Rachel Pott
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Archive for technology

Peek Vision - Peek Retina smartphone camera
Posted by Rachel Pott 
· January 31, 2016 
· No Comments

Testing Your Eyes Is Now as Easy as Taking a Photo – How to Turn Your Smartphone into a Retinal Scanner

Posted on Collectively.

A tech-focused eye-health company, Peek, has had the foresight to design affordable smartphone apps that test for diseases such as cataracts and glaucoma

Testing your eyes is now as simple as taking a photo. With a smartphone, an inexpensive 3D-printed adapter and free software, eye care that typically requires expensive, bulky, fragile equipment can fit in your pocket and go anywhere in the world – even to the middle of the Antarctic. Designed with non-specialists in mind, Peek has developed a Portable Eye Examination Kit that can be operated with minimal training, while still providing accurate, high quality results.

Their greatest development is Peek Retina, an adapter that turns your smartphone into a retinal camera, using the flash to scan the retina for visual impairments and disease – such as cataracts and glaucoma, as well as diabetes and high blood pressure – with the accuracy of a $25,000 camera, for only $100.

An eye with an anterior polar cataract (Flickr: Community Eye Health)

An eye with an anterior polar cataract (Flickr: Community Eye Health)

The Peek Acuity app replaces the standard eye chart, and works even for those not familiar with English, while SightSim presents a live smartphone simulation of how someone with a visual impairment sees the world.

All the information from these tests can be stored and texted to remote clinicians for diagnosis. In developing countries, where there simply aren’t enough trained eye health staff to go out to every location, this helps more people to be diagnosed and connected with appropriate services.

“Our prime ambition is not to develop a company that’s hugely profitable. Our ambition is to eradicate blindness”

A few weeks ago, Peek formed the Peek Vision Foundation, a registered non-profit. From the start, Dr. Andrew Bastawrous, an ophthalmologist and the Peek research lead, said, “Our prime ambition is not to develop a company that’s hugely profitable. Our ambition is to eradicate blindness.” The technology has been designed, trialled and tested on the ground with healthcare workers, so it can complement – not replace – the hard work they’re already doing.

On top of a highly successful crowdfunding campaign, Peek continues to receive incredible backing and support from charities. MSF (Médecins Sans Frontières) and the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness are partnered with Peek to distribute the retinal camera adapter to clinics in Kenya, Botswana, Tanzania, Mali and beyond.

A school screening program, funded by Seeing is Believing, facilitated the vision tests of 20,0000 Kenyan children by their teachers in less than two weeks, and the program will be scaled-up and implemented in India. Support also comes from the Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Trust, a major sponsor of Peek’s work, as well as Combat Blindness International, Vision for a Nation Foundation and many more.

Initial public release of the adapter is set for April 2016. As the team continues to develop apps – tests for detecting cerebral malaria and colour blindness, and a pediatric vision test, ‘Peekaboo’, are in the works – it becomes more conceivable that the average person will be able to monitor and manage their ocular health far better in the near future.

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Categories : Collectively
Tags : blindness, cataracts, crowdfunding, eyecare, glaucoma, International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness, MSF, ophthalmology, Peek, Peek Retina, Peek Vision Foundation, Peekaboo, retina, smartphone, technology
Posted by Rachel Pott 
· December 18, 2015 
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SheFarms: Sustainable Women-led Farming

Posted on Innovate Development.

In the wake of the recent Paris Agreement and the call for developed nations to provide $100 billion annually to developed countries to combat climate change and foster greener economies, agriculture – the source of 33 percent of total greenhouse gas emissions – must be a focus.1 More specifically, women, who make up 43 percent of farmers in developing countries, must be a focus.

Women have disproportionately less access to productive resources and opportunities, reducing their yields by 20-30 percent.2 For agriculture to develop, women must be able to access information, training and tools, including business expertise to facilitate the sustainable and successful growth of their businesses. SheFarms, recognizing the negative impact of this gendered gap, is developing a one-stop-shop application for women farmers across the developing world, providing information and resources in collaboration with local nonprofits.

