The Rural Development Project was an incredibly ambitious initiative that combined multiple infrastructure solutions, working in concert, to completely transform the lives of a populous, marginalized, and deprived indigenous group living in a remote cluster of pastoral communities in South America.
The project involved the establishment of strategically placed greenhouses, solar farms, water desalination and purification plants, and education and logistic solutions in an attempt to stem the exodus of young people to the cities, and preserve this precious ancient culture.
These communities have never had access to electricity and what little water sources exist in the arid region have been polluted due to regional industrial development. To provide the electricity required to power the greenhouses, water purification systems, and surrounding communities, a series of solar farms were constructed. The water purification systems provide clean, potable water for the greenhouse irrigation systems, as well as the surrounding communities.
As predicted, the greenhouses are not only sustaining the communities but producing a surplus of food which can be sent to market, thus generating a valuable source of income.
The project has proved a resounding success, and we at BSWi are humbled to see this vision for community self-sufficiency become a reality.
