Engineers for Community Service (ECOS)

Project Assessment and Service Trip for

Montaña de Luz

A Home for Children with HIV/AIDS in Honduras

Honduras, Central America

Kevin Passino and John Merrill

August 27-30, 2004

Abstract: The purpose of our trip was to (i) assess needs for an ECOS project during Spring Break 2005, (ii) donating one computer from ECOS and assisting with fixing up the computers used for administration, and (iii) assess the educational value to OSU College of Engineering students. Below, we seek to acquaint the ECOS Montaña de Luz Project team with various aspects of the facilities, and to describe the progress we made in helping with the administrative computers. At the end of this report, we summarize general project challenges, and provide an assessment of the educational value. Pre-Travel: There are two flights to Tegucigalpa from the US per day, on US carriers. We took Continental Airlines. Their flight leaves Columbus at 6:30am, goes via Houston, and then directly to Tegucigalpa by 11:30am (they are two hours earlier than Columbus at this time). You do not need a Visa if you are a US Citizen. You do need a current passport (see the web to apply). Their luggage restrictions are: (i) two carry-ons that will fit in the overhead or beneath the seat, one classified as a purse/laptop or something like that; and (ii) two that get checked. Each of the pieces that gets checked must be less than 62 linear inches (sum of length, width, and depth) and weigh less than 70lbs; otherwise, they (may) charge for extra. We carried one computer packed in luggage, and a 15” monitor in a box that fit around it tightly, and both passed through with no problems. (Note: Travel light so as to avoid checking luggage; a backpack is advised to take the load off your arms during long lines and checkpoints.) You need to go the get shots/medicine appropriate for travel to the Honduras (e.g., to get malaria pills, a typhoid shot, and have an current tetanus). OSU Reardon Family Practice / OSU Travel Office does this, and the Office of International Education (OIE) is going to assist us on that (contact person is Grace Johnson, who has personally lived in Honduras for a number of years doing service work). They will also help with various liability/insurance issues and a general orientation for travel.

Travel: You should research the country and its history before you go (e.g., start with: http://www.hondurasemb.org/ or http://www.usaid.gov/hn/ or http://www.honduras-resources.com/ ). You will want to purchase some Lempira (their currency) in Houston (exchange rate is currently about 21 per USD). You will not need much money, just what you need to purchase some souvenirs. There will be a van to pick you up. A map of the Honduras, taken from the above web site, is shown below.

Montaña de Luz is east of Tegucigalpa (called “Tegoose” by locals), through the mountains, and takes about 1 hour to get there along a 2-way mountainous highway. Here is a picture of the scenery along the way.

Facilities: Here, we give an overview of Montaña de Luz and the surrounding area via pictures. There is a fence around the entire compound, and they employ a guard at the gate where you arrive.

The main administrative office is shown below.

The next picture shows the front of the facility (on the far right is the chapel, the middle is living quarters, and on the left is the kitchen).

The courtyard in the main building.

The chapel.

In front of the facility there is play area for the kids (e.g., for soccer).

Behind the main living quarters is a courtyard, which is a playground for the kids.

On the backside of the courtyard is the living quarters for visitors and volunteers, and the little school (escuelita). This is seen on the left side the picture below.

And, the escuelita (little school) is shown here. This is where some of the computers for the ECOS project are to be set up.

The staff is wonderful. They are called aunts (tias) and uncles (tios) by everyone. Here is Luisa who served us our meals in the visitor’s quarters (notice the dining area). Food was well-prepared, fresh, and plentiful. True to custom, the midday meal is the large one.

Here is a picture of the dorm facility, one of four similar bedrooms, each with a bunk bed and two singles. This is where some volunteers and visiting families stay.

Next, we give a few pictures looking out from the perimeter of the compound, where you see mountains in the distance.

Next, we show the road leading up to Montaña de Luz. Road maintenance with drain culverts has been a major project initiated by Montaña de Luz – still in progress.

The communities of Nueva Esperanza and Nuevo Paraiso are nearby and Nueva Esperanza is shown below. Nueva Esperanza was constructed after Hurricane Mitch with international relief. All the homeowners had to help build their own homes (sweat equity).

Montaña de Luz has a farm to raise their own corn, beans, etc. A lot of corn was lost this year due to a lack of rain. They have a garden behind the visitor quarters.