SheFarms is an agri-tech startup that aims to combat climate change, food scarcity and gender inequality by empowering and investing in women farmers. Communities will be able to access all this information through the SheFarms app, while on-the-ground partnerships will facilitate the provision of farming tools and fertilizers. Currently, a team of five is behind the business, reaching from the Netherlands – with founder Tiambi Simms and co-founder Margot Barreveld, in charge of overall strategy, business direction, funding and operations – to Botswana and Zimbabwe with Moesi Modikwa, Kudzai Bushu and Kwasi Darkwa, for their back-end and business development.

 

Core Functionalities

Three core functionalities guide SheFarms: social, environmental and economic. Socially, the app provides an interface for creating and connecting communities across the developing world. Individuals can build profiles, ask each other questions and share best-practices, and nonprofits can see feedback and compare the experiences of different women, allowing them to measure their impact and identify specific challenges the women face. As the customer base grows, the information will become more collaborative, with the opportunity to rank the effectiveness of information.

Environmentally, the app will provide information on sustainable farming practices, including soil management, mitigation and biodiversity, all of which will also help increase crop yields. Climate forecasting information will help farmers be better prepared for the rainy and dry seasons.

As 60 percent of African farmers trade few or no products, economic information is an important element.3 Speaking with the women, SheFarms heard that “Yes, we’re small holder-farmers, but we want to be able to expand,” says Simms. “SheFarms gives women in these rural communities, these marginalized communities, a voice.” By providing up-to-date market prices, they’re able to be more entrepreneurial. “They have more negotiating power, more buying power. And that’s increasing the economy, increasing their confidence in who they are as women.”

SheFarms recognizes that their information must be communicated in a culturally-sensitive and accessible format, with respect for traditional farming practices, albeit an extremely difficult balance to achieve. A couple other organizations are providing similar information, but not all-inclusively and often with the use of text messages, which are inaccessible to illiterate individuals, the majority of whom are women. Much of their information will be communicated with the assistance of pictograms and videos, to help minimize misinterpretation.

 

Community Representation

SheFarms teamThe success of their business is also dependent upon trusting relationships with women farmers. At this stage, and for the next 5-10 years, they remain largely dependent on nonprofits, who have already developed a level of legitimacy and representation within the communities. Nonprofits will be able to purchase a license for the SheFarms app, while the women farmers will pay a small fee every four months or so (the cost has not yet been released).

They are currently in negotiations with their first partner, who will be able to test and provide feedback on the first working prototype. One challenge will be negotiating the limited separation between SheFarms and the non-profits, as well as securing funding in a notoriously unstable sector.

The business had the opportunity to develop through business competitions, namely the ClimateLaunchpad and the AMPION Venture Bus (more information here). Both of these avenues provided opportunities for SheFarms build their core team, gain exposure and develop their business model – with mentorship from serial entrepreneurs and investors.

While the team’s current focus is on incrementally introducing their business, their aims are long-term and expansive, with the knowledge that changing behaviours will take time. Says Simms, “SheFarms is going to have a very big impact. And it’s not going to be immediate, but it is going to happen.” The app – they have a working demo at the moment – will be piloted in English-speaking African countries at the start of 2016, with the aim of expanding across at least three continents, with multiple languages, in the next three years.

To learn more about SheFarms, or to help build and grow with the business, visit the SheFarms Facebook page.

  1. http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/paris-agreement-key-climate-points-1.3362500 ↩
  2.  http://www.fao.org/sofa/gender/key-facts/en/ ↩
  3.  http://www.africa-newsroom.com/press/agritech-is-the-future-of-farming-the-german-ministry-of-international-cooperation-and-development-supports-the-creation-of-agriculture-startups-in-southern-africa?lang=en ↩

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Categories : Innovate Development
Tags : AMPION, app, biodiversity, climate change, ClimateLaunchpad, COP21, entrepreneurs, farming, food scarcity, Paris Agreement, SheFarms, smartphone, soil management, sustainability, technology, Women
IKO Prosthetic System - Carlos Arturo Torres
Posted by Rachel Pott 
· November 13, 2015 
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How These Kids Are Reclaiming Their Childhoods – by Designing Their Own Limbs with Lego

Posted on Collectively.

