D-Lab: Development, Dialogue and Delivery

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D-Lab: Development, Dialogue and Delivery posted by member150_php on 3/6/2009

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D-Lab: Development, Dialogue and Delivery

Fall 2004

A D-Lab student tests a treadle pump during the IAP visit to Zambia. (Photo courtesy of Alfinio Flores. Used with permission.)

Course Highlights

This course features a complete set of lecture notes.

Course Description

D-Lab is a year-long series of courses and field trips. The fall class provides a basic background in international development and appropriate technology through guest speakers, case studies and hands-on exercises. Students will also have the opportunity to participate in an IAP fieldtrip to Haiti, India, Brazil, Honduras, Zambia, Samoa, or Lesotho and continue their work in a spring term design class. As part of the fall class, students will partner with community organizations in these countries and develop plans for the IAP site visit. In addition, students will learn about the culture, language, economics, politics and history of their host country.

SyllabusCourse Goals

Gain awareness of third world communities and the technical challenges they face
Learn about appropriate technologies for developing communities, their impact, and how they can be conceived, designed and implemented
Understand the role MIT can play in helping and advancing developing communities throughout the world
Learn the hands-on skills required to implement selected development projects
Gain exposure to the culture, history, economic and developmental state of the host countries
Work with community organizations to prepare field projects for the IAP fieldtrips

Trip Leaders

In addition to the instructors, several students make important contributions to D-Lab as Trip Leaders.

Brazil: Leo Burd
Ghana: Jamy Drouillard
Honduras: Elizabeth Basha, Marta Fernandez-Suarez
India: Sam Davies
Lesotho: Matt Orosz, Kate Steel
Samoa: Sala Mcguire
Zambia: Will DelHagen

Textbook

Smillie, Ian. Mastering the Machine Revisited: Poverty, Aid and Technology. Bourton-on-Dunsmore, UK: ITDG Publishing, 2000. ISBN: 9781853395079.

Readings from this book will be supplemented by many articles and other resources.

Grading

This is a nine-unit class: four hours a week will be spent in class and the remaining five hours will be spent working on readings, homework, and developing the field projects. Because much of the work for this seminar will be done during class time, attendance is essential. Students missing a class meeting should contact the instructors to make up the work. This seminar is graded on a A/B/C/F basis, furthermore it is a class where your work is impacting the lives of people around the world and we expect an appropriate level of commitment.

Grading Table
ACTIVITIES	PERCENTAGES
In-class Assignments and Participation	30%
Homework and Writing Assignments	25%
Sector Paper	15%
Quiz	15%
Final Presentation	15%

Calendar

The course calendar includes lectures, project-oriented recitation sessions, and a few labs. On average, each week includes two lecture sessions and one recitation or lab, but this is not strictly followed every week.

SES #	TOPICS	LECTURERs	KEY DATES
1	Introduction: Appropriate Technologies in the Developing World	Amy Smith
2	Appropriate Technology and Intermediate Technology	Amy Smith	Writing 1 due
3	Participatory Development Role Playing Exercise	Amy Smith
4	Stakeholder Analysis Perspectives on Development	Amy Smith, Kurt Kornbluth, and Prof. Mitch Resnick, MIT	Homework 1 due
5	Presentations on Countries and Projects
6	Water Issues in the Developing World Lab: Water Lab	Amy Smith	Homework 2 due
7	Water Treatment Systems	Daniele Lantagne, CDC
8	Project Team Meetings
9	DISACARE Case Study	Kurt Kornbluth	Homework 3 due
10	Manufacturing in Developing Countries	Amy Smith and Kurt Kornbluth
11	Initial Project Presentations		Homework 4 due
12	Manufacturing Lab: Wheelchair Fabrication	Kurt Kornbluth
13	R & D for Sustainable Development in Rural Areas	Anil Rajvanshi, NARI
14	Marketing to the Bottom of the Pyramid	Allan Hammond, WRI	Writing 2 due
15	Poverty Reduction Schemes	Amy Smith
16	Project Team Meetings
17	Agricultural Technology Showcase I	Amy Smith
18	Agricultural Technology Showcase II	Paul Polak, IDE
19	Lab: Cooking Lab		Writing 3 due
20	Energy Issues in Developing Countries		Quiz due
21	Lab: Solar Energy and Lighting		Homework 5 due
22	Project Status Presentations	Team Leads
23	Photo-voltaic System Design	Dr. Jim Bales, MIT
24	Life Cycle Analysis Lab: Charcoal Manufacture	Kurt Kornbluth
25	Project Team Meetings
26	Health Issues in the Developing World	Claire Pierre MD, Cambridge Health Alliance
27	Humanitarian Bridge Building	Toni Ruttimann
28	Sanitation and Latrine Technology	Laura Orlando, ReSource
29	Lab: Latrine Building	Amy Deora, MIT
30	Gender Issues in Development	Prof. Christine Walley, MIT
31	ICT4D (Information and Communications Technologies for Development)	Leo Burd, MIT
32	Project Team Meetings		Homework 6 due
33	Field Project Logistics Trip Planning Travel Information, Health, Safety	Amy Smith and Kurt Kornbluth
34	Survey and Assessment Techniques	Sumi Ariely, MIT
35	The Better World Workshop	Carl Bielenberg
36	Project Team Meetings		Writing 4 due
37	Medical Anthropology - Prosthetics	Steve Kurzman
38	Final Presentations Evaluations		Homework 7 due

Readings

Mastering the Machine Revisited readings are from the course text: Smillie, Ian. Mastering the Machine Revisited: Poverty, Aid and Technology. Bourton-on-Dunsmore, UK: ITDG Publishing, 2000. ISBN: 9781853395079.

