Think the Earth

The "Q Drum," Kopernik delivered to East Timor. This can transport enough water to last 3 days in one trip. Photo by Yoshiaki Seto

On June 8, a workshop was organized by NPO Kopernik (USA) with Co-founder and CEO, Toshi Nakamura, at the JICA Global Plaza located in Hiroo, Tokyo. At the plaza, multitudes of products that can be used in areas without water or power supply such as cooking stoves that use biomass as fuel, water filters that come in a bucket with a tap, and solar powered lanterns were on display. Kopernik is an NPO that aspires to "change lives in developing countries with technology." They match "technology," with "NGOs" that are active in some of the poorest regions of the world, and "donations" from supporters on its website.

First, the local NGO looks for technologies that would help solve their issues on Kopernik's website. Next, they propose a project, for example, "Changing lives of 200 households living on Atauro Island, in East Timor with solar lanterns" to Kopernik. Projects that have been approved will be listed on the website to source funds from supporters. And then the relevant products are sent to the NGO once enough funds are gathered. Currently, various projects are underway in 46 locations in 11 countries, producing excellent results.

So why can "technology" help change the lives of people in developing countries?

Let's take a look at the Biomass Stove, for example. If you have seen kitchens in developing countries, the reason is clear. The cooking area of thatched-roof houses I saw in East Timor didn't have any windows or chimneys, and it was very dark even in the daytime. If you start cooking over a fire in an oven lined with stones in this room, what do you think will happen? Of course you will be cooking while being roasted by the smoke. The extent of health damage from the smoke from cooking fires is more serious than you can imagine. Each year, it claims 1.5 million lives across the world, more than the number of people who die from malaria.

You can reduce this health hazard by using a stove with better fuel efficiency, which produces far less smoke, and reduces the cooking time by providing higher cooking temperatures. Moreover, people can use biomass (wood chips, coconut shells, corncobs, etc.) for the stove, so they no longer have to purchase wood, or they can dedicate the time they used to spend cutting wood on some other activity. This also helps mitigate deforestation, which is one of the key issues developing countries are facing.

Of course, high-tech devices are not the only products that are changing the world. Simple, yet sturdy products that can be used in areas with poor infrastructure also help save and enrich lives.

Japan is known for its superior manufacturing, so it has a potential for developing such products and making them widely available. With that in mind, Kopernik and other organizations hosted the "See-D Contest" last year. A mixed team of engineers, designers, marketers, and students traveled to East Timor and proposed various products and mechanisms that local people need. Making alcohol from coconuts, making pencils from carbonized corncobs, and a compact power generation unit that can be attached to "anything that spins" like wheels of a kickboard or ventilation fans won the contest and these ideas are currently being implemented.

According to statistics published by United Nations, there are 2.6 billion people around the world who live on less than 2 dollars a day. People who are interested in creating products that will make many people happy, why not take part in the 2nd See-D Contest? A briefing will take place on July 4 at the World Bank Public Information Center located in the Chiyoda Ward.