Local students from St Olaf (in Northfield, Minnesota) recently went to Nicaragua to take health surveys of the local population in Jalapa, Nicaragua. I think this closely ties to what we hope to see through our own organization, Bright New Ideas. We hope to build awareness of the situation in Nicaragua. Many of the students traveling there had their first experiences with poverty. Continue Reading
Today’s La Prensa (national Nicaraguan newspaper) reports that the working age population grew by 70,000 people between 2001 and 2005. It’s estimated that by 2010, an additional 118,000 new workers will come of age to enter the workforce. Continue Reading
I came across this article about William Walker, the King of Nicaragua in the 1850’s. It’s an interesting look at history and events that not many people know about it. I also think it’s important to know the previous history of the United States in Nicaragua to hone our communications techniques in talking to local populations. To many people in Nicaragua, they know the intimate details of US involvement in their country. For us to ignore the historical background of the interactions of the two countries would put us at a significant disadvantage when talking to Nicaraguans. Rest assured, we are doing all the research we can on solar lighting as well as the culture and history of the country.
At Bright New Ideas, we have been talking about how to increase awareness of the problem and visibility of our organization. In other words, we think that it is very important for us to not only help those in Nicaragua, but also increase awareness of the problem of lacking a sustainable, healthy, and cheap lighting source. The problem that we face is this: how do we cut through the incredible amount of information on the internet? How can we make ourselves unique? Continue Reading
Category : Education & New Ideas for Education, New Health Ideas
Today we’re taking the topics of health, education and energy – squeezing it together with our hands into a sticky ball and seeing what kind of juices come out. It appears that we have screwed up so bad in providing children poisoned beef through a national school lunch program. According to Blomberg.com, “The Westland/Hallmark Meat Co., the supplier of ground beef to U.S. school lunch programs, recalled a record 143.4 million pounds of meat after the government said it was unfit for humans.” This was in reaction to a video posted online by a member of the humane society, shown in an AP Report.
You might ask: Why is light at night such a big deal? After all, it’s romantic when the sun goes down in the countryside. What advantage could having solar lamps offer these Nicaraguan families?
Here are 5 ways that light enriches life: Continue Reading
Anoka-Hennepin County Schools has invited Patrick Delaney, President of Bright New Ideas to judge at the annual Students in Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Fair on January 12th, 2008. Delaney will judge students from grades 6-12 in the conference during the morning session.
The fair provides an opportunity for students to showcase their inquiry skills and creative genius in a wide variety of scientific and technological fields. This is the type of experience cannot be duplicated in the classroom and so provides great enrichment to science, technology, engineering and mathematics programs for young students, some of the core values of Bright New Ideas.
More information can be found at the Stemfair Website.
