Message from ETOW’s Director: World Radio Day 2013

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WorldRadioDayDear Friends,

Today is UNESCO World Radio Day, which they describe thus (italics are mine): “a day to celebrate radio as a medium; to improve international cooperation between broadcasters; and to encourage major networks and community radio alike to promote access to information and freedom of expression over the airwaves.”

UNESCO asked me to share my thoughts regarding the relevance of radio in our mission, as they wished to share it with others on World Radio Day.  You can listen to this short piece by clicking here or listening in via the embedded player below.

Without a doubt, radio is as relevant as it has ever been, especially in the remote, rural areas where we work–those areas without reliable power, let alone the Internet. It’s why radios continue to be much more useful than laptops or cell phones.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for all of the support you give Ears To Our World. We’re enormously grateful.

This year, we’ve already sent radios to South Sudan and to Sierra Leone. The partnership in Sierra Leone will use radio to support women’s rights over the airwaves through special radio programming. Radio, indeed, is a powerful medium for education and positive change.

Today, please take a moment to think about how radio as had an influence on our world, perhaps on your own life, and how it continues to be a lifeline for so many.

Thank you,

Thomas

Thomas Witherspoon
Executive Director,
Ears To Our World

ETOW Radio Empowers the Disabled in Remote Cameroon

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In case you’ve ever wondered what one radio can do for a rural developing-world community, here’s the answer…

Just in time for the holidays, the following heartwarming field report arrived from ETOW’s mission partner, Educare Africa-Cameroon. This worthy ETOW partner organization, together with Covenant Baptist Church Tsinga-Yaoundé, carried out a joint mission trip to the far northern reaches of Cameroon in 2011.  As the report notes: “…[T]hese communities are extremely enclave, with no roads, schools, health facilities, [potable] water, rivers with no bridges, no access to communication networks…They are completely [cut] off from the rest of the world.” The team visited many communities, hospitals, and prisons to share clothing, shoes, food..and an ETOW radio, which was placed with one of the teachers in the remote village of Doulek.

This moving report also describes the 2012 follow-up visit, and speaks for itself:

Doulek's Association of Disabled People, Cameroon

“…When the National Coordinator of Educare Africa–Cameroon, Mr. Sunjo Emmanuel, returned to Doulek, the community that got the radio came to him singing and dancing because the radio was a real blessing to them.  They shared the following testimonies.

    • More than 150 students came to the teacher who received the radio to listen to the end of course examination result. This was the only radio available and students trekked more than 30km to come and listen to their results.

Teacher Ousman Charles Wone (seated, front left) is the guardian of an ETOW radio in Doulek, Cameroon

  • [The community] also got news over the National Radio about what [the] Government was doing to assist people with disabilities. After follow-up, more than 300 people with disabilities have been registered with Government with about 37 from the beneficiary community in Doulek. All of these people have received various gifts [and forms of assistance] from [the] Government, and the teacher who himself is a disabled man has been made Sub Divisional secretary of people with disabilities. Thanks to access to information.
  • More than 3000 people [previously] died in these communities from Cholera, [but] through the donated radio from ETOW, these communities got access to public education on how to fight against Cholera.
  • More than 65 children gathered regularly to listen to Gospel messages using this radio.
  • The villages surrounding Doulek have benefitted from the information sent to them. Doulek has become ear of this region thanks to ETOW.  More communities need their own radios.”

"The community of disabled people is saying to ETOW, thanks for the radio. It is a blessing to us"

It’s truly humbling to learn what just one radio can provide to a rural community. We at ETOW feel blessed that we are able to play a part in improving lives in communities like Doulek all over the world. And we are greatly indebted to so many who enable us to do so.

So, as we look back on 2012, we want to acknowledge the hard work, commitment, assistance, and generosity of all the people behind ETOW, and to express our deepest gratitude to them. Our mission succeeds thanks to our exceptional in-country partners, such as Educare Africa; thanks to the dedicated teachers and community leaders in the areas we serve; thanks to our steadfast friends in industry, such as Etón Corporation and Universal Radio; and last but definitely not least, to our generous donors, who share our conviction that radio–in its unique ability to provide critical information in economically challenged and physically remote areas–can empower children, families, and communities every single day.  As this report makes so clear, it can and does.

Thank you!  Happy holidays, and may peace reign throughout the listening world.

