Malawi youth wins GIA award, fights climate change and poverty

You may recognize him from an episode of the Daily Show in October. You may have read about him from a book that hit the stands this Christmas. Or you may have heard his name mentioned by someone you know who's volunteered with us. Needless to say, we at World Camp couldn't be more thrilled to read in today's newspaper that the young and remarkable Malawian, William Kamkwamba, is a recipient of the GIA or the "GO Ingenuity Award" in Ghana! Read the full article.

The award recognizes the impacts of inventors and artists in developing countries. William's achievements and recent fame center on his construction of a windmill from scrap materials gathered near his village. But what's striking about his story doesn't end there.

William grew up in a small village, Wimbe, in Kasungu District (north of Lilongwe). His family, like so many others, was hit hard by the 2003 drought and famine, and could no longer afford to send him to school. Even if he had been in school, when it gets dark in an African village, it gets dark. The kind of dark where you keep waiting for your eyes to adjust, but it never happens. What this means for so many youth here is that once night falls, that's it-no way to complete homework or read. Can you imagine if you couldn't do anything after dark? It's 6:30pm here in Lilongwe and dark.

So William spent his time pouring through books in a community library. The kid seemed to have a nack with figuring out how things work, but still! He had never even taken a physics class, but learned about wind energy and constructed a windmill in a village with practically nothing. And it worked!! I mean, I have 2 college degrees, and I didn't even fully understand the chapters on how he did it.

Only 2% of the country is hooked up to the electrical grid, thus having electricity. Only 2%!! Those of you who have been here probably remember the frequent power outages. Did you know that these are actually often a result of deforestatio? Dust, branches, trash, mud is pushed into the country's main electrical plant in Blantyre during storms, due to the soil erosion and lack of trees surrounding the area.

So you can imagine what a windmill in a Malawian village means. Access to resources that hardly anyone has. Light to read after dark. And a sustainable source of power that does not further contribute to the pressing deforestation and environmental challenges in Malawi.

What I find most inspiring about William is that he is not so extraordinary. Reading his story and hearing his thoughts, I was reminded of so many kids in our empowerment discussions. William and our students share similar histories, grew up in similar places, face similar challenges, and have similar aspirations. And it encourages me that now, when a kid looks at me with that look like no one has ever told her/him that they believe in them, I can share William's story, a story that is real and that they can relate to.

So, a sincere thank you toWilliam. And to the rest of you, come on, the world is changing, and we've got work to do!
**If you haven't read The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind, you must. It pretty much describes Malawi, good and bad, the way I would always like to to my friends and family back home**