Design Strategies i DEPAUW UNIVERSITY

Designs for the Developing World

An Investigation of the Design Strategies for Underprivileged Communities
Daniella Smith 5/15/2013

This document focuses on the three design strategies used by developed countries to help improve the lives of people in developing countries. The document analyzes products of each strategy in order to assess the advantages and disadvantages of each strategy.

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Many developed countries have technological advancements and forms of social support which help satisfy the needs of its inhabitants. However, the majority of the worlds populations do not have these technologies or support systems. How can this gap be closed? Numerous organizations such as Engineers without Borders, Project H, Design Accord, and Architecture for Humanityhave started to design products for these underprivileged communities in hopes of eradicating a social issue or improving their standard of living. My thesis will focus on some organizations and their products that have been designed with this in mind. Many of the products aim to help reach the goals established by The United Nations (Smith, 2007) in hopes of convincing wealthy countries to help improve the lives of poorer nations. There are eight goals total, and they are known as the Millennium Development Goals. Goal 1: Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger Goal 2: Achieve universal primary education Goal 3: Promote gender equality and empower women Goal 4: Reduce child mortality Goal 5: Improve maternal health Goal 6: Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases Goal 7: Ensure environmental sustainability Goal 8: Develop a global partnership for development

In order to help combat these world problems and reach these eight goals many companies have developed assistive products in order to help these underprivileged communities in their needs. Skeptical about the sudden altruistic actions of some of these capitalistic companies, I chose to do an investigation on some of these assistive products and determine whether they really helped fix the problem. Anthony Crabbe (Crabbe, 2012) explains that there three different strategies taken when developing solutions for developing countries and they are charitable, networked, and social business. The charitable strategy is one in which a developed country designs a product to be easily distributed to the communities of developing countries. An

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example of a product fitting under this strategy is the French product Plumpynut (Pilloton, 2009). Plumpynut is a food supplement high in nutritional value that helps children in underprivileged countries fight malnutrition. Plumpynut is easily produced and distributed to the children of developing countries. The network strategy allows underprivileged communities to work with a network of international companies in developing their own product(s) for either personal or communal income (Crabbe, 2012). One such situation falling under this strategy was the manufacture of fuel briquettes in developing countries. The Legacy Foundation wanted to lessen the physical burden of collecting firework on women of underprivileged communities, so they started promoting the use of resources found in local urban and agricultural wastes. Women were then able to use their local resources and build a surplus of fuel briquettes which they could then sell locally. Finally, the social business strategy launches a local business in a developing country that uses the sale of local commodities on the global market as a form of selfsustainment. Many products under the Fair Trade system fall under this strategy, but one specific example is Recycled Tire Furniture. Made from recycled tire rubber, The Recycled Tire is a product handmade from a cheap resource by the people of underprivileged communities to then be sold on the global market. My thesis analyzes products from each strategy, in order to assess the advantages and disadvantages of each strategy. Section 1 The products included in section one fall under the charitable strategy. These are products which were designed and manufactured by developed countries for developing countries. All the products are intended to fix a personal or social issue. Adaptive Eye Care

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The World Health Organization estimates that currently there are over one billion people suffering from uncorrected vision yet remain untreated (Pilloton, 2009). Although people survive without proper vision there is a large difference in the accommodations for the visually impaired in developed countries versus that in developing countries. To begin with, all citizens of developed nations have resources that aid them in their daily lives. These resources range from education to assistive technologies for disabilities, but the same cannot be said about developing countries. For example, the majority of Nepals population suffers from uncorrected vision, but most remain untreated. This has a significant effect on children, where uncorrected vision affects them in more ways than one; one such effect is on their education. Over ninety percent of children that drop out of the education system blame vision as the main contributing factor, and this leads to live a life as a field laborer, and lose the opportunity to advance academically and professionally (He et al., 2011). Is there a cheap and efficient solution to correcting vision for the people of underprivileged communities? Engineer Joshua Silver saw a need for help and developed a cheap alternative to glass lenses which he called Adaptive Eye Care (Shulman, 2003). Silver found that when silicone oil is dispersed between a pair of flexible membranes, the result is something that works similar to glass lenses, but at a fraction of the cost. He also realized that the magnification could be adjusted by varying how much silicone was pumped between the flexible membranes. In order to use this technology Silver proceeded to develop an inexpensive frame for the membranes with a wheel that adjusted the amount of silicone dispersed between the membranes. This design allowed the users to self-adapt the refraction of the glasses to meet their needs. Since the refraction could be self-adjusted this eliminated the need for an optometrist and made the product

