University of Colorado at Boulder, $20,000

A battery unit designed for use in Haiti that can be charged from either 220 V sources (the grid, diesel generators) or direct current sources (solar panels). 

University of Virginia, $5,000

A major bottleneck in delivering essential human services in resource-poor settings is a lack of communication between communities and service partners. Community members typically lack access to internet and smartphones and are deterred by the upfront cost of calling or texting on a basic cell phone. As a result of these technological and economic barriers, community members don’t proactively message their respective service partners.

This team is developing HiComm, a communication platform that links service partners to communities-in-need around the world. HiComm provides SMS-based, free-to-end-user access to community members and a fully functional web interface for smartphone and internet users. The system’s features include group messaging, local SMS-based searches, and remote data entry.

Harding University, $5,000

Malnutrition and food scarcity affects millions. The Mother-Administered Nutritive Aid (MANA) Foundation produces a ready-to-eat peanut butter paste that can save the life of a starving child. While it has been proven effective in deployments to over 17 countries, it’s produced in one location in the US and then shipped in large quantities worldwide, which is expensive and ultimately fails to reach many starving children. MANAMaker is a portable, low-cost device that produces the same MANA food paste to the same quality standards but can be produced on-site as demand arises using primarily local products.

Operating cold storage spaces for perishable food is challenging and costly in areas with unreliable grid power. Promethean Power Systems designs and manufactures refrigeration systems for cold-storage and milk-chilling applications in off-grid and partially electrified areas of developing countries. To date, the company has sold over 500 units and served over 25,000 farmers in India. The team from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) participated in VentureWell’s E-Team program in 2007. VentureWell invested in the company in 2012.

promethean-power.com

University of Colorado Boulder, $5,000

This team is developing a solar drip irrigation system for small-plot farmers around the world. Current small-plot farming practices depend on the use of costly diesel engines to run irrigation pumps to water fields. The inefficiency of diesel has caused a shift towards drip irrigation on a global scale, which has led to an increase in crop yield and a decrease in water usage. These decreases have paved the way for SolVia Solar, a solar-concentrated drip irrigation system. While having a higher initial cost than current diesel engine pumps, the reliability and low maintenance costs of a concentrated solar system could provide both financial and crop yield benefits.

Brown University, $5,000

TextUp is a text messaging platform seeking to improve the outcomes of the homeless and near-homeless served by social service providers through improved channels of communication. By aggregating information on a consolidated platform, TextUp enables providers (e.g., shelters and meal sites) to report and adjust service availabilities as well as send text alerts with pertinent information. Constituents will be able to access this data in real time for informed decision-making.