“IDEAS” for social change
At the annual IDEAS Global Challenge Awards ceremony last night, 11 MIT teams were awarded a total of $75,000 to bring novel technologies and new educational models to the developing world. Now in its 14th year, IDEAS has awarded more than $650,000 to 117 social ventures that have collectively raised an additional $17 million and operate in 43 developing countries, “affecting hundreds of thousands of people,” event organizer Keely Swan said to the crowd gathered in Room 10-250. “Simply put, IDEAS is the application of MIT’s mission,” added Swan, a staffer in MIT’s Public Service Center. “IDEAS teams are working wisely, effectively, and creatively for the betterment of humankind.” Two $10,000 grand-prize winners were Navi-Chem, which has developed reactors that use microbes to convert solid waste into high-value chemicals in India; and Sensen, which has developed sensors that gather data on the usage of stoves in Ugandan homes. But education was also a big...