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even easier to manufacture and introduce. Silvers design not only provided an immediate health solution, but also made correcting eye vision a quick, uncomplicated, and easy process. But is Adaptive Eye Care really as effective as it appears to be? A study conducted by Douali and Silver (2004) tested the effectiveness of this adaptive eye care among communities in Ghana, South Africa, Nepal, and Malawi. Douali and Silver tested the Adaptive Eye Care on 213 adult subjects suffering from uncorrected vision. First, Douali and Silver administered an eye reading chart to the subjects and recorded the refraction that each subjects chose for themselves. They then compared that refraction to the refraction recommended by a professional optometrist. Douali and Silver did this because they wanted to assure themselves that the design of the eyewear was intuitively adjustable and that users could administer the proper amount of silicone and reach a similar refraction to that which was recommended to them by the optometrist. If the results showed no detectable difference between the two refractions, Douali and Silver believed this would prove that the users could in fact adjust the glasses themselves without the help of professionals. Douali and Silver asked subjects to turn the wheel and adjust the silicone levels to the point at which their vision became clear and again for when their vision started to become blurred. They then asked the subjects to choose the most appropriate refraction settings for themselves. Following this, Douali and Silver then compared the refraction recommended by the professional to that which was self-determined by the users. What Douali and Silver found was that the participants were able to successfully obtain better vision through the Adaptive eye care process and that the differences between both personal and professional refractions were insignificant among all participants. Although these studies showed that self-adjusted refractions for adults were easily as effective as optometrist administered refractions, would this be the same for children? It is

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important that children can properly use the device since uncorrected vision can pose many problems for them. A study by He et al. (2011) addressed this very question by testing 554 school children in China, and using the methods used by Douali and Silver. The only difference between the two studies was that afterwards, He et al. administered a visual acuity test in order to measure the success of the childrens self-adjusted refraction. The results showed some of the children had inaccuracies between their recommended refraction and their self-prescribed refraction. However, He et al. considered that any improved eye vision was better than none and therefore the differences were deemed insignificant. He et al. also believed the Adaptive Eye Care could not be held entirely responsible for the inaccuracies. He et al. hypothesized that the children had a higher tolerance for unsatisfactory visual perception, due to their age and their tendency to adjust the silicone levels with less patience and precision. LifeStraw Water is a basic survival need, yet millions of people are without a reliable sanitary water source. If there is not a sanitary water source available what should the people of these communities do? Should these people wait until they find clean water and run the risk of dehydration? Or should they drink the bacteria-filled water they have available to them? Either option carries a detrimental health consequence, but what if there existed a portable filter which provided a healthy alternative to these options? Recently Danish company Vestergaard Frandsen designed a product, called the LifeStraw, which could do just that (Pilloton, 2009). Nearly two decades ago Vestergaard Frandsen (Pilloton, 2009) designed a home water filtration system for families in developing countries that where lacking a clean water source. The filtration system was made to reduce worm disease and decrease other waterborne diseases caused by the intake of unsanitary water. The home filtration system, which they dubbed the

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LifeStraw Family, provides a simple and efficient way to obtain clean drinking water. The LifeStraw Family uses the same technology found in the municipal water treatment facilities of several develop countries; it also requires no electricity or batteries using gravity as the filtrations main driving force. In addition the design also has a guaranteed lifespan of 3 years. The design of the LifeStraw Family consists first of a bucket used to hold unsanitary water; it is then suspended high enough in order for the gravitational pull to force the unsanitary water down through a rubber tube running from the bottom of the bucket. From here the water enters a filtration pipe which releases potable water when pumped. So far the Danish company has donated over 900,000 LifeStraw Family filters which continue providing safe drinking water to over 4 million people in Africa (Frauchiger, 2011). However, the Lifestraw Family did not immediately provide clean drinking water. It required the transportation of water from a central source to a residence with a LifeStraw Family filtration system, and even then time was required for the water to filter through the system to become potable. Vestergaard Frandsen realized that it is necessary for these people to have access to safe drinking water 24/7; so they designed a sister product to the LifeStraw Family. In 2005 the LifeStraw Personal was released (Frauchiger, 2011). The LifeStraw Personal uses the same technology as the LifeStraw Family, but the design was compacted and made to be portable and provide clean drinking water within seconds. The LifeStraw Personal is not only affordable, but also looks similar to a large straw, and has a mouthpiece that allows users to submerge the end of the LifeStraw into unsanitary water, and use suction to filter the water up through the filtration system (Pilloton, 2009). This product gives people the opportunity to carry an efficient filter with them wherever they go and drink freely from any water source without having to worry about the harmful health consequences.