They have goats, rabbits, chickens, pigs, and horses (for the kids and Chris to ride). The kids learn responsibility through care for the animals. The chickens provide eggs and in some cases the rabbits supplement the diet as well.

Setting up Computers for Administration: We gathered all their computer equipment and put it in the escuelita in order to keep out of the main office. We wrote down details on each machine, including what software and hardware each had. Chris had just been donated a new computer and she asked us to take everything off her old computer (a Pentium II) and load it onto her new computer. This actually took several hours since there were a number of problems with her old computer. They had one computer in the living quarters that did not work and they asked us to assess what the problem was. It turned out that the monitor was bad, and the computer was very old, and not worth trying to salvage.

They were also donated previously two old Toshiba laptops. One worked (had Windows’95 on it) and the other did not. We set up that laptop and let the kids that were hanging around play the games that came with the OS (cards and pinball). Below, you can see a picture of them doing that (children’s faced blurred for their protection). That computer also had Word and Power Point on it and for the older children that may be useful. We suggested that they let the oldest kids take the laptop for their own use in their room and they did that.

Next, we carried the computers to the administration office. First, we set up the OSU ECOS computer in the office spot for use by the psychologist as shown below. Fortunately, it was not damaged during in-flight transit and worked fine. Jorge Finke, a graduate student at OSU and co-project leader for the Spring Break 2005 Montaña de Luz trip with David Bradway, got the computer through OSU surplus, set it up and configured the software at OSU, and packed it up for us for travel. The computer was put in a piece of luggage. The monitor was put in a box, with stuffing.

Next, we transferred all the files to Chris’ new computer and made sure that her printer worked. Here is her computer.

Here is the Dell Laptop that is for the financial person (e.g., for data entry). We did not have drivers for the printer on the right, which had been donated. The printer on the left seemed to need ink.

Spring Break 2005 Project Assessment: In working to come up with good project fits for our group, Chris Frederick, the director, specified a prioritized list of projects, numbered as below. Here is a picture of us with Chris.

For all the projects, we are going to need to coordinate with Vicki Rush to organize each project to make sure that we are meeting the needs of Montaña de Luz when we arrive in March 2005 (e.g., a number of issues related to the administrative computing and communications may change by that time). 1. Evaluate and Fix Electrical Power: This is their number one need. Their bill is very high and increasing for no apparent reason. They are concerned that there is a “leak,” or that they are being charged improperly. Moreover, there are a number of problems with the existing wiring. At Chris’ request, we did an evaluation of all the buildings and took notes of concerns about the wiring. Upon returning to OSU we had Don Kasten (a professor in the OSU ECE Dept., who also does volunteer work in the Honduras) review our assessment: overall he agreed with our prioritization and added a number of comments relative to

electrical wiring in the Honduras as he has done a number of projects there and understands some of the standard practices. In a great many cases, for example the main building where all the kids live, and where the medical clinic is, the wiring appears safe and adequate (e.g., proper insulation, breaker box, often ground fault interrupters); however, it is not clear if the main building, or indeed any other building is properly grounded. Other examples of good wiring are inside the workshop and the hot water heater shed. The kitchen is modern and well-equipped with outlets, etc.; however , are things properly grounded? We have detailed notes on the state of the wiring in each building. To summarize, first, our list of main concerns includes: (1) Pump House: There were three main problems for this: (i) There were five power drops attached to the pump house. Power drops from external lines are all wired in an ad hoc way and left exposed to the outside weather (e.g., with wires wound and then only electrical tape covering that, or wire nuts and tape). In some cases this is not a safety issue, if the insulation is good. Aging can lead to brittle insulation and exposed wire, which is dangerous, or if the wires are pulled on this could lead to exposed wire. (ii) It appears that there could be a safety hazard if a child were to be aggressive in climbing on the fence nearby and pulled on the wiring. (iii) It seems more likely that corrosion will eventually lead to problems with the reliability of keeping the power to the pump house. If the pump house goes down, there is no water after a relatively short time, and this leads to a number of problems, including hygiene which is particularly critical here. The pump house is shown below.

Samples of the wiring are shown below.