A few months ago, the world’s fascination with Lego took an inspiring new twist. Collectively’s Rachel Pott checks in for a progress report on Iko Creative System’s amazing project – to empower amputee kids by turning prosthetics into playtime

Growing up is tough but for children with disabilities, the process is even more challenging. Coping with the loss of a limb makes children grow up far too fast, at a crucial time for developing self-esteem, confidence and social skills. When you’re constantly noticed for being different, it just makes it harder.

But what if there was a way to give kids back their childhood, to transform their missing limb with fun and imagination, and to address the social stigma that makes growing up with a disability more challenging? The award-winning Iko Creative System is kick-starting this process by allowing kids to design, build and programme their own prosthetic aids out of Lego.

Iko is a prosthetic arm that children can customize using Lego bricks and pieces. Designed by Chicago-based designer Carlos Arturo Torres, as part of his grad work at the Umeå Institute of Design in Sweden, the project is a collaboration with Cirec, a physical rehabilitation centre in his native Colombia, and Lego’s Future Lab.

 

Hand or spaceship?

Iko Creative Systems Arm - Carlos Arturo TorresThe prosthesis itself is made up of three parts: an interface with a custom-made socket, sensors and a battery; the muscle section with the engine and processor; and a hand, which can be switched out for any Lego design, leaving it “up to [the child] to decide when they want a hand and when they want a spaceship”.

This project hit the news in the summer, but since then, Iko has been re-evaluating and refining the focus of its business plan, creating a non-profit to address the physical, social and psychological aspects of disability. Instead of simply a focus on creating augmented ability for children, Iko’s prosthetics are making technology – and all those who interact with it – a little more humane.

The aim is to design a creative set for schools that can form the basis of a partnership between a school’s science club and a child with a prosthesis. In purchasing a set, the school would essentially donate a piece of prosthetic tech to a child in their school, or even another city or country. “They can start learning and creating new stuff all about robotics, technology, having fun and all using Lego Mindstorms,” says Torres.

Dario with a Lego backhoe arm - Carlos Arturo Torres - Iko Creative Systems

Thanks to a generous donation, the first ten arms and kits will be ready by April 2016.

 

Next step: Luke Skywalker technology

The third prototype will have myoelectric sensors, which attach to your skin to read the electrical activity of your muscles and send signals through the prosthetic device. The timeline is dependent how quickly Iko can fund all of the tests, but if everything goes fine with the second test, says Torres, “we can use it to leverage more donations, more funding – we could have by the end of next year a third version, almost finished prototype.”

“Functionality can be one single brick, as long as you imagine that it’s an airplane and you’re a captain”

When the Iko Creative System was first envisioned, the aim was to create a single product. However, through trials and tests, Torres realised “the project also touches on this really different part of awareness”. Prosthetics has always had two goals – to restore a level of physical functionality and to create a design that looks “normal.” But what if prosthetics could be a creative and social tool for an entire community and eliminate stigma by having children without disabilities help children with disabilities reintegrate into society.

The question is whether, on a large scale, the Iko will be able to narrow the gap between our views of ability and disability. Trials have shown this to be a strong possibility. The first prototype was tested on Dario, an eight-year-old boy he was introduced to at Cirec. Another boy who said he felt bad for Dario, says Torres, registered amazement and jealousy when they began to build a spaceship for Dario’s arm.

Dario with a Lego arm - Carlos Arturo Torres - Iko Creative Systems

This sense of empathy and collaboration was repeated when Iko conducted its first awareness campaign in schools. When students were asked to donate one of their Lego pieces to a friend or sibling, the answer was “No.” But after seeing a video of the Iko tech in action, “all of them they said yes right away. They didn’t hesitate for a second.”