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While the product is a suitable and innovative solution, is the filtration system really as effective as it claims to be? Almost two million people die each year from waterborne diseases, so it is important that the LifeStraw provides water free from all disease-causing bacteria (Smith, 2007). Vestergaard Frandsen claims the LifeStraw filtration technology filters out 99.9999% of all bacteria found in water (Pilloton, 2009). In order to test this claim Boisson, Schmidt, Berhanu, Gezahegn, and Clasen (2009) did a randomized trial in Ethiopia in order to determine the effectiveness of the LifeStraw Personal. Boisson et al. included 313 families in their study, which they randomly assigned the families to either the control group or the intervention group. The participants in the control group did not use a Lifestraw device, while the participants of the intervention group used the LifeStraw Personal for the duration of five months. Then Boisson et al. documented and compared the health issues experienced by participants in each group. Elsanousi et al. (2009) also conducted a similar study on the health impact the LifeStraw Personal. In their case study Elsanousi et al. recruited 647 participants from a town in Sudan to use the LifeStraw over the course of two weeks. At the end trial, Elsanousi et al. questioned the participants about any health changes or issues they experienced with the LifeStraw Personal. Both case studies showed a significant decrease in the number of participants that suffered from diarrhea, but there were participants from each case study that still reported diarrhea while using the LifeStraw Personal. However, many of these participants admitted to not using the LifeStraw all the time, either because they forgot to or found it to be a nuisance. A significant amount of participants from both studies said the reasons why they did not always use the LifeStraw Personal was because it required a significant amount of suction force and did not deliver sufficient water fast enough. Nonetheless, the majority of the participants agreed that the LifeStraw was easy to carry, made water safe to drink, and improved the taste (Boisson et al.,

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Elsanousi et al., 2009, 2009). Overall the LifeStraw proves to be a great trade-off as both studies found that the product decreased diarrhea significantly for its users. Given this information and considering that diarrheal diseases are one of the leading causes of death in developing countries, all of the complaints appear trivial (Peter-Varbanets, 2009). As a result, the LifeStraw establishes itself as an effective and easily-implemented design. Treadle Pump As previously stated, water is a vital part of life and numerous people in underprivileged countries are left without access clean to drinking water. However, there is also a lack of accessibility to reliable water sources in general. Without reliable water sources communities in developing countries can face many health problemsespecially when analyzing the effect it can have on agriculture. Many communities in developing countries engage in subsistence livingthey grow crops, not for exportation, but for their own consumption. Communities like these do not have access to grocery stores or local farmers markets where they can buy their food, and so as a result their survival is completely dependent on the food they produce. However, without reliable water sources farmers in developing countries rely on rainfall to cultivate their harvest; consequently, in times of drought they face famine and starvation as they struggle to feed themselves and their families (Chigerwe, 2004). If they had reliable water sources farmers would not have to depend on rainfall, and thus could avoid facing famine. So is it possible to provide reliable water sources and consistently fertile grounds to these agriculturedependent communities? During the 1970s Norwegian engineer Gunnar Barnes was living in Bangladesh while working for the Lutheran World Federation program (Smith, 2007). Noticing the insufficient

