Iraq - Youth Livelihoods and Makerspace Creation 

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Field Ready carried out innovative programming in Iraq from early 2019 to mid-2022 to support the Iraqi Tech Ecosystem and improve employment prospects for Iraqi youth through innovative makerspace development. Different areas of the country face many humanitarian, reconstruction and stabilization challenges. Youth unemployment and a lack of economic opportunities were identified as major drivers of instability. 

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Field Ready supported youth-focused makerspace development throughout Iraq. Makerspaces are collaborative spaces where learning and skills development lead to making and fabricating products. This, in turn, resulted in entrepreneurship and improved job prospects, as well as activities that directly contribute to peace-building and stabilization. With the ever-changing global humanitarian context and increasing focus on local solutions for local problems, it was important to nurture internal talent and create a supportive environment that contributes to Iraq's innovation eco-system and future.

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Through innovative training and capacity-building programs focused on the makerspace ecosystem, Field Ready improved Iraqi youths' stability and economic prospects by:

• Equipping and setting up two new makerspaces (in Baghdad and Sulaymaniyah), 

• Training and mentoring qualified staff members across Iraq to effectively support both new makerspaces

• Supporting the operation of three existing makerspaces (in Mosul, Erbil and Baghdad)

• Delivering technical assistance and implementing training programs such as workshops, summer schools, community spaces, events and consulting services

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Nepal - Support to Innovation 

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Field Ready's connection to Nepal began when our team first responded to the region's dual catastrophic earthquakes in 2015. Working with several partners including World Vision Nepal, we helped to develop the Nepal Innovation Lab in Kathmandu to help increase the capacity for digital manufacturing agencies, local maker spaces and local entrepreneurs.

 

The focus of our work in Nepal was on manufacturing humanitarian aid items locally to specifications and standards desired by aid agencies. Field Ready and our local partners led the development of the 3D printing and digital manufacturing sector in Nepal producing designs, products, training programs and trained digital innovators for Nepal's budding digital manufacturing sector.

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Field Ready established several innovative initiatives in the region, from training and design challenges to hydroponic growing. We implemented Frontier Technologies 3D-printing projects, as well as World Vision-supported projects to deliver locally made search-and-rescue equipment. 

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Field Ready also worked with manufacturing and humanitarian partners to respond to the COVID19 emergency to make PPE to protect health workers. Field Ready also supported Nepal's first FabLab development and further training and support for the local manufacturing sector. 

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Somalia - Mapping Local Manufacturing

 

Since 2021, we have collaborated with the Response Innovation Lab and Somalia Resilience Program (SomReP) to map local manufacturers in Somalia. In November of that year, our team travelled to Hargeisa and Mogadishu to equip World Vision enumerators with skills in manufacturer mapping, laying the groundwork for a pilot project. In June 2023, we returned to further train enumerators in Hargeisa and collaborated with the team at SIMAD University in Mogadishu to focus on the mapping of women's businesses. The first phase of our initiative successfully mapped over 150 local businesses. For the upcoming second phase, our focus will shift to selecting local organizations that can produce crucial WASH supplies, including surprise soaps.

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COVID Pandemic Response 

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Field Ready's response to the COVID-19 pandemic was swift, robust, and far-reaching. In 2020, Field Ready mobilized in the first part of the global COVID-19 pandemic and responded to communities hard hit in the US. Working with local partners, nearly 5,000 face shields were made and distributed to various groups in need, including the Navajo Nation in Arizona and Chicago’s South Side. Field Ready also supported an initiative to design and assist community members in making custom face coverings for local distribution.

 

From 2020 to 2022, backed by competitive funding from Humanitarian Grand Challenges: Creating Hope in Conflict, we showcased the enormous potential of large-scale localized manufacturing. Collaborating with local partner organizations, we distributed 392,000 PPE and infection control items, with more than 100,000 going to frontline healthcare workers in Iraq, Bangladesh, Kenya, and Uganda. Every item was locally produced, channeling over $400,000 into communities affected by crises.

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Action Assessment in Colombia  

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In response to the waning civil conflict, and ongoing refugee crisis stemming from neighboring Venezuela, Field Ready carried out a series of assessments and pilot projects in 2018. This relied on our use of technology, integrative programming and, most of all, our heavy emphasis on localization. In one small town called San Luis, for instance, Field Ready found unsafe water sources and taught the local people (including a nearby school) how to create an active carbon filter using freely available materials in the area. Read more about this initiative here. 

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Hurricane Response in the Caribbean

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Hurricanes Irma and Maria have been the most powerful and destructive hurricane recorded in the Atlantic. The destruction began in the Caribbean when Irma’s winds were a Category 5, the strongest measure on the hurricane wind scale. Hurricane Maria has been equally powerful and destructive. The losses were massive: lives, property and critical infrastructure have been lost. In many places, electrical power has been lost and won't return for another year.

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Field Ready launched a response in late September which identified the need for electrical power as critical, particularly for vulnerable families.  Working with our local partner, My Brother’s Workshop (MWB), Field Ready developed concept to address this need using locally sourced materials.  This includes the repair and reuse of salvaged solar panels - damaged in the hurricanes but still able to produce power. These are being used to power a range of electrical items such as lighting, cell phone charging and wifi hotspots. A crucial piece of this pilot includes teaching local people which will empower them to meet their needs directly.

 

The impact of our work is unlike other aid agencies. A single repair, such as fixing a power supply, can benefit thousands of people. “We’ll be able to rapidly make a difference,” says Dara Dotz, a member of Field Ready’s Rapid Emergency Deployment Team. “With the start of our response, we’ll begin with the aim of building people’s resilience.” 

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More information is available in this 1-page pdf

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Local Making in East Africa

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The countries in what are known as the Horn of Africa experience chronic humanitarian situations including forced displacement, severe drought and conflict. To address a variety of needs and concerns, in 2017, Field Ready led the MakerNet project aimed at connecting local manufacturing capability and demonstrating the power of local manufacturing. More information about Field Ready's activities in Kenya can be found here. In 2017, Field Ready, in partnership with Water for South Sudan, carried out an action assessment to address critical water and sanitation needs. Both of this projects are expected to continue in various forms in the future. More information about Field Ready's activities in South Sudan can be found here.

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Jordan - Assistive Tech/Devices 

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Field Ready’s training and production of mobility aids in Jordan in partnership with the Al Hussein Society-Jordan Center (AHS) for Training and Inclusion and Un Ponte Per has just concluded. This project provided vocational training and involvement in generating activities for marginalized vulnerable individuals in the labor market, psychosocial disabilities. The overall aim of this project was to contribute to employment opportunities for these groups. The project also demonstrated special capacity in working with these groups to create viable assistive technologies at the local level. 

 

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Medical Devices in Haiti

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Throughout its history, Haiti has experienced ongoing developmental and humanitarian challenges and the earthquake of 2010 only exacerbated conditions there. Nearly every sector is stressed and in vital areas such as health even basic items remain hard to find and sometimes unavailable. Pioneering aspects of in-situ manufacturing, from 2013-2015, Field Ready deployed specialists to Port-au-Prince to meet demand on-the-ground in select health facilities. We maintain a desire to continue programming in Haiti and intend to return in the future. More information can be found here.

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