BloomBox Solar Learning Labs for Girls' Education
BloomBox Design Labs
(
Private sector
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#SDGAction53928
Description
BloomBox Design Labs brings access to high-quality STEAM education to secondary schools without access to electricity or technology, including in rural and remote and off-grid environments. The BloomBox initiative uses a design thinking approach to create adaptive, modular, secure, solar-powered, state-of-the-art STEAM learning infrastructure. BloomBoxes are inviting, inclusive indoor-outdoor learning spaces, built from upcycled shipping containers with retractable solar roof systems, and equipped with digital multimedia educational resources that enable students to define and pursue their passions in STEAM fields. The objective of BloomBox Design Labs is to make high quality education accessible to every student, and to help close socioeconomic and gender disparities in STEAM fields.
https://www.bloomboxdesignlabs.com/
The first ever BloomBox (BB) was designed and built by Sofie Roux and her team in Vancouver, Canada. All the BloomBoxes to follow have been built from her refined and patented designs in South Africa.
The implementation methodology is summarized below.
1- Site is determined by local BloomBox team, in coordination with potential partner site - based on several factors including:
a) Proximity to secondary school or community center serving surrounding secondary school students
b) Minimum number of students 400+
c) Educators available and interested in teaching students using computers
d) Leader identified to oversee daily, weekly, monthly, and annual care and management of BB
e) Security of chosen site - fencing and security guard
2- Once site is determined, fundraising begins
3- Shipping container manufacturing and site-specific configuration , take place in South Africa. Design and build considerations include integration with existing education infrastructure, geographic position (to optimize sunlight exposure), and creation of inclusive spaces that accommodate projected use. The patented retractable solar roof system (RSRS), which opens like a flower in the day to expose solar panels to the sun and closes at night for security, increases the transportability, modularity, security, and sustainability of the BB.
4- BB and RSRS transported to Malawi from South Africa
5- Local receiving team begins construction of concrete foundation before BB arrival
6- Installation team meets shipment to begin assembly
7- Electrical system and all technology tested
8- Teacher orientation to the BB occurs concurrently with build and testing
9- This process takes 12 weeks, after which solar system system and educational server use are remotely monitored on an ongoing basis
10- SIte leaders, local BB Team, and BB North America Team meet monthly remotely, and as needed
11- Surveys are administered at each site and reviewed to gauge student, educator, and site leadership use, satisfaction, and evolving educational requirements
The lab serves students in the area with 20 laptop computers connected to a remote access server with a rich library of educational resources. The classroom space itself is well lit, with mobile furniture, storage, teacher supplies, and a back-up generator to ensure learning can continue even in unexpected environmental conditions. Surveys of student experience are taken monthly following installation of the lab, and student content is constantly updated based on student interest and teacher requests.
BloomBox Design Labs has been successful due to deep partnerships built and maintained over years. Malawi team leads include Peter Kauya, a former Director of New Beginnings Secondary School, the site of the first BB installation, and Davis Galero, community leader and member of partner organization Water Wells for Africa for the past 20 years. Our leads visit interested schools, educational organizations, community centers, and sites to meet with local leaders and evaluate the potential for a BloomBox deployment. Once a site is selected, Malawi government approval through the Government of Malawi and Ministry of Homeland Security is obtained. Partner organizations, such as the UNHCR and PLAN International join the conversation for sustainability of the initiative. Once on the ground, teachers and local leaders are trained with the technology in a two day training course, with monthly expert visits for any follow up questions. Laptops are monitored remotely in the months to follow. The local BB implementation team has gained significant expertise in logistics, construction, and photovoltaic installation.
BloomBox Design Labs was founded by Sofie Roux, a Stanford University undergraduate student, and now is registered as a US Public Benefit Company. Her team has grown to include experts and technicians in Canada, South Africa, and Malawi. BloomBoxes are designed by Sofie Roux, manufactured completely within the Southern African Development Community, and shipped to remote locations in Malawi. BloomBoxes are installed at partner schools or sites selected by local leadership teams in Malawi, or by the UNHCR, and approved by the Malawi Government. Long term success of installed BloomBox labs is ensured by formation of local community leadership teams that take ownership and oversee BloomBox operations.
Over the past three years, BloomBox installations have yielded tangible results. BloomBox has employed over 50 people, 80% of whom live in the South African Development Community (South Africa and Malawi). By moving the construction process to the SADC, most parts of the BloomBox are now sourced in South Africa, and the solar array is sourced from Malawi distributors.