Hearing live election results via shortwave radio

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South Sudan - click to enlarge (Photo courtesy of ETOW partner Project Education Sudan)

Today is November 6th, 2012 and tonight, people from all over the world will be following the US presidential elections. Though ETOW’s partners live in some of the most remote parts of our world, they, too, will be following via the power of shortwave radio. The Voice of America is even extending their shortwave coverage to provide this news.

Ironically, shortwave radio will be providing news from sources across the globe at the speed of light–no streaming, no buffering, no apps, no fees.

No electricity? No problem: our radios crank out their own power with the twist of handle.

ETOW Honors World Radio Day in South Sudan Schools

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Monday is World Radio Day, a celebration of the importance of the medium of radio throughout our world. Ears To Our World (ETOW) is celebrating by sending more radios to the world’s newest country: South Sudan.

Our partner in that war-torn region, Project Education Sudan (PES), is a non-profit that builds primary and secondary schools and trains teachers in rural villages in South Sudan; ETOW’s radios, we’re pleased to state, taking a starring role in this teacher training program. There are currently four PES schools in an area of Southern Sudan so remote that resources often have to be flown in on chartered planes. ETOW radios are in all four, helping teachers bring both education and hope to a devastated population. There is currently no public telecommunications infrastructure in South Sudan, yet ETOW radios make diverse programming available to these teachers, via shortwave and FM broadcasts. In classrooms that lack not only electricity, but often paper and pencils, these rugged, self-powered worldband receivers offer a tremendous wealth of free teaching material.

Our shipment of forty five additional radios is heading there. Daniel Majok Gai, a member of the board of directors of PES as well as its South Sudan program director, tells us that the teachers in the new schools are using ETOW radios to listen to FM 95.5 news from 6–10 a.m. and from 3–10 p.m. and to South Sudan Mirriaya news on a daily basis.

Gai says that “the teachers use the radios to collect good stories and share them with the students.” From his observations, Gai adds, “These radios have created a wider benefit between teachers at PES school and those teaching from the government schools…living within the same community.” He believes the teachers working in the PES-supported schools have an enviable advantage over those in the government institutions.

Our goal this year is to offer greater benefit to more children and their communities by sending additional radios to South Sudan, and even more countries where radio–whether local or international–is a lifeline of information in the community.

Ears To Our World firmly believes that access to information is access to education and both are essential human rights.

Mission in Process: ETOW’s Radios Educate Despite Extremes

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The self-powered world band radios that Ears To Our World distributes to remote, impoverished schools and communities around the world through its global partners are often subjected to extremes—not only climatic, in the form of relentlless tropical rains and scorching desert sand-storms, but also the political and economic, resulting in extremes of usage most technologies are just not built to withstand. To support ETOW’s mission of providing the developing world with reliable access to information–e.g, educational programming, local and international news, emergency and health information–ETOW radios must be exceedingly rugged and maintainable in the field. Nevertheless, any technology experiencing this kind of usage must be expected to have a finite functionality: that’s the reason our commitment to ongoing partnership and follow-up support is so vital.

When we place radios in schools and communities through our global partners, we do so as a collaborative effort among equals: to make a lasting impact in our served areas, our in-country NGO affiliates distribute the radios where they can do the greatest good. Additionally, our partner teachers and community leaders entrusted with ETOW’s radios take responsibility for their care, monitoring each unit’s function as a result of daily usage. ETOW maintains contact with these partners and provides assistance as needed and feasible.

Fortunately, the Etón Grundig self-powered, hand-crank worldband radios with which ETOW works have been functioning superbly in the field, in places as diverse as Belize, Chile, Romania, Mongolia, South Sudan, and Cameroon. Thus far, these units have proven more than equal to the challenge: with care, these radios can last up to up to three years in the field, exceeding our expectations for the product. In areas where conditions are extreme, the radios do wear more rapidly, but we have learned that only tens in hundreds break within the first year of use, a remarkable finding and a testament to the committed care of the units by our partner-users.

Even a more significant finding, however, is the validation of our organizational model. ETOW recently had the opportunity to examine the sole radio returned to us from a remote area of Cameroon where our partner, NGO EduCare-Africa, had assigned it for use as a teaching tool in a local school. While the radio still received signals after three years of use, it no longer charged by hand crank; ETOW requested its return for analysis. Pavla Zakova-Laney, Founder, President, Executive Director, and full-time volunteer of EduCare, promptly responded with the radio’s return. In the meantime, as per our agreement, she offered the teacher partner a replacement radio. So, although the original radio experienced an internal component failure, it was apparently otherwise well-cared for, as the teacher partner had agreed upon placement; our NGO partner was informed of the problem, and served as on-site intermediary; and ETOW was able to address the problem by replacing the unit. Clearly, ETOW’s model of collaboration and follow-through works.