(2) Maintenance Workshop: Here, the main issue was that there are no outdoor outlets for power tools and the welder (which is high current). The approach now is power cords on the ground in the work area, along with a hand-wired ad hoc outlet box. The wiring inside the building appears to be professionally done, with conduits, outlets, switches, etc. (3) Power Drops: Outside each building there were problems with the power drops. To give an example, see the pump house above. These need “weather heads” and at the splice point proper connections (what is the standard practice in Honduras for this?). We need to make sure that the ground system is set up properly from the transformer on the pole, to the meter, and then to each power drop at each building. There were also some cases where there are wires that are running across the top of what appears to be a corrigated steel roof. For example, here is the power drop runs into the main facility. It would be better if these were strung building to building and properly anchored to each.

Other issues include: (i) all buildings, particularly the main one, need to have the grounding evaluated and fixed for all the outlets, (ii) is there a power leak of any type?, (iii) there are a number of junction boxes that need to be installed (e.g., in the ceiling of the visitor’s quarters and the washroom), and (iv) a number of the outside lights need proper connections (e.g., water-tight junction boxes). Recommendations: We need to be realistic about what we can achieve in a short visit, and hence need to focus on the most important issues for the Spring Break 2005 trip. First, the power drops need to be fixed and we need to make sure that ground gets to each building on the compound. Second, assess the leak issue to rule out the possibility that it is contributing to their high electricity bills. As Roger Dzwonczyk (a professor in the OSU Dept. of Anesthesiology, and long-time volunteer for international projects) suggested, we should do a detailed electrical energy survey of the entire facility to identify possible causes for the high electricity bills. We should also do project assessments while there for (i) grounding at each outlet in each building, and (ii) junction boxes. One of the main challenges is to get an electrician to come with us so that all these jobs are done in a professional and safe way.

2. Computers for Children and Administration: Children (ages are one at 21, 12-13 children between 4 and 13, and a total of 21): - 3 computers for the escuelita (sufficient power, told them we need tables) - 3 computers for older children facilities/rooms - Surge protectors needed, but not voltage regulators (do not use them now) - Spanish keyboards would be nice - Speakers/headphones (and/or? or, speakers for the escuelita computers)

- Educational software and a few appropriate games Questions: Printer for the children in the school? At this time not important and may in fact not be desirable due to maintenance issues with it (e.g., cost of ink and maintenance) Strategy for teaching? Let them first just explore, but with some guidance. Most of the kids have seen, and some used computers a little. Then, perhaps it would be nice to sit a group down a run a short course about computer basics. For that, Montaña de Luz has an old computer (the one that we decided is not worth fixing) that we could disassemble and show them the parts inside. Administrative Needs: - Chris computer: She is set with a flat panel display, good computer, and printer. She will have the appropriate software before we arrive. She has a 3-year old laptop, that has a broken top and the display has a line through it. She needs Office, Outlook, and Quickbooks. - Financial person computer: This is an old Dell laptop that is really flakey/slow. This person also needs printing capability (but that may be solved before Sp’05). - Psychologist computer: This is the OSU ECOS Pentium III, which is decent. It is running NT. If we can get something better should we take it? This computer also needs printing capability. - Printing: Should a printer network be set up? It has to be reliable as she has no support services. I suggested that they do this, but it is not clear if it will happen (due to cost and who would be able to set it up). There are two offices in the administration building, separated by a bathroom, and Chris and the financial person are in the same office, while the psychologist is in the other. It would be great if we could get her two good computers with the right software installed (details on that in our notes), a laptop for her own use (she does travel and gives presentations in Power Point for fund-raising), and solve the whole printing problem, if needed. It would be great if we also provide a nice easy way to do backups (e.g.,

automated in the OS to a second HD). Everything has to be robust, and inexpensive to maintain. They have no computer support services and Chris has many other concerns. She needs office support services. Recommendations: We need to have all computers fully functioning as we envision them at Montaña de Luz, before we travel. This includes getting all software issues resolved (all software loaded and working, including the children’s software). If we are going to set up a printer network, then it must first work here. Note that it is over an hour drive to purchase anything in Tegus. Next, it would be nice to have only one OS in operation at Montaña de Luz, or at least two, with one type on the kids computers and one type on the administration computers. Finally, we may want to consider bringing an extra computer in case one gets broken during travel, and as a back-up computer in case one of their’s stops working. 3. Communications Lack of good communication capabilities is one of Chris’ biggest frustrations. In some ways this is priority number one. But this may be very difficult to provide. Some relevant information: (1) The closest phone is at Ojo de Agua (12 km away). (2) Chris has a cell-phone but cell-phone signals are weak/intermittent, and at time worthless. Also, it is very expensive ($400/mo.). (3) Montaña de Luz has a radio system, donated by Motorola, but it has a high monthly fee (in the hundreds of dollars per month) and has poor quality communications, and is limited to communications to Tegus. They also use it to stay in touch with the van driver. It is not a good solution given all their needs. See a picture of it below. (4) Satellite-based for internet and Voice over IP: They have this at Ojo de Agua (12 km away) at an internet cafe, apparently. However, it is not clear what system they have, how reliable it is (e.g., what happens in bad weather?), or what services they are paying for. She wonders if we could assess this whole problem and come up with a reliable low-cost solution. Could we get someone to donate a satellite system to her? Would they donate the monthly fees also (at around $250 per month that is very expensive)? Is there some other innovative solution? Again, it has to be low-cost (initial and recurring), robust, and easy to maintain.