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water and energy sources available, the distressed land, the arid harvest, and the local farmers struggling to sustain the land even with such strenuous labor, Barnes decided to use his engineering experience and come up with a low-cost solution. Barnes quickly and innovatively invented the Treadle Pump. The Treadle Pump is a water pump, better known as an irrigation pump, which draws groundwater to the surface of the land using a suction method (Fandika et al., 2012). Originally the Treadle Pump consisted of only bamboo stalks and a metal cylinder. The bamboo stalks were used to build a pumping mechanism similar to a stair-stepping machine. A cylinder was attached to the end of the bamboo stalk, and openings to water were dug up to place the Treadle Pump over. So when the pedal or step of the Treadle pump was stepped on it forced the cylinder up and down a narrow opening, which created suction underground. The suction then forced the water out from underground and onto the surface, where it could be collected (Smith, 2007). Then during the 1980s the Treadle Pump was bought by the American corporation International Development Enterprises, also known as iDE (Smith, 2007). iDE then started marketing the pump to other communities in Bangladesh, and as word spread about an affordable product that could provide a reliable water source, and improve cultivation, the product became widely known. A study by Fandika, Kadyampakeni, and Zingore (2012) evaluated the performance of the Treadle Pump for crop production in Malawi. Between 2005 and 2007 Fandika et al. assessed a tomato crop along with an intercropped maize/bean crop. They also had three replicates of each crop in order to compare and contrast accurately any differences and/or similarities observed between the crops. There was a significant difference in harvest growth among the tomato varieties; the one under the Treadle Pump condition benefitted considerably. However, the Treadle Pump did not seem to have a growth effect on the maize/bean crop, as there was no

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apparent difference. Based off the findings from the tomato plants, Fandika et al. assessed that the Treadle Pump decreases labor by 25% while simultaneously increasing crop growth. Given the positive effect the pump had on the tomato growth, Fandika et al. suggested there would be a large difference in net income between farmers who use a Treadle Pump and those who dont. However, given the little effect it had on the maize/bean crop, this is only accurate for certain crops. While there have been complaints about the Treadle Pump being a monotonous and effortful task, it provides rural communities in developing countries with a reliable water source. Access to reliable water sources allows for more abundant agriculture which minimizes issues of famine and starvation. Plus, it also gives farmers the opportunity to cultivate crops for sale or exportationwhich could create more job opportunities for the people of these underprivileged communities. Overall, all three of these products fall under the charitable strategy because they are made by a developed country, they help with either a personal or social issue, and they are easily manufactured and introduced. The Adaptive Eye Care has a design that can be adjusted to meet the needs of the users, without the help or interference of professionals. The LifeStraw is an effective product which is easily used and employed by the people of underprivileged communities. Lastly, the Treadle Pump is a helpful product which is sold and distributed as a kit to developing countries. Both easily assembled and affordable, it offers reliable water sources to countless communities. All three products fit this strategy because they can be supplied to underprivileged communities without difficulty and provide an immediate solution. Section 2

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Products in this section are part of the network strategy. With the help of a network of international companies, this strategy helps underprivileged communities develop their own products. Products are developed and sold in order to generate either personal or communal income. Hippo Water Roller Millions of people in developing countries struggle with obtaining reasonable access to potable water. So is there an innovative, practical, and reliable resolution that could possibly provide these people with potable water? Thankfully engineers Pettie Petzer and Johan Jonker (Pilloton, 2009) created a product that has become very popular because it not only offers immediate relief, but decreases the physical demand of the task while increasing the return. In 1991, South African engineers Petzer and Jonker (Pilloton, 2009) saw firsthand how the African communities lacked access to potable water. Initially these underprivileged communities were using a very traditional mode of transporting water from the source to their homes by carrying five-gallon metal buckets, on their heads. Even though this method allows them to carry the buckets for long periods of time, ultimately it starts to cause spinal damage. The spinal damage limits their ability to successfully transport potable water to their homes, and also keeps them from doing daily tasks. Therefore, Petzer and Jonker (Pilloton, 2009) developed the Hippo Water Roller, which is essentially a barrel that holds up to 24 gallons of water; nearly quintupling the volume of water one person can transport when compared to the bucket method. One full barrel supplies an family of five with enough water to last them a week. Additionally, the Hippo Water Roller has a metal handle bar which allows the user to roll or push the barrel instead of carrying it requiring