“We recognize that success in humanitarian aid requires providing consistent and reliable support over time,” explains Thomas Witherspoon, ETOW’s founder and director, “so we commit to our teachers and partners that we will do our best to replace or repair radios when they eventually reach the end of their useful life.”

ETOW’s experience in Cameroon is, in our view, a clear success story. According to Zakova-Laney, there are currently seven ETOW radios serving communities in Cameroon, being used in secondary/high schools. And although they are located in remote areas, EduCare estimates that nearly 2,700 students and teachers have directly benefitted from these seven devices. That number increases dramatically as news and other information is disseminated to students’ families at home and to communities at large.

But upon further examination, EduCare’s feedback is not all that surprising. In the areas ETOW serves, even one radio can produce a remarkably broad positive impact. “Every school [that received a radio] greatly appreciated it, and promised it would be used well and handled with care,” explained Zakova-Laney. In developing areas, each radio is an invaluable resource because it can affect so many lives. Even the single returned FR200 with the broken crank, in otherwise good condition despite extensive use, reinforces what we’ve believed from the beginning: radio is the best method to reach the greatest number of people where the need is greatest in the developing world. It is economical, uncomplicated, broadcasts are unhindered by boundaries and politics–and, as we’ve seen, as tough as it needs to be.

We’re proud of the continuing role we play in support of invaluable programs like EduCare-Africa’s, helping our partners achieve their goals of expanding opportunities and improving lives through education. So, exactly how important is our role? Zakova-Laney: “I believe that as long as there will be remote places without electricity and…a means of communication, these radios will be very helpful, bringing news, useful information and educational programs—and [they will be] appreciated tremendously.”

ETOW extends our appreciation to our generous supporters who enable us to do what we do. Thank you all.

 

 

ETOW to Present at the Inaugural IEEE Global Humanitarian Technology Conference

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Great news:  Ears To Our World has been invited to make a presentation about the work we do, and how it addresses humanitarian needs in the developing world, at the first-ever IEEE Global Humanitarian Technology Conference.  The IEEE (The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) is the world’s largest professional association dedicated to advancing technological innovation and excellence for the benefit of humanity.

ETOW founder, Thomas Witherspoon, and board member Ed Harris recently answered a “Call for Papers” from the organizers of this prestigious forum, coauthoring and submitting a paper entitled “Avoiding the 30-Pound Paperweight: Success Via Contextually Appropriate Technologies.” We’re delighted to announce that the paper–which details how to successfully incorporate into humanitarian efforts the “human vector” (the real-world needs and input of the people served) with the “technological vector” (the tools currently available)–was accepted.  Thomas will present the paper, and explain how ETOW exemplifies this approach, to conference attendees, including technologists, representatives from NGOs, governments, academe, funders, and industry.

This is a tremendous opportunity to promote our work to an influential audience, and an incredible honor for ETOW, but it’s more: it’s also an affirmation by this internationally respected body that our mission and our methods converge in a realistic way that can make a real difference in the lives of those we serve.

The inaugural Global Humanitarian Technology Conference will be held from October 31 to November 1, 2011, at the Renaissance Hotel in Seattle, Washington. For more information, visit www.ieeeghtc.org.

ETOW Radios Continue To Enlighten As Haiti Rebuilds

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Post-earthquake, ETOW radios continue to be a vital link for those in need in Haiti. Here, Erlande, who suffered a stroke in her early 30s and can barely walk, listens to one of our self-powered Etón radios, given to her by the Haitian Health Foundation.

Over one year after an unimaginable catastrophe, worldband radios rushed into a disaster zone continue to improve the lives of people in need in Haiti.

When the 7.0 earthquake struck on the morning of January 12, 2010, it devastated the capital of Port Au Prince and the surrounding area, claiming the lives of more than 230,000 and shattering those of millions more. The impoverished country’s already inadequate infrastructure was largely destroyed, with one crucial exception: radio communications.

While most Haitian media were knocked off the air, radio station Signal FM was able continue broadcasting to an audience of nearly three million throughout the crisis. It helped victims reconnect with loved ones, identify aid and supply locations, and calm a terrified population. With re-establishing broadcasting capability a top priority, other radio outlets quickly joined Signal FM in its efforts.