BloomBox Design Labs brings a design thinking approach to educational access to create tailored solutions based on local needs. Our approach includes the integration of off-grid solar power; modular architecture that complements existing infrastructure; design of indoor-outdoor spaces to create welcoming learning environments; use of computers, servers and other educational technologies to support local educational curricula; and frequent measurement and evaluation of results. We have also patented aspects of the design, including a retractable solar roof system to increase the security and transportability of our BloomBoxes, and that may have commercial applications beyond education infrastructure. With three BloomBoxes installed so far, serving over 5,000 students, we have seen evidence of changed educational experience including:
- Solar power use data suggesting heavy daily computer use at schools that until BloomBox installation did not have access to electricity or computers
- Educational server data showing deep and wide use of educational resources and student research
- Survey data that shows a high degree of satisfaction among students and educators alike, and a desire for more use of the labs for all aspects of the educational curriculum
- Anecdotal data that standardized test scores increase following BloomBox installation
We have literally seen new worlds open up to students who had never had access to technology before.
UNHCR, PLAN International, Malawi Ministry of Education (Science, Technology and Innovation), Malawi Ministry of Homeland Security, Fountain of Hope Youth Center, Water Wells for Africa, Othakarhaka Foundation, New Beginnings Secondary School
SDGS & Targets
Goal 4
Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all
4.1
By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys complete free, equitable and quality primary and secondary education leading to relevant and effective learning outcomes
4.1.1
Proportion of children and young people (a) in grades 2/3; (b) at the end of primary; and (c) at the end of lower secondary achieving at least a minimum proficiency level in (i) reading and (ii) mathematics, by sex
4.1.2
Completion rate (primary education, lower secondary education, upper secondary education)
4.2
By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys have access to quality early childhood development, care and pre-primary education so that they are ready for primary education
4.2.1
Proportion of children aged 24–59 months who are developmentally on track in health, learning and psychosocial well-being, by sex
4.2.2
Participation rate in organized learning (one year before the official primary entry age), by sex
4.3
By 2030, ensure equal access for all women and men to affordable and quality technical, vocational and tertiary education, including university
4.3.1
Participation rate of youth and adults in formal and non-formal education and training in the previous 12 months, by sex
4.4
By 2030, substantially increase the number of youth and adults who have relevant skills, including technical and vocational skills, for employment, decent jobs and entrepreneurship
4.4.1
Proportion of youth and adults with information and communications technology (ICT) skills, by type of skill
4.5
4.5.1
Parity indices (female/male, rural/urban, bottom/top wealth quintile and others such as disability status, indigenous peoples and conflict-affected, as data become available) for all education indicators on this list that can be disaggregated
4.6
By 2030, ensure that all youth and a substantial proportion of adults, both men and women, achieve literacy and numeracy
4.6.1
Proportion of population in a given age group achieving at least a fixed level of proficiency in functional (a) literacy and (b) numeracy skills, by sex
4.7
By 2030, ensure that all learners acquire the knowledge and skills needed to promote sustainable development, including, among others, through education for sustainable development and sustainable lifestyles, human rights, gender equality, promotion of a culture of peace and non-violence, global citizenship and appreciation of cultural diversity and of culture’s contribution to sustainable development
4.7.1
Extent to which (i) global citizenship education and (ii) education for sustainable development are mainstreamed in (a) national education policies; (b) curricula; (c) teacher education and (d) student assessment
4.a
Build and upgrade education facilities that are child, disability and gender sensitive and provide safe, non-violent, inclusive and effective learning environments for all
4.a.1
Proportion of schools offering basic services, by type of service
4.b
4.b.1
Volume of official development assistance flows for scholarships by sector and type of study
4.c
By 2030, substantially increase the supply of qualified teachers, including through international cooperation for teacher training in developing countries, especially least developed countries and small island developing States
4.c.1
Proportion of teachers with the minimum required qualifications, by education level
Goal 5
Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls
5.1
End all forms of discrimination against all women and girls everywhere
5.1.1
Whether or not legal frameworks are in place to promote, enforce and monitor equality and non‑discrimination on the basis of sex
5.2
5.2.1
Proportion of ever-partnered women and girls aged 15 years and older subjected to physical, sexual or psychological violence by a current or former intimate partner in the previous 12 months, by form of violence and by age
5.2.2
Proportion of women and girls aged 15 years and older subjected to sexual violence by persons other than an intimate partner in the previous 12 months, by age and place of occurrence
5.3
5.3.1
Proportion of women aged 20-24 years who were married or in a union before age 15 and before age 18
5.3.2
Proportion of girls and women aged 15-49 years who have undergone female genital mutilation/cutting, by age