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less effort per water volume than the bucket. This makes transportation easier and more efficient, allowing users to transport 40 pounds of water at half the physical demand of transporting five gallon buckets. The Hippo Water Roller is easily introduced into the African communities and is guaranteed to withstand the African terrain for seven years; after which point a new product is required because there are no replacement parts. Petzer and Jonker have made life easier for nearly 30,000 families in the past 20 years by creating a simple and efficient product. However, while the Hippo Water Roller has provided aid to many families, are the people of these African communities able to afford it? Most of the Hippo Water Rollers have been provided to families through charitable donations, so in order to answer this question Anthony Crabbe (2012) conducted a case study that evaluated the Hippo Water Roller as a solution to water accessibility. What he found was that, while the product lives up to its description and functionality, people of underprivileged communities cannot afford the product. Therefore, users must rely solely on charitable support from organizations like the Africa Foundation and UNICEF; thus rendering the funding for this gift aid product completely dependent on donations and charity. This makes the Hippo Water Roller an unsustainable solution, an unacceptable dilemma considering the significance of the present problem and the health impact it could potentially have on these communities in need. In order to make the distribution of the Hippo Water Roller less dependent on charitable donation an alternative solution was purposed. Imvubu Projectsthe manufacturing and distribution company of the Hippo Water Roller came up with an idea to make the Hippo Water Roller cheaper and affordable for people of developing countries (Press Briefs, 2010). Imvubu Projects designed a compact production plant for the Hippo water rollers one small enough to fit in a used shipping container and efficient enough to produce 650 units a month, that could be

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set up within the African communities in need of Hippo Water Rollers. The problem with this solution is that the workshops cost about $150,000 to build and implement. It also takes weeks to properly train and teach employees how to manufacture the product. Thus leaving charitable organizations with a difficult decision to make; do they delay assistance in the transportation of potable water and invest $150,000 in a portable plant, or invest the same amount in distributing already made Hippo Water rollers and provide immediate relief to over 1,500 families in need? While the decision could be difficult, charitable agencies need to think about the long-term effects; wouldnt this solution ultimately maximize the aid given to these communities by lowering the cost of future, locally-manufactured Hippo Water Rollers? And let us not forget that this solution also provides employment to locals, thus offering long-term assistance to these communities. For this reason, the Hippo Water Roller is considered a networked strategy. It works with international companies to help them locally develop their own Hippo Water Rollers. In order to continue coming up with innovative solutions and improvements to the Hippo Water Roller project, Imvubu Projects has started a partnership program with Engineers without Borders, which is an organization based in San Francisco that is committed to providing solutions and assistance to people in developing countries and other troubled communities around the world (Pilloton & Press Briefs, 2009, 2010). With their program the Project H Design they are working toward enhancing the development of the Hippo Water Rollers and lowering its cost. They also hope to advance the functionality of the Hippo Water Roller by incorporating a water filter. This would relieve the users from the restriction of only being able to collect water from central and inconvenient clean-water sources, and instead allow them to transport water from any nearby source. Section 3

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Products in this section are part of the social business strategy, which establishes local businesses within developing countries. This strategy promotes exportation of commodities and/or the development of products made from local materials to be sold locally or globally. Basic Utility Vehicle While numerous developed countries are graced with various modes of transportation from public transportation to personally owned automobilestransportation in developing countries is far from being as convenient or luxurious. The reality is that many of these developing countries are without the means or infrastructure to implement a public transportation system, and the majority of the people cannot afford a vehicle of their own. Despite the fact that many communities have survived thus far without a formal method of transportation, they are still in need of a more effect form of transportation. Those in most need are farmers in rural areas who lack dependable and reasonable modes of transporting produce, equipment, and supplies to the fields. The basic design of a vehicle is made up of a motor, a couple pairs of wheels, and a few materials to build a basic frame. So is there a cheap and reliable vehicle available for the people of underprivileged communities? The Basic Utility Vehicle, abbreviated BUV, is a vehicle that has been designed to be utilized in developing countries. Designed and assembled by the Institute for Affordable Transportation (IAT), an Indianapolis-based charity, they wish to provide inexpensive and suitable forms of transportation to communities in developing countries in hopes of improving their standards of living (Reese, 2004). First started over a decade ago, the IAT holds a yearly contest known as the BUV Design Competition in which engineer college students and professors collaborate in creating a simple, low-cost utility vehicle that can help low-income people (Pilloton, 2009). The competition has many guidelines and requirements set, in order to

