The Entusi model farm, located in the Lake Bunyonyi area of Southwestern Uganda, serves as an outdoor, hands-on classroom for local farmers to learn new farming techniques and practices. It is supported by the Global Livingston Institute (GLI), a non-profit organization whose goal is to educate students and community leaders on innovative approaches to international development and empower awareness, collaboration, conversations and personal growth.
Executive Summary
GLI has tasked this team with developing a design for an irrigation system for the model farm that combats the unreliable rain patterns of the area, providing a sustainable source of water for agriculture. The design consists of a low cost, low-maintenance irrigation system that can be easily reproduced by the farmers who visit the Entusi model farm and flexible to different plot sizes. If possible, GLI would like a solution that also creates incentive and appeal for more people to visit the farm. GLI has been the middle-man in communications between the team, the Entusi staff and Ugandan farming community. This report contains the design methodology, engineering analysis, final deliverables, and project review for a check dam water collection system that, after thorough research, the team has gauged as viable solutions for the project requirements.
These designs were chosen for their simplicity, affordability, and ability to be incorporated with other irrigation technologies if needed. This report lays out the social and technical assessment of how these solutions address the needs of the model farm. The social assessment is based on the Bridger and Luloff criteria for sustainable design in developing areas as well as case studies on similar designs implemented in other areas of the world facing similar challenges. The technical assessment is based off of engineering calculations approved by a technical advisor. Due to the team’s inability to travel to Entusi, both assessments are preliminary and can be more accurate with in-person input from local farmers and in-field tests and measurements. To address this setback, the report also contains the next steps for a subsequent team to carry out the completion of the project.
1. Introduction
This report summarizes the team’s work through the course of the project including the design approach taken, the engineering analysis, final deliverables, and overview of project management. The check dam system aims to solve the accessibility and reliability problems that the farmers of Lake Bunyonyi currently face. It has been designed around the specific criteria of the model farm, but is meant to be adaptable to any plot in the area. The final deliverables include a pamphlet on the check dam system to spread information on this irrigation method to local farmers as well as preliminary designs for the check dams. The purpose of the following information is to guide the next Entusi Model Farm team to learn from this year’s work and continue forward with it.
2. Application of Design Methodology
As part of the Engineering for Communities Design Studio the team emphasized the importance of satisfying the Bridger and Luloff criteria for sustainable community development in their design. These criteria focus on factors such as desirability, feasibility, and viability that are essential to consider in order to fully meet the needs of a community [1]. Through conversations with GLI staff, the team developed a set of design criteria which was used to guide the design process. GLI also had conducted surveys from members of the farmer cooperative at Entusi and the feedback from the responses was also considered throughout the design process.