5.4
Recognize and value unpaid care and domestic work through the provision of public services, infrastructure and social protection policies and the promotion of shared responsibility within the household and the family as nationally appropriate
5.4.1
Proportion of time spent on unpaid domestic and care work, by sex, age and location
5.5
Ensure women’s full and effective participation and equal opportunities for leadership at all levels of decision-making in political, economic and public life
5.5.1
Proportion of seats held by women in (a) national parliaments and (b) local governments
5.5.2
Proportion of women in managerial positions
5.6
Ensure universal access to sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights as agreed in accordance with the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development and the Beijing Platform for Action and the outcome documents of their review conferences
5.6.1
Proportion of women aged 15-49 years who make their own informed decisions regarding sexual relations, contraceptive use and reproductive health care
5.6.2
Number of countries with laws and regulations that guarantee full and equal access to women and men aged 15 years and older to sexual and reproductive health care, information and education
5.a
Undertake reforms to give women equal rights to economic resources, as well as access to ownership and control over land and other forms of property, financial services, inheritance and natural resources, in accordance with national laws
5.a.1
(a) Proportion of total agricultural population with ownership or secure rights over agricultural land, by sex; and (b) share of women among owners or rights-bearers of agricultural land, by type of tenure
5.a.2
Proportion of countries where the legal framework (including customary law) guarantees women’s equal rights to land ownership and/or control
5.b
5.b.1
Proportion of individuals who own a mobile telephone, by sex
5.c
Adopt and strengthen sound policies and enforceable legislation for the promotion of gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls at all levels
5.c.1
Proportion of countries with systems to track and make public allocations for gender equality and women’s empowerment
Goal 7
Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all
7.1
By 2030, ensure universal access to affordable, reliable and modern energy services
7.1.1
Proportion of population with access to electricity
7.1.2
Proportion of population with primary reliance on clean fuels and technology
7.2
7.2.1
Renewable energy share in the total final energy consumption
7.3
7.3.1
Energy intensity measured in terms of primary energy and GDP
7.a
7.a.1
International financial flows to developing countries in support of clean energy research and development and renewable energy production, including in hybrid systems
7.b
By 2030, expand infrastructure and upgrade technology for supplying modern and sustainable energy services for all in developing countries, in particular least developed countries, small island developing States, and land-locked developing countries, in accordance with their respective programmes of support
7.b.1
Installed renewable energy-generating capacity in developing and developed countries (in watts per capita)
Goal 9
Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation
9.1
9.1.1
Proportion of the rural population who live within 2 km of an all-season road
9.1.2
Passenger and freight volumes, by mode of transport
9.2
Promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and, by 2030, significantly raise industry’s share of employment and gross domestic product, in line with national circumstances, and double its share in least developed countries
9.2.1
Manufacturing value added as a proportion of GDP and per capita
9.2.2
Manufacturing employment as a proportion of total employment
9.3
9.3.1
Proportion of small-scale industries in total industry value added
9.3.2
Proportion of small-scale industries with a loan or line of credit
9.4
By 2030, upgrade infrastructure and retrofit industries to make them sustainable, with increased resource-use efficiency and greater adoption of clean and environmentally sound technologies and industrial processes, with all countries taking action in accordance with their respective capabilities
9.4.1
CO2 emission per unit of value added
9.5
9.5.1
Research and development expenditure as a proportion of GDP
9.5.2
Researchers (in full-time equivalent) per million inhabitants
9.a
9.a.1
Total official international support (official development assistance plus other official flows) to infrastructure
9.b
9.b.1
Proportion of medium and high-tech industry value added in total value added
9.c
Significantly increase access to information and communications technology and strive to provide universal and affordable access to the Internet in least developed countries by 2020
9.c.1
Proportion of population covered by a mobile network, by technology
Goal 11
Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable
11.1
By 2030, ensure access for all to adequate, safe and affordable housing and basic services and upgrade slums
11.1.1
Proportion of urban population living in slums, informal settlements or inadequate housing
11.2
11.2.1
Proportion of population that has convenient access to public transport, by sex, age and persons with disabilities
11.3
11.3.1
Ratio of land consumption rate to population growth rate
11.3.2
Proportion of cities with a direct participation structure of civil society in urban planning and management that operate regularly and democratically
11.4
Strengthen efforts to protect and safeguard the world’s cultural and natural heritage
11.4.1
Total per capita expenditure on the preservation, protection and conservation of all cultural and natural heritage, by source of funding (public, private), type of heritage (cultural, natural) and level of government (national, regional, and local/municipal)
11.5
