with historical context

In an effort to increase awareness within Bluefields of the benefits of ecological sustainability, blueEnergy would like to implement an overall “greening” of our local facilities. The idea is to be a model for low-impact living, including composting, recycling, efficient energy use, efficient water use and on-site food production. Some of these have been partially implemented while others we hope to have up and running as soon as possible.

Explain the mission within the project

The SLI’s mission will be to design and execute an energy/water use audit, complete with recommendations of how to increase efficiency and lower impact. Designing a small grid-integrated solar array could also be a valuable complimentary mission.

Name the beneficiaries

The direct beneficiaries will be blueEnergy and the national and international staff who work within the facilities to be audited and improved, as well as the local population who can visit our facilities to better understand how to implement their own ecological sustainability projects.

Support the SLI will receive to advance his/her mission

The SLI will have at their disposal several tools for measuring appliance/device energy usage, though resources will be limited. If it is decided before the SLI arrives that it would be good to acquire any resources (tools, books on the subject, etc.) overseas that could be brought to Nicaragua with the SLI, we will try our best to arrange it.

Qualities required by prospective SLI

The SLI will need to have interest in energy/water efficiency and have innovative ideas of how to implement and practice sustainable living. The intern will also need a basic understanding of electricity, residential water usage and using spreadsheets. Spanish proficiency is helpful but not required.

SLI arrival/work timeline

This mission is projected to take one – two weeks.

Back to Service Learning Program’s page.

Brief description of project with historical context

In an effort to increase awareness within Bluefields of the benefits of ecological sustainability, blueEnergy would like to implement an overall “greening” of our local facilities. The idea is to be a model for low-impact living, including composting, recycling, efficient energy use, efficient water use and on-site food production. Some of these have been partially implemented while others we hope to have up and running as soon as possible.

Explain the mission within the project

The SLI’s mission will be to develop a cost-effective way to begin a blueEnergy recycling program. This will involve researching recycling facilities, collecting data on what is being thrown away and investigating transport options. Once implemented, the SLI will be in charge of educating the national and international staff about why and how to recycle. Suggestions on how to reduce waste based on the data collected will be required. Most importantly, this mission will need to be replicable for use in other local institutions.

Name the beneficiaries

The direct beneficiaries will be blueEnergy and the local population who can visit our facilities to better understand how to implement their own ecological sustainability projects. Indirectly benefitting would be the neighborhoods “downstream” from the municipal dump.

Support the SLI will receive to advance his/her mission

The SLI will be given outside contacts that have begun initial investigations on recycling. In addition, bE will also help to acquire all the resources needed (separation barrels, info on transportation logistics, educational materials, etc.) to ensure the mission’s long-term success.

Qualities required by prospective SLI

The SLI must have interest in recycling and sustainable living. He/she can expect to spend a good portion of their time working on spreadsheets for data collection, report writing and making phone calls, as well as giving short classes on recycling. The intern will also need to be conversationally fluent in Spanish.

SLI arrival/work timeline

This mission is projected to take three - five weeks.

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Brief description of project with historical context

Currently the water for the deep-cycle batteries is purchased here in Bluefields at a cost of about $4/gallon. The high price and supply difficulties have forced some system operators to use rainwater or water from other inappropriate sources to fill the batteries. This is a short-term solution that greatly decreases the life of the battery. blueEnergy would like to be able to build solar-powered water distillation units that can be installed in the communities to help make our operations more sustainable.

Name the beneficiaries

The direct beneficiaries will be the both blueEnergy and the communities who use batteries in the communities bE works.

Explain the mission within the project

The SLI’s mission will be design and build a cost-effective solar water still that can produce a minimum of one gallon/day during sunny days, can be easily brought to or built in the communities, will be easy to use and will require a minimum of maintenance.

Support the SLI will receive to advance his/her mission

The SLI will have various woodworking and metal working tools at his/her disposal, as well as access to basic building materials

Qualities required by prospective SLI

The SLI would benefit from being able to use various power tools. The intern will also need to know how to measure and collect data, use spreadsheets and report on the findings. Community trip(s) for educating the operators would likely be necessary if a satisfactory model was built. Spanish fluency is helpful but not required.

SLI arrival/work timeline

Depending on a variety of things, this mission could last from two – four weeks.

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Brief description of project with historical context

During the year 2011 blueEnergy will be executing a project to distribute 100 water filters and dig 25 Baptist wells in the city of Bluefields.

The Baptist technique is very simple, but demands some labor: that way the beneficiaries are going to be involved in the project.

Name the beneficiaries

There will be 100 households that will receive water filters and share the 25 wells.

blueEnergy is working with the mayor’s office to define the neighborhood where the work is going to be done and the families beneficiaries.

Explain the mission within the project

The SLI’s mission will be to assist in the _ - construction of the water filters, _ - installation of the water filters, _ - digging of the Baptist wells _ - giving classes in hygiene and sanitation to beneficiaries

Support the SLI will receive to advance his/her mission

The SLI will be working with the water blueEnergy team, the beneficiaries and possibly other interns.

Qualities required by prospective SLI

This will be very physical work both in the workshop and in the field. The SLI will need to not be shy of mixing cement, occasionally lifting heavy loads and getting dirty. Spanish fluency is helpful but not necessary.

SLI arrival/work timeline

This project is scheduled to finish by December, 2011.The filters will be expected to be built at a rate of about 10 – 12 per month with the majority of the wells to be dug between May and October. SLIs are encouraged to participate for any amount of time, but the longer the better!

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