Readings Table
SES #	TOPICS	READINGS
1	Introduction: Appropriate Technologies in the Developing World	Schumacher, E. F. "Social and Economic Problems Calling for the Development of Intermediate Technology." Part III, Chapter 2 in Small Is Beautiful: Economics as if People Mattered. New York: Harper Perennial, 1989, pp. 181-201. ISBN: 9780060916305. Crosette, B. "Kofi Annan's Astonishing Facts."
2	Appropriate Technology and Intermediate Technology	Hawthorne, Peter. "Power to the People." Time Magazine, 1997. Mastering the Machine Revisited. pp. 3-34, 86-103.
3	Participatory Development Role Playing Exercise	Mastering the Machine Revisited. pp. 35-66. Fischer, G. "Beyond Couch Potatoes: From Consumers to Designers and Active Contributors." First Monday 7, no. 12 (December 2002).
4	Stakeholder Analysis Perspectives on Development	Mastering the Machine Revisited. pp. 69-85.
5	Presentations on Countries and Projects	"Water for People, Water for Life." UNESCO (PDF)
6	Water Issues in the Developing World Lab: Water Lab	Sobsey, M. "Managing Water in the Home: Accelerated Health Gains from Improved Water Supply." Sections 1-7. World Health Organization, 2002.
8	Project: Team Meetings	D-Lab Case Study: "Wheelchairs in Zambia"
9	DISACARE Case Study	In-class Reading and Discussion: Disacare Case Study Supplement (PDF - 2.8 MB) "Manufacturing Enterprise." ITDG. Mastering the Machine Revisited. pp. 171-186.
10	Manufacturing in Developing Countries	Warschauer, Mark. "Reconceptualizing the Digital Divide." First Monday 7, no. 7 (July 2002).
14	Marketing to the Bottom of the Pyramid	Hammond, A., and C. K. Prahald. "What Works: Serving the Poor, Profitably." World Resources Institute. (PDF) Mainsah, E., S. Heuer, A. Kalra, and Q. Zhang. "Grameen Bank: Taking Capitalism to the Poor." (PDF)
17	Agricultural Technology Showcase I	Mastering the Machine Revisited. pp. 104-136.
18	Agricultural Technology Showcase II	D-Lab Case Study: "Oilseed Press" Atkinson, H. J., J. Green, S. Cowgill, and A. Levesley. "The case for genetically modified crops with a poverty focus." Trends in Biotechnology 19, no. 3 (2001): 91-96. Wijeratna, A. "The GM Mirage Will Not Help the Poor." The Guardian, 4 June 2003.
20	Energy Issues in Developing Countries	Distributed Power Modeling and Lifecycle Assessment (PDF) Mastering the Machine Revisited. pp. 137-153.
21	Lab: Solar Energy and Lighting	UN Development Programme, World Energy Assessment. Chapter 1: Energy and Major Global Issues (PDF) Chapter 2: Energy and Social Issues (PDF)
23	Photo-voltaic System Design	Shapouri, H., et al. "The Energy Balance of Corn Ethanol: An Update." USDA. (PDF) Segelken, R. "Subsidized Food Burning." Cornell Chronicle, 23 August 2001.
24	Life Cycle Analysis Lab: Charcoal Manufacture	Gordon, B., et al. "Inheriting the World: The Atlas of Children's Health and the Environment." World Health Organization, 2004.
26	Health Issues in the Developing World	"Smoke: The Killer in the Kitchen." ITDG.
27	Humanitarian Bridge Building	Mastering the Machine Revisited. pp. 200-213.
28	Sanitation and Latrine Technology	Hafkin, N., and N. Taggart. "Supporting Women's Use of Information Technologies for Sustainable Development."
30	Gender Issues in Development	Mastering the Machine Revisited. pp. 189-199.
31	ICT4D (Information and Communications Technologies for Development)	Mastering the Machine Revisited. pp. 214-245.
34	Survey and Assessment Techniques	Mastering the Machine Revisited. pp. 154-170.
35	The Better World Workshop	Mastering the Machine Revisited. pp. 246-261.

Webliography:

Related Resources

The D-Lab Project Portfolio presents some highlights of work done by other D-Lab teams over the past several years.

ITDG - The Intermediate Technology Development Group - was founded in 1966 by the economist Dr. E. F. Schumacher and it aims to demonstrate and advocate the sustainable use of technology to reduce poverty in developing countries. ITDG is a charity registered in the United Kingdom which works directly in four regions of the developing world - Latin America, East Africa, Southern Africa and South Asia, with particular concentration on Peru, Kenya, Sudan, Zimbabwe, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Nepal. There are many useful articles and technical briefs available for free on their Web site.

IDE is a non-profit organization that has developed special expertise in water technologies for small-scale irrigation and safe drinking water. They have a variety of technical articles, mostly related to irrigation and water treatment, available for free download in the "Library" section of their site.

Whirlwind Wheelchair International designed the Whirlwind wheelchair, a lightweight, low-cost, high-performance, durable wheelchair designed to be effective in the rough urban and rural conditions of developing countries.

The World Resources Institute focuses on environmental issues such as climate change, costal and marine ecosystems, and the economics of a sustainable approach to business.

The Digital Dividend Project is a branch of the World Resources Institute that works to identify and promote large scale uses of information and communication technology so as to create positive change in the societies and economies of developing countries.

The Light Up The World Foundation works to provide inexpensive, near permanent electric lighting to developing countries by taking advantage of high wattage LED technology.