 

Lego and landmines

Bringing in Lego – a toy that fosters sociability – generates playfulness and creativity, allowing kids and those around them to reimagine disability. “OK, you don’t have an arm, forget about it, you can have anything you want,” says Torres. The possibilities are endless, from a space antenna to a medieval shield to a dollhouse. The prosthesis has full integration with Lego Mindstorms, with sets meant for learning robotics and programming, allowing for sensors and lights. Down the road, there’s room for even more collaboration – perhaps with Nintendo, General Electric or even Hot Wheels.

Prosthetic components - Carlos Arturo Torres - Iko Creative Systems

Lego loves the project and sees in it a “new level of pride of creation, [where] once you start playing with it… you can build with a huge purpose, which is building it for someone else. You can be part of that someone else.” Torres is currently working out a way in which the company can continue to be involved with and invest in Iko.

The project is currently based in Colombia, although Torres would like to see it branch out to other countries. Colombia, where Torres grew up, is one of the world’s most heavily landmine-laden countries. Over the past 15 years, more than 11,000 people have been injured or killed by landmines. This strong need for affordable prostheses makes it a perfect place to start.

With 3D printing technology, Torres estimates the final cost for an Iko prosthesis – with those myoelectric sensors – will be around $4,000 (£2,600), with a recurring fee of $1,500 for replacement sockets as the child grows. This is almost a tenth of what the cheapest myoelectric sensor prosthesis currently costs.

Behind the Scenes - Iko Creative Systems - Torres, right, with a family

Too much heart?

Iko is changing the way people define ‘functional’ and ‘normal’. “Functionality is not what people think it is,” says Torres. Functionality doesn’t really have to deal with having a super Iron Man-like hand that can have lots of strength and move in non-human ways. Functionality can be just one single brick, as long as you image that it’s an airplane and you’re a captain.” Instead of deciding what is best for the child, Iko helps children build their creativity, knowledge and problem-solving to make that decision for themselves.

From a business and investors standpoint, Torres has often been told, “You have too much heart.” But his passion for intelligently redefining disability, and allowing children to rediscover their childhood, is what makes Iko’s prosthetic aids really click.

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Categories : Collectively
Tags : amputee, awareness, Carlos Arturo Torres, CIREC, Colombia, creativity, IKO Creative System, landmines, Lego, LEGO Future Lab, prosthetics, technology
Smog Free Tower - Smog Ring
Posted by Rachel Pott 
· October 26, 2015 
· No Comments

How to Turn Smog into Gemstones

Posted on Innovate Development.

The world’s largest air purifier, the Smog Free Tower, is turning smog into gem stones, allowing you to wear – instead of breathe in – pollution. Designed by Daan Roosegaarde, of Dutch Studio Roosegaarde, this 7 metre tall tower removes the pollutants from over 30,000 cubic meters of air per hour before compressing the fine particulates of smog into black gems.

Presented in rings or cufflinks, each gem contains the smog from 1000m3 of air. They are currently available for purchase through the studio.

Unlike regular air filters, the Smog Free Tower is capable of removing even the smallest – and most dangerous – airborne pollutants.1 Most air pollution deaths are caused by particles small enough to be inhaled deep into the lungs, resulting in heart attacks, strokes, lung cancer and respiratory diseases.2 In an outdoor environment, the filters are capable of removing 60 percent of the nanoparticles, extending to 70 percent indoors.3

The technology itself is safe and tested, having been used in many hospitals. To collect the smog particles, the tower is charged with a small positive current, sending positive ions into the air. The ions attach to the dust and are then drawn to a negatively charged counter electrode, while the clean air is released into the outside atmosphere. The entire system runs on 1400 watts of green wind energy, comparable to that of a water boiler.4

 

Successful Prototype

The first prototype, funded by grants from the mayor and local governments, was unveiled just last month outside of Roosegaarde’s Rotterdam studio. As an energy port city, CO2 emissions in Rotterdam are among the highest in the world. A 2011 study by the International Institute for Environmental Development showed Rotterdam’s emissions reached 29.8 tons of CO2 per capita, nearly triple Shanghai’s 11.2 tons per capita.5 It is a fitting innovation for a city actively aiming to achieve a 50 percent reduction in emissions by 2025 (compared to 1990 levels).