4. General Labor Projects Depending on the amount of time we think the above projects will take, she would also appreciate help on labor projects, which would be done in conjunction with Hondurans as crew leaders. Some ideas Chris had are: - Small construction projects. - Chris is building a house – electrical, water, etc. - Road work – drainage ditch. Other Relevant Project Issues: 1. Water: We brought bottles and obtained samples of the tap water for H. Walker to test in his lab. All water at the facility comes through a chlorination system. It is tested four times per year. There are no reports of people getting sick from drinking the water at Montaña de Luz. We drank tap water and experienced no ill effects.

There is a 250ft deep well with a 7.5hp motor to pump water into the black tanks show below. We wanted to get a well water sample but that was not possible. Then, the entire system is based on gravity for water pressure.

The electricity is not reliable, and there can be 4hr to day-long stretches where their supply shuts off. If it goes down too long (e.g., a day), then without the pump turned on, the supply will deplete and they will not have water. However, the Rotary Club recently donated a large diesel-run generator and it will be used to keep the whole facility going, once it is delivered (within three weeks, they hope).

The nearby communities of Nuevo Paraiso and Nueva Esperanza have their water tank on the grounds of Montaña de Luz as it is indeed on a mountain above those communities as you saw from earlier pictures, and this serves them to give their water pressure. A picture of their water tank is below (the light blue tank behind John).

Montaña de Luz has a septic tank and hence does not have problems with waste water. Toilet paper cannot be flushed down the toilet as in much of Latin America; for some reason the septic tank cannot decompose the paper here? Used tissue paper is deposited in a closed waste can for later removal. 2. Alternative Power Sources: Their electricity bill is quite high and this is a big problem for them. They would be quite interested in alternative power sources. Some ideas include: Solar: There are lots of sunny days, however there is a rainy season also. Hence, it is not clear how effective such a system would be. How expensive? How easy would it be to maintain? Wind: Enough wind? On a mountain? Expensive? Maintainable?

3. Local Community: Chris is going to assess the possibility of having us do a simultaneous project for the school where the children of Montaña de Luz go to at Neuvo Paraiso. While at this point the needs are unclear, educating teachers on computer usage may be needed. Conducting other projects for the local community is complicated, and it is not recommended that this be pursued at this time. 4. Tilapia Pool: Montaña de Luz is in the process of installing a Tilapia pool so that they can raise the fish for eating – an important source of protein for the kids. A number of project groups worked on this in the past and they produced a very nice system, but it is not quite functional yet (see picture below). Well water is used for the pool, then dirty water from the pool was to be put on their garden. They are now working with some local contacts at Pan American Agricultural School in Zamorano to finish the project. There are no further needs from volunteers for the Tilapia pool (except, perhaps later on helping to eat the fish!). Note that this was dug and constructed by hand – the primary means of accomplishing local construction projects – back hoes too expensive, plus the project provided employment for locals.

Challenges: Several issues arose in our conversations with Chris and during our trip that deserve attention:

• Visions vs. Reality: There is a problem at times where volunteers have general grand visions that then confront the harsh realities of what can really be achieved at Montaña de Luz -- situated in the Honduran mountains. There clearly needs to be step by step changes and a recognition that there are many barriers to getting things done here that are different from what you would encounter in the US.

• Technology Transfer and Appropriate Technology: Is the project maintainable with no one around to support it, especially, for a technical project? What support services are there close, and cheap? The computer project we are undertaking represents a “technology transfer.” Is the technology appropriate? Generally, small jumps in technology are better than a large unreliable and difficult to maintain advancement. The overall state of technology is lower. This can be a big challenge for us with respect to computer projects that we do at Montaña de Luz. Some issues may be solved by asking other visitors to help maintain the computers, but we would need to provide clear instructions for system / software maintenance.