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make the vehicle as practical for developing countries as possible (Basic vehicles, 2010). A few of the main requirements that the BUVs must meet are as follows: a carrying capacity of at least 1000 pounds, a total cost of $900, a max weight of 500 pounds, and a top speed of 20 mph. The competition has two parts, the first part being design and assemblywhich composes the majority of the competition. The second half of the competition consists of many driving tests. Because many developing countries lack infrastructure the vehicles must withstand a variety of terrain. Therefore, during the second part of the competition the vehicles must pass a range of obstacle courses in order to be suitable for underprivileged communities. If vehicles survive and pass the competition they have the opportunity of being shipping overseas to help those in need. But, is this competition effective? Do students really know what farmers in developing countries want? In 2007 the first BUV was shipped overseas to Cameroon, Africa. It was purchased by the African Centre for Renewable Energy and Sustainable Technologies, also known as ACREST (African SUV, 2013). The vehicle was made from new materials and recycled auto parts found in the United States. However, from the beginning there were problems with the BUV. First of all IAT forgot to consider repair and using foreign automobile parts made repair expensive and unrealistic. Secondly, IAT did not stay within a reasonable price range during the development of their BUV. IAT first suggested a price of $5,000 which is obviously too expensive, especially when you consider the additional shipping, import, and repair fees that were not included. ACREST asked for adjustments that would make the BUV affordable and suitable for the farmers of Cameroon. IAT, feeling overwhelmed and under qualified, asked for help from Purdue University, which was a university known for its advanced engineering programs. The students at Purdue thought the best thing to do was ask the farmers in Cameroon

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to develop their own truck; once they did the Purdue students were able to successfully produce a suitable vehicle. The students completely redesigned the BUV, and while they continue to redesign it during their annual competition, the most recent design is by far the most sustainable. The current BUV only costs $1,200 in local materials to build. Using local materials not only lowers the cost of development and repair, but also gives communities the option of locally making their own BUVs. In addition, it gets 50 miles per gallon, goes 25 miles per hour, and can transport 2,000 pounds. As a result, the BUV is frequently used as ambulances, construction vehicles, and even school buses (Pilloton, 2009). For the rural communities in developing countries, the BUV has become a versatile and suitable method of transportation. Jaipur Foot Prosthetic devices have been a solution for amputees for many years. However they can be very expensive, and as a result many amputees of developing countries are unable to afford them. Without a prosthetic, amputees of underprivileged communities struggle in carrying out daily tasks and meeting the physical requirements needed for survival. Living in such conditions have forced amputees to use makeshift prosthetics. However, the majority of the time makeshift prosthetics do not provide amputees with the proper flexibility needed to accurately and effectively perform their duties. So, is there another solution or product that can provide amputees with the mobility needed to complete fundamental everyday tasks, while still maintaining a reasonable price tag? Orthopedic surgeon Dr. P.K. Sethi and craftsman Ram Chandra Sharma developed a product they called the Jaipur Foot (Pilloton, 2009). Named after the Indian city for which it was developed, the Jaipur Foot was originally designed in 1968 for the local amputees, specifically

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the landmine victims. Sethi and Sharma saw difficulties being experienced with the American prostheses that had been donated to some of the landmine victims. The American prostheses were not only expensive, but their sturdy metal designs offered little mobility (McGirk, 1997). The lack of mobility made everyday work more difficult for the amputees. In addition, the prostheses could not be worn without proper footwear and this posed an additional problem for daily worship. Shoes are prohibited during any religious ceremonies, and as such made worship even more difficult for amputees. So Sethi and Sharma started making different prototypes in hopes of creating a alternative which could provide mobility and be more suitable for the harsh terrain and labor-intensive lifestyle. First Sethi and Sharma developed a prosthetic foot made completely of rubber, and while it presented more than enough flexibility it was not durable. The rubber was not able to withstand the rough landscape and within days the prostheses shredded to pieces (McGirk, 1997). They made some adjustments to the design by reconstructing the rubber foot using a lighter and more durable rubber, much like the rubber used for bicycle tires. They then attached the foot to a wooden ankle hinge, which provided just enough flexibility and sturdiness. The result was an inexpensive prosthetic that not only lasted five years, but also only took 45 minutes to construct out of local materials. Sethi and Sharma claimed that the Jaipur Foots weightless and flexible design made it possible for amputees to climb, run, ride bicycles, and do almost everything else they used to do pre-injury. In addition, the current Jaipur Foot can mimic almost every foot movement (Pilloton, 2009). A study by Kabra and Narayanan (1991) wanted to test this claim so they came up with a study to assess the functional limits of the Jaipur Foot. To test the flexibility, the dorsiflexion and heel compression flexes of the Jaipur Foot were measured, recorded and compared to the average