Air pollution, of course, is not constrained to one city. Outdoor air pollution kills over 3.3 million people a year, a rate set to double by 2050 if no action is taken. It has now surpassed poor sanitation and a lack of clean drinking water as the biggest environmental cause of premature death.6

To promote the Smog Free Tower around the world, funds from the organization’s Kickstarter campaign – which successfully raised 113,153 euros – will go towards publicizing and transporting the tower to various cities, including its next location: Beijing. Negotiations are currently in place in Mumbai, Paris and Kazakhstan, with interested parties in Japan, Malaysia, South Korea, Vietnam, Pakistan, the Philippines and Sri Lanka.7

 

A Change in Perspective

Smog Free Tower in placeOne concern is whether the presence of such a tower will detract from efforts to tackle the causes of air pollution. However, the aim of the tower isn’t simply to reduce pollution, but to prompt a change in perspective. Says Roosegaarde, “it’s really weird that we accept [pollution] as something normal, and take it for granted.”8 Visiting the area around the tower provides “a sensory experience of a clean future, a place where people can experience clean air.” Roosegaarde hopes that the Smog Free Tower will serve as motivation and inspiration for individuals, companies, cities and nonprofit organizations.

The cost of the tower and its filters have not yet been released to the public. Current filters of this caliber range from 1,600 euros to 118,000 euros.9 These are costs that could, theoretically, be recovered through the sale of the Smog Free gems.

Even if unfeasible for entire cities, the opportunity to experience clear air, and see how much it differs from that which we’re currently breathing, is more than welcome.

To learn more about the Smog Free Project, visit their website or Facebook page, or watch a video here.

  1.  http://gizmodo.com/the-largest-air-purifier-ever-built-sucks-up-smog-and-t-1729298355?utm_campaign=socialflow_gizmodo_facebook&utm_source=gizmodo_facebook&utm_medium=socialflow ↩
  2.  http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/sep/16/more-people-die-from-air-pollution-than-malaria-and-hivaids-new-study-shows ↩
  3.  http://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/2015/sep/19/worlds-first-smog-filtering-tower-on-tour-daan-roosegaarde-air-pollution ↩
  4.  http://gizmodo.com/the-largest-air-purifier-ever-built-sucks-up-smog-and-t-1729298355?utm_campaign=socialflow_gizmodo_facebook&utm_source=gizmodo_facebook&utm_medium=socialflow ↩
  5.  http://www.dutchdailynews.com/rotterdam-most-polluting-cities/ ↩
  6.  http://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/sites/9789264210448-sum-en/index.html?contentType=%2fns%2fSummary&itemId=%2fcontent%2fsummary%2f9789264210448-sum-en&mimeType=text%2fhtml&containerItemId=%2fcontent%2fbook%2f9789264210448-en&accessItemIds= ↩
  7.  https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1777606920/the-smog-free-tower ↩
  8.  http://gizmodo.com/the-largest-air-purifier-ever-built-sucks-up-smog-and-t-1729298355?utm_campaign=socialflow_gizmodo_facebook&utm_source=gizmodo_facebook&utm_medium=socialflow ↩
  9.  http://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/2015/sep/19/worlds-first-smog-filtering-tower-on-tour-daan-roosegaarde-air-pollution ↩

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Categories : Innovate Development
Tags : air filters, clean air, climate change, CO2 emissions, Netherlands, pollution, Rotterdam, smog, Studio Roosegaarde, technology
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