• Long-Term Relationship: Does ECOS want to have another trip to Montaña de Luz after Spring Break 2005? What are the implications on project sustainability of repeated visits? On building step-by-step improvements (e.g., for the computers and for the electricity project).

• Security: Chris says that it is not a good idea for Montaña de Luz to “project wealth” to the local community as this may attract thieves (e.g., she expressed a few concerns about having solar panels because then some may perceive Montaña de Luz as a place that has lots of money).

• Sustainability and the Environment: For the computer project can we develop a simple set of guidelines on what to do with the computers after they no longer work, or after they are replaced? The strategy must respect environmental concerns.

• Respect for Space and Structure: All volunteers must respect that the children have a structure to their lives, including school, homework, regular medications, etc. They have private space. Volunteers are conducting projects at someone’s home, the home of Chris and the children. Volunteers must respect the privacy and structure of their lives. At the same time, they do build in set time periods for playing with the children (e.g., a soccer game).

• Cultural: For many projects, and it sounds like for all labor projects, a Honduran will be the project leader and will work with the group. This sets up a cultural exchange. One issue that has arisen for groups in the past is “the way of doing things” and that in Chris’s words, in Honduras, “relationships are more important

than time,” unlike project work often is in the US. Volunteers must be respectful of the boss and the cultural differences.

Other Pre-Project Issues: There will be some “down-time”, as Vicki had explained, for doing something else (like a day or half-day). She said that some go shopping in Tegus. A different idea for our group would be to try to visit the PanAmerican Agricultural School in Zamorano, which you drive right by on the trip out to Montaña de Luz. Another idea is to visit the Universidad National Autonoma de Honduras, which has an engineering program. We will have to decide as a group what we would like to do, and coordinate with Vicki. If you want to make sure that you can get some souvenirs, there are plenty of places at the airport, several before going through security and one after. Shopping, and local eating close to Montaña de Luz is non-existent. Overall Project Assessment: We felt that the trip was successful. With respect to the two objectives for this trip: 1. We were useful in helping Chris with administrative computing issues. The computer donated by OSU ECOS will be used for the psychologist to type up reports on the kids. We helped update her new computer, and helped assess and dispose of a number of pieces of old equipment. We made some other useful suggestions for improvements (e.g. a printer network). We would have liked to bring all the administrative computers to a fully operational state (e.g., for printing and other software issues), but that was not possible. 2. We feel that this is a very good place for a Spring Break 2005 trip for ECOS. We think that we can get a start on the electricity project and make some definite progress and assess future projects, and also successfully complete the children’s computer set-up and education project. We also hope that we can improve the administrative computing in March 2005. We may also be able to help with some labor projects, and make some progress on assessing future projects: (i) satellite internet or other approaches to communications, and (ii) electricity projects (e.g., take it to another overall stage of improvement by addressing grounding issues, and more junction boxes).

Engineering Learning Opportunities: We feel that there will be a number of engineering learning opportunities on the following:

1. Learning practical issues in electrical engineering (i.e., how to be an electrician). 2. Learning how to set up a reliable computing system for a child, outfit it with

appropriate software, and teach the children about computers. 3. Learning about sustainability, technology transfer, appropriate technology,

maintainability, and practical cost constraints. 4. Learning about differences between technical challenges in the US and at

international locations. Learning about cultural exchange. 5. Learning about how engineering professionalism involves community service,

and it is hoped that this will encourage related professional activities later on in life.

We feel that each student, or subgroup of students should keep a journal during their stay at Montaña de Luz. We will also need to write a group report, and someone should be put in charge of that (it is recommended that a laptop is brought along and used each night to compose such a report). Such a report should address a number of issues including what is being learned in each of the above areas, what was good and bad about the projects, how we can be more effective next time, and how we could give course credit for such projects (e.g., as a senior design project, or as a follow-on to a freshman design-and-build project).

Final Note: On Sunday evening we took a walk from Montaña de Luz, down the road, by Neuva Esperanza, and over to Nuevo Paraiso to see the area where there are some other housing places for volunteers and visitors. On the way back, we snapped off the photo below of Montaña de Luz off in the distance. Notice that in this case Montaña de Luz is literally a “mountain of light,” a fitting inspiration at the end of our trip!