During our November 2014 trip, EWB-USA Philadelphia implemented a SODIS pilot with thirty two (32) families from different sectors as participants. Families were selected before our arrival to the community by Gloria Opinaldo, one of the community members. In April 2015, EWB-USA Philadelphia was able to interview twenty-three (23) of the families that were participating…
Robert DiFilippo and I visited Apatut last April. One of our goals for the trip was to build a tippy-tap at the community elementary school and to present the students with effective sanitation practices. Tippy-taps were first developed by Dr. Jim Watt of the Salvation Army in Chiweshe, Zimbabwe1 and are now used in several…
During the most recent assessment trip to Apatut in November 2014, the teachers at the community’s elementary school requested a Tippy Tap for student and faculty use. A Tippy Tap functions as a sink in places where running water may not be available. Therefore, in lieu of a sink, a Tippy Tap is essential for…
EWB-Philadelphia Travel Team #2 consisted of me and Loyda Garcia; and professional hydrogeologist Bob DiFilippo remained with us in Apatut, Balaoan since arriving the week before. Exciting times for both Loyda and I, as it was her first time in the Philippines, and my second trip here (November 2012). It was warming to know that many of the residents had…
I traveled to Apatut in November, as a part of the first travel team, along with Bob DiFlippo and Steve Kim. Having never been to the Philippines, or anywhere else in Asia, I did quite a bit of “Googling” before the trip, and I quickly learned how diverse this country is. It is comprised of…
Often as engineers, we can be found focusing overwhelmingly on the technical issues surrounding a particular problem that we are presented with. With good reason, of course – we understand well that we need to arrive at practical solutions by leveraging our tool box of scientific principals, empirical formulas, and our trusty skills in mathematics….
Project member (and professional hydrogeologist) Bob DiFilippo traveled to Apatut on behalf of EWB-Philly for additional assessment and follow-up May 21-26, 2013. The May 2013 trip objectives were based around assessment of the work required to complete well development, meetings with the Balaoan Municipality to begin discussion and negotiation of community water rates, meetings with…
Well Development activities 22-23 May 2013 Well Development Village Support Tri-Pod Set up Study Area in background near tree with orange bloom, view from main road walking from the guest house. Slug used for surging well bore Bailer used for manual water recovery
We arrived in Apatut at about 5 pm on a Monday night, after almost 36 hours of travel to get there (we had a brief respite in Manila between the 3-leg 24-hour flight and the 9 hour bus ride from Manila to Apatut). Upon arrival, we learned just how busy Team 1 had been! After…
The food in the Philippines was FANTASTIC – abundant, fresh, and lovingly prepared. In Apatut, there were new and interesting fruits and vegetables to try and tons of rice and fresh, locally caught fish. Here are some photos of some of the fun and most interesting things we ate and one of my favorite places…