Please share your stories about Appropedia!
These stories encourage the Appropedia community, help us to improve Appropedia, and are essential as we seek support for Appropedia. They also act as evidence for the power of collaborative and sustainable problem solving.
What kind of stories? These can be stories about using information or a design that you found on Appropedia, a connection made through Appropedia, or about what happened when you shared your knowledge or your designs on Appropedia. Have you used content at Appropedia at home, in the field, or in academia? Or did you post content at Appropedia and find an increase in interest in your work? Let us know about the difference it made!
If you have a story that is not-so-successful, don't worry; we want to know about that also - leave your story below.
How to add your story: Just click the Add your story link below, enter your story, and save. We'd love it if you first register on Appropedia, or leave some contact info, that makes it easier to keep in touch!
If you prefer to share your experience with us via email, send to: support
appropedia
org
Thank you so much for your support!
From Zimbabwe[edit | edit source]
(Received via email.)
"HELLO mer Lonny ! [I] am really involving and searching solution, to the positive idea to help women in Harare who suffered, by decorticating peanut shell by hands, stones, teeth. This ANCIENT METHOD perturbed my human senses. To telling you the truth, when I am founding this page, my feeling is like, I got THEIR SOLUTION..." --Teffera Tesfaye, Zimbabwean Father of five
Earthquake safe schoolhouse[edit | edit source]
- I'm part of a group of UC Davis engineering and landscape architect students who are designing a sustainable and seismically sound schoolhouse to be replicated throughout West Sumatra in an effort by Save the Children. I came to Appropedia to research building with bamboo and earthquake safe natural building. I found a great page on Earthquake-resistant housing (Practical Action Brief) which gave a case study on an area in Peru that had a big earthquake where only wattle and daub style housing held up well after the quake. When rebuilding many chose to implement wattle and daub for this reason and communities worked to build each others houses. I had been researching on wattle and daub construction and this article was great evidence of its seismic ability. I've found other helpful resources as well and love what Engineering 215 students (Engr205 World Shelters), at Humboldt State University are doing for their project - working with World Shelters World Shelters. - Kendra Cecil Olmos
Rocket Stove Opportunity[edit | edit source]
I just wanted to comment on the benefits of Appropedia. A requirement of my appropriate technology class at Humboldt State University was to create a Appropedia web page describing students individual appropriate technology projects. My project was the construction and design of a rocket stove or improved fuel stove. The article can be found under "CCAT Rocket Stove". In the discussion area of the rocket stove page I indicated my contact information and stated my desire to continue research with rocket stoves. Several months passed with no response. And then to my surprise a associate director with the department of mechanical engineering at Colorado State University contacted me. He stated that he has some opportunities and asked that I send my resume. This opportunity would not have presented itself had it not been for Appropedia. I want to thank everyone who has had a part in creating this truly helpful site. Thank You Lonny! --Dlm58 18:27, 5 December 2007 (PST) (moved from another location by --Lonny 19:25, 23 March 2010 (UTC))
Biogas design spreads[edit | edit source]
(A note from the Appropedia Foundation)
The creator of the biogas digester design at Home biogas system (Philippine BioDigesters) has emailed us, happy with the increased exposure for his design, and telling us about emails from people who have used the plans to build their own. His design has now been viewed 90,000 times here at Appropedia!
The Hexayurt[edit | edit source]
"Moving the Hexayurt Project to Appropedia was a really good thing for the Hexayurt Project. The immediate impact was I stopped spending time maintaining software and had more time to focus on the project itself. But we also got connected to all kinds of interesting people and other activities, like the OLPC project and we get a lot of value about being connected to all of the other projects on Appropedia. It's nice being able to say "oh, yes, that's on Appropedia" when discussing technologies or ideas - you know it's open to use, you know people are actually doing it. Appropedia *works*." - Vinay Gupta, creator of the Hexayurt. (Via email, 9 May 2008; used with permission.)
Translation: An experience of a lifetime[edit | edit source]
"Working on Appropedia was an experience of a lifetime. The site increased my knowledge of sustainable development greatly and expanded my understanding of the German language. Everyone should get involved in this site." - Dana Martz, student in Clarion University's translation project, Clarion students have an international impact for the environment.
Job opportunities from my Appropedia work[edit | edit source]
"I just wanted to comment on the benefits of Appropedia. A requirement of my appropriate technology class at Humboldt State University was to create a Appropedia web page describing students individual appropriate technology projects. My project was the construction and design of a rocket stove or improved fuel stove. The article can be found under "CCAT Rocket Stove". In the discussion area of the rocket stove page I indicated my contact information and stated my desire to continue research with rocket stoves. Several months passed with no response. And then to my surprise a associate director with the department of mechanical engineering at Colorado State University contacted me. He stated that he has some opportunities and asked that I send my resume. This opportunity would not have presented itself had it not been for Appropedia. I want to thank everyone who has had a part in creating this truly helpful site. Thank You Lonny!" - Daniel Moyer, December 2007. (Note left on the talk tab of the main page.)
Travel internship[edit | edit source]
See the Travel Interns blog posts by and about Appropedia interns. Note the posts by Liz Kimbrough, describing her experiences in Central and South America, documenting sustainability and development projects on Appropedia. --Chriswaterguy 22:06, 5 October 2011 (PDT)
Nuclear reactor science[edit | edit source]
I recently gave an "Engineering and the Global Environment" talk. I found the Appropedia reference to be the most informative one on why fast nuclear reactors are better at burning up more of the fuel. Odd how hard it is to track down. -- John August, March 18 (via email)