By 2030, significantly reduce the number of deaths and the number of people affected and substantially decrease the direct economic losses relative to global gross domestic product caused by disasters, including water-related disasters, with a focus on protecting the poor and people in vulnerable situations
11.5.1
Number of deaths, missing persons and directly affected persons attributed to disasters per 100,000 population
11.5.2
Direct economic loss attributed to disasters in relation to global domestic product (GDP)
11.5.3
(a) Damage to critical infrastructure and (b) number of disruptions to basic services, attributed to disasters
11.6
By 2030, reduce the adverse per capita environmental impact of cities, including by paying special attention to air quality and municipal and other waste management
11.6.1
Proportion of municipal solid waste collected and managed in controlled facilities out of total municipal waste generated, by cities
11.6.2
Annual mean levels of fine particulate matter (e.g. PM2.5 and PM10) in cities (population weighted)
11.7
11.7.1
Average share of the built-up area of cities that is open space for public use for all, by sex, age and persons with disabilities
11.7.2
Proportion of persons victim of non-sexual or sexual harassment, by sex, age, disability status and place of occurrence, in the previous 12 months
11.a
Support positive economic, social and environmental links between urban, peri-urban and rural areas by strengthening national and regional development planning
11.a.1
Number of countries that have national urban policies or regional development plans that (a) respond to population dynamics; (b) ensure balanced territorial development; and (c) increase local fiscal space
11.b
By 2020, substantially increase the number of cities and human settlements adopting and implementing integrated policies and plans towards inclusion, resource efficiency, mitigation and adaptation to climate change, resilience to disasters, and develop and implement, in line with the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030, holistic disaster risk management at all levels
11.b.1
Number of countries that adopt and implement national disaster risk reduction strategies in line with the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030
11.b.2
Proportion of local governments that adopt and implement local disaster risk reduction strategies in line with national disaster risk reduction strategies
11.c
Support least developed countries, including through financial and technical assistance, in building sustainable and resilient buildings utilizing local materials
Goal 13
Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts
13.1
Strengthen resilience and adaptive capacity to climate-related hazards and natural disasters in all countries
13.1.1
Number of deaths, missing persons and directly affected persons attributed to disasters per 100,000 population
13.1.2
Number of countries that adopt and implement national disaster risk reduction strategies in line with the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030
13.1.3
Proportion of local governments that adopt and implement local disaster risk reduction strategies in line with national disaster risk reduction strategies
13.2
Integrate climate change measures into national policies, strategies and planning
13.2.1
Number of countries with nationally determined contributions, long-term strategies, national adaptation plans and adaptation communications, as reported to the secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
13.2.2
Total greenhouse gas emissions per year
13.3
Improve education, awareness-raising and human and institutional capacity on climate change mitigation, adaptation, impact reduction and early warning
13.3.1
Extent to which (i) global citizenship education and (ii) education for sustainable development are mainstreamed in (a) national education policies; (b) curricula; (c) teacher education; and (d) student assessment
13.a
Implement the commitment undertaken by developed-country parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change to a goal of mobilizing jointly $100 billion annually by 2020 from all sources to address the needs of developing countries in the context of meaningful mitigation actions and transparency on implementation and fully operationalize the Green Climate Fund through its capitalization as soon as possible
13.a.1
Amounts provided and mobilized in United States dollars per year in relation to the continued existing collective mobilization goal of the $100 billion commitment through to 2025
13.b
Promote mechanisms for raising capacity for effective climate change-related planning and management in least developed countries and small island developing States, including focusing on women, youth and local and marginalized communities
13.b.1
Number of least developed countries and small island developing States with nationally determined contributions, long-term strategies, national adaptation plans and adaptation communications, as reported to the secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
SDG 14 targets covered
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So far, the BloomBox Initiative has built educational capacity that has benefited thousands of students.
Installation of Computer Lab - Baphumelele Childrens’ Home, Khayelitsha, SA
Installation of sanitary pad machine to promote girls’ school attendance - Fountain of Hope Youth Center, Cape Town, SA
BloomBox 1.0 - New Beginnings Secondary School, Blantyre, MW
BloomBox 2.0 - Othakarhaka Foundation, Mulanje, MW
BloomBox 3.0 - Dzaleka Refugee Camp, Dzaleka, MW
We have had the privilege of working with the Malawi Ministry of Education (Science, Technology, and Innovation) and to receive their critical guidance, and their approval to scale the BloomBox to 70 schools in Malawi.
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Contact Information
Sofie Roux, Founder and CEO of BloomBox Design Labs