Five years ago, the Engineers Without Borders USA matched a group of Cal Poly students to partner with a Nicaraguan community to design and construct a water distribution system. The project came to fruition this year when the Engineers Without Borders (EWB) Cal Poly Nicaragua team took a trip to La Rinconada. With guidance from Cal Poly faculty and staff, the Responsible Engineer in Charge of the project, the EWB-USA Nicaragua In-Country Office and the community, EWB Cal Poly designed a water distribution system that provides clean water to a 60-household area.
When the students started planning for the project in 2018, they had no idea they would be facing the added challenge of implementing a system during times of political unrest and a global pandemic. Guided by the La Rinconada community and a team of local engineers, EWB Cal Poly members were able to remotely implement the system.
“We have an in-country partner who laid the pipe network,” said fourth-year civil engineering student Brigid O’Neill. “We also work closely with the community water board. They’ve been the leaders in the community making sure the project got done.”
The community water board the students worked with is a community-initiated organization that represents the people of La Rinconada and their needs. Part of their role during the collaboration was to communicate the needs of the community members so that the water distribution system would be beneficial to the residents.
In order to implement a water pump structure that brings clean water to houses in the area, the students prioritized communication and assessment of the community’s needs and desires. The process also involved designing a practical pump house structure.
“The pump house is a small concrete structure that houses the pump controls and the pipe manifold, the main control values for the pump,” O’Neill explained.
The structure was designed by students with the help of a structural engineer mentor, functioning as Responsible Engineer in Charge, and support from Cal Poly engineering and liberal arts faculty. The importance of evidence-based, community-led engineering design is central to the mission of EWB.
Between the COVID-19 pandemic and political unrest in Nicaragua, the team was kept from visiting La Rinconada until recently when they were finally able to collaborate with local engineers face to face.
Eddie Loh (civil engineering) took on the role of structural lead for the student team, overseeing the task of designing the pump house remotely. Students Rachel Terminello (aerospace engineering) and Austin Gauerke (civil engineering) also took part in the design process. Terminello was the former project manager and Gauerke is the current project manager. Other members include communications lead Meileen Yee (architectural engineering) and social leads Kayla Lovejoy (biomedical engineering) and Riley Gordon (biomedical engineering).
The entire team prioritized connecting with community members throughout the project.
“We have a submersible pump at the well site that I designed and ensured it would fit properly,” Gauerke said. “We also have a chlorinator at the top of our tank to make sure the water is thoroughly purified.”
The importance of understanding the local, national and international contexts of this project cannot be overstated. While the Engineers Without Borders team can implement the pump and its system, the project’s success depends on the community’s access to resources to keep up with the system’s inevitable need for repairs. The Cal Poly students shared that the community members are very innovative in maintenance.
“They would cut the replacement pipes to the size to fit the original pipe and light a fire in the middle of the street to burn the edge of the PVC pipes,” O’Neill explained. “This gave us confidence that the system will be maintained.”
As described by EWB USA and in the charter of EWB Cal Poly, “EWB builds a better world through engineering projects that empower communities to meet their basic human needs and equip leaders to solve the world’s most pressing challenges.
Part of equipping Cal Poly students as future leaders is building students’ ability to self-reflect.
“It was interesting to see how our childhoods differed from the lives of the community members,” Loh shared. “I realized how grateful we were to be raised in a situation with running water and stuff we take for granted. It was really eye-opening.”
Students are also able to see the complexity of working in international development as questions arise about the resource inequities and the role of the global north “helping” in the global south.
The Engineers Without Borders Cal Poly Nicaragua team is determining its next steps in consultation with faculty advisors, other EWB Cal Poly chapter members and EWB-USA.
By Taylor Villanueva