In response to the tremendous humanitarian need, Ears To Our World expanded its mission of providing self-powered world band radios to schools and communities in the developing world to include sending radios for disaster relief. In the immediate aftermath, ETOW, working with its manufacturing and logistics partners, Etón Corporation and Operation USA, shipped 400 of these receivers to Haiti.

The importance of radio access in disaster situations cannot be overstated, and the results getting receivers into the hands of those in need are both immediate and enduring. According to the Knight Foundation, a non-profit organization that advances journalism in the digital age, radio was “the undisputed lifeline for the Haitian public after the earthquake.” In a recently released report, “Media, Information System and Communities: Lessons from HAITI,” the Foundation asserted, “Of all the available humanitarian information tools, radio was the most effective means to share information with the community and to distribute information to affected populations.”

“Radio is Haiti’s dominant medium,” the report stated, “Access to radio can be shared easily and relatively cheaply among many people, and serves both literate and illiterate populations. According to the CIA World Factbook, Haiti has over 250 commercial and community radio stations; a 2009 Voice of America survey describes radio receiver ownership as virtually universal.” Aware of radio’s vital role, the aid community embarked upon the mass distribution of receivers to affected populations to guarantee access to information.

Thanks to the generous support of our partners and donors, ETOW was able to be a part of that effort. We’re pleased to learn that the radios we sent provided critical support not only during the initial phase of disaster relief, but also as the humanitarian crisis continued to unfold, and today still as communities struggle to recover.

As E. Marilyn Lowney, Executive Director of the Haitian Health Organization, which distributed many ETOW radios, recently told us, “When important events or emergencies occur, people gather around available radios for news. Often 15 or 20 people gather around one radio. Public health messages are usually relayed on the radio. When the scourge of cholera recently struck Haiti, health messages and instructions for prevention, proper sanitation and treatment were widely broadcast. The radio saved many lives in our area when Hurricane Tomas struck in November and when cholera threatened to devastate the population.”

“Radio is essential in Haiti,” Ms. Lowney said. “The extreme poverty in Haiti precludes access to electricity, and so many things taken for granted in the USA are unavailable in Haiti…Television and Internet are unknown in the rural villages. This makes reliance on radio, especially self powered, very important.”

“Haiti needs more radios,” Ms. Lowney continued. “Every household should have a solar or a wind-up radio.”

This is why we do what we do. Thank you for helping to make it possible.

Help us increase our Facebook followers!

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Did you know that Ears To Our World is on Facebook?  If you’re an ETOW fan, join us!  We have a goal of increasing our follower presence on Facebook to 500 people by December 2010.

How can you help?  Join ETOW’s Facebook 500 (if you haven’t already) by following us on Facebook–and spread the word about ETOW and the power of radio education among your FB friends.

Opening a world of sound for visually impaired children in Belize

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This year, ETOW had the pleasure of working directly with the Belize Council for the Visually Impaired (BCVI) to bring our self-powered word band radios to the homes of children who are visually impaired.

Staff of the BCVI personally introduced us to a number of the visually impaired children with whom they work, as well as their families, who live in very rural areas of northern Belize as well as within densely-populated Belize City. The children were presented radios by ETOW’s director, Thomas Witherspoon, and team members of the  BCVI, for use in their homes. Many of these homes lack reliable electricity, thus our radios play an important role for continued, renewable information and education.

Radio opens a world to all of our recipients, but to those who are visually impaired, this can be even more dramatic. Unlike the internet, which requires expensive translation software, radio content is designed to be heard, rather than watched or read–for those to whom sound and touch is their means of experiencing the world, radio is truly the perfect learning medium.

These children were no exception: Witherspoon says he was impressed by their instinctive aptitude for understanding radio, considering that many had never had a radio of their own or even tuned a radio prior to our visit. Smiles brightened their faces as they touched, tuned, and heard the diverse music and voices emanating from their radios.   Said Witherspoon, “These children really responded to the radios, and I knew that it wouldn’t be long before they know the frequency bands by heart.  I felt humbled and privileged,” Witherspoon added,”to introduce the world of radio to these incredible young people.”

We would like to thank our partner, the Belize Council for the Visually Impaired, for helping us open the door to their clients. We were most impressed with the BCVI’s holistic approach to helping children through continued, routine contact with both them and their families. Their educational and medical services are a benchmark for other organizations. We look forward to our continued partnership and long-term support through the BCVI.