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flexion measurements of a natural human foot. What Kabra and Narayanan found was that the prosthesis matched the flexions of the natural foot almost every time. In order to test the durability, Kabra and Narayanan exposed 26 Jaipur Foot prostheses to an extensive cyclic exercise and recorded the deterioration of the prostheses after every 500,000 cycles until they reached three million cycles. They determined that after three million cycles, the deterioration level of the Jaipur Foot was minimal as only a small abrasion appeared. Overall, the Jaipur Foot is a reliable and effective prosthesis which is built simplistically and inexpensively. Handled by the charity Bhagwan Mahaveer Viklang Sahayata Samiti, the organization provides amputees in developing countries with artificial legs ($28). As of today, the Jaipur Foot has helped nearly one million amputees from Nigeria, Vietnam, Afghanistan, to Honorduras (Pilloton, 2009). Both the Basic Utility Vehicle and the Jaipur Foot fit in the Social Business strategy. Purdue students supplied the locals of Cameroon with the skills necessary to build their own BUVs, and the Jaipur Foot is also made by the locals of Jaipur, India. Since both products are also made of local materials, this has enabled these communities to develop them these products locally. As a result, they can then sell the products in both local and export markets; thus, creating a social business. Conclusion While all three design strategies offer three very different solutions, is there a superior strategy among the three? Lets try to assess the advantages and disadvantage of each strategy, beginning with the charitable strategy. As we saw from the Adaptive Eye Care, the LifeStraw, and the Treadle Pump, the charitable strategy is the simplest and quickest solution. This strategy does not have to worry about introducing a manufacturing infrastructure to these underprivileged

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communities, because the products are made by developed countries (Crabbe, 2012). However, this strategy is very dependent on developed countries and their endorsement of charitable causes. If a developed country suddenly does not support such a charitable cause, the people of underprivileged communities are left to find an alternative way to support themselves. If charities stop donating the Adaptive Eye Care, the LifeStraw, or the Treadle Pump people will have to find a different way to deal with uncorrected vision, unsanitary drinking water, and the lack of reliable water sources. Granted some of these products can inexpensive enough that people of underprivileged communities can potentially afford them, but this dependency and unreliability makes the second and third strategies seem like a better choice. The networked and social business strategies are seen more as actions to help people of developing countries to independently maintain their basic needs. These strategies also give underprivileged communities the opportunity to gain income or benefit profitably from such endeavors. The Hippo Water Roller, The BUV, and the Jaipur Foot each offer the community a way to use their skills and local materials to reproduce a product for local and global markets. However, both the networked and social business strategies also need to consider the implementation of infrastructure and initial investments required to set up such strategies. While the Hippo Water Roller and the BUV required months and even years to completely introduce and apply in developing countries, the products of the charitable strategy required no time at all. From the three strategies, each has their advantages and disadvantages. The charitable strategy offers developing countries an immediate solution to a global problem, while the second and third strategies offer a long-term solution that could potentially help stabilize the problem and even increase communal income. Perhaps, the best strategy depends on the problem at hand and whether an immediate solution is needed or a long-term strategy could be applied. We must

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realize that while none of the strategies seem to be able to meet all the needs of underprivileged communities, all the strategies provided support for the communities of developing countries.

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References An African SUV. (2013). Mechanical Engineering, 135(2), 14-15. Basic vehicles. (2010). Retrieved from http://www.drivebuv.org/ Chigerwe,J. Manjengwa,N. van der Zaag,P. W. Zhakata, Rockstrm,J. Low head drip irrigation kits and treadle pumps for smallholder farmers in Zimbabwe: a technical evaluation based on laboratory tests, Physics and Chemistry of the Earth, Parts A/B/C, Volume 29, Issues 1518, 2004, Pages 1049-1059, ISSN 1474-7065, 10.1016/j.pce.2004.08.007. (http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1474706504001573) Keywords: Drip irrigation; Distribution uniformity; Efficiency; Food security; Treadle pump

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