EWB-UK Annual Report 2007-2008.pdf - Engineers Without Borders ...

Programme Area 11TrainingThe EWB-UK Training Programme aimsto inspire and motivate students andyoung professionals to take an activeinterest in the development sector byproviding a wide range of trainingcourses led by experienced professionals.Last year, EWB-UK was awarded a grant from theDevelopment Awareness Fund to further developits Research and Training Programmes.Combining this with the seemingly endlessenthusiasm and drive of our volunteers hasresulted in the most productive year EWB-UKTraining has had so far.Branch Events!But of course such significant growth of theTraining Programme couldn’t have happenedwithout the addition of a number of new coursesand the commendable efforts of our branchvolunteers. To name but a few, EWB-Cardiffhosted an incredible seven courses over the yearon topics in the water, shelter and energysectors, all of which proved to be hugely popular.EWB-Birmingham ran their first ever weekendtraining course; a multidisciplinary event lookingat technological, social and economic issues.EWB-Durham held its first IDC event; a day oflectures on topics which included introductions todevelopment and a closer look at the world foodcrisis. EWB-Cambridge ran EWB-UK’s first ever ITbased courses with the help of Aptivate,providing participants with skills in low bandwidthwebsites and field communications.Advanced Wind Weekend3 days, 15 participantsTurbine blade carving, assembling the alternator, metalwork and welding and assessing wind resources;everything needed to build and erect a turbine!A demonstration that simple construction methodscan support quite a lot! Sachi Findlater, EWB-TrainingIncreased SuccessesIn total, 16 talks, trips and workshops and 24training courses were run this year, a hugeincrease on last year’s numbers. Many of ourtried and tested favourites continued to make avaluable contribution to the programme, includingthe Clare Farm Course which remains oversubscribeddespite running several times a year!The Cambridge Shelter Course and Tri-Disciplinary Course both repeated their successesthis year, covering topics ranging fromEarthquake Mitigation in Shelter to CampPlanning and Bio-digesters.Birmingham Multi Disciplinary Course2 days, 35 participantsOne change that affected more than just theTraining Programme was the introduction of adedicated Pre-Departure Training Course forEWB-UK Placement Volunteers. The course wasthe largest of its kind ever run by EWB-UK andwould not have been possible without thegenerosity of the 22 speakers and sessionleaders who volunteered their time to deliver atotal of seven days worth of training.New Programme ManagerAnd of course one of the most excitingdevelopments for the programme this year hasbeen the addition of Fran Talavera to theEWB-UK team; our first full time employee andTraining Programme Manager. With Fran’ssupport we can look forwards to to many morebranch and training events next year, includingplans for the first ever EWB-UK summer school.Urban Slum Role Play, Solar Food Dryers, The FairTrade Game & Interactive Sessions on World EconomyPre Departure Course7 days, 37 participants22 SpeakersSessions on Conflict Resolution, Participatory Methods,Heath Overseas, Personal Security, StructuredProblem Solving and much more…Solar cooking at the 2007 Tri-Disciplinary Course