This document summarizes a project called ME4 (Mobile Emergency Energy Education Experiment) that aims to provide 1) affordable products to reduce poverty, 2) STEM education through hands-on learning, and 3) emergency power and water. The project involves a solar-powered trailer that serves as a mobile classroom and emergency response unit. It will travel to underserved areas to teach skills like building solar lanterns while maintaining the system for disaster relief. Funding is sought to secure the solar trailer and support ongoing operations.

1. FYI:
1. There is an opportunity to develop hundreds of
quality and low-cost products that would create
hundreds of thousands of jobs and improve the
lives of billions of people.
2. “STEM” education refers to Science,
Technology, Engineering and Math.
3. In a major disaster or emergency situation, lack
of electrical power and clean water become
life-threatening and destabilizing challenges.
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2. Designfluence
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3. Designfluence: Vision:
That anyone can find quality-of-life
products they need at an affordable
price… or learn how to make them.
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4. Designfluence: Mission:
To connect, collaborate, educate and
celebrate with everyone involved in the
design, development and delivery of
radically-affordable products for
themselves or others.
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5. Designfluence: Opportunity:
To fulfill our mission using a high-visibility
program that also benefits the local
communities in which we operate.
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6. Designfluence: Project ME4:
The Mobile Emergency Energy Education
Experiment (ME4) integrates four goals on
one dual-purpose platform:
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7. Project ME4 Goals:
1. Eradicating poverty with effective and
affordable products.
2. Closing education gaps by teaching STEM
principles and design thinking with a hands-on
approach.
3. Providing clean emergency power and water.
4. Creating revenue streams to sustain our social
enterprise and spin off for-profit units.
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8. Mobile Emergency Energy
Education Experiment
This pilot project combines experiential
education, emergency preparedness, and
poverty eradication in one integrated system.
We are about to launch our first fundraising
effort through Start Some Good, a peer-to-peer
funding service similar to Kickstarter and others.
Thanks to those who are already supporting us!
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9. ME4
Mobile Emergency Energy
Education Experiment
Learning and Doing on the Move!
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10. THIS IS A MOBILE SOLAR GENERATOR.
IT’S LIKE A DIESEL GENERATOR, BUT WITHOUT THE NOISE OR MAINTENANCE OR THE STINKY FUMES!
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11. INVERTERS
BATTERIES
STORAGE
• This solar trailer is a complete electric power
generator with a 2.5kW solar PV array, DC-AC
inverters (7.2kW) and storage batteries (31kWH).
• This unit recently powered a water desalination
and purification system that serves 5,000 people a
day.
• It can be towed to a site to power all kinds of
stuff…
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12. The truck and trailer
are a comprehensive
emergency-response,
energy-generation
and communications
platform.
• We’re working on converting our truck to run on
veggie oil as a dual-fuel vehicle.
• We will add a backup propane generator, a
compact water desalination-purification unit (seen
in photo above), LED lighting, a refrigeration unit,
tools, etc.
• We’ll add an awning for shade, a wind generator,
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13. ALON G HERE
AND L IGHTING
AN AWNING
WIND
A MOVIE SCREEN HERE
MAST
UP
HERE
STORAGE COMPUTERS
TOOLS
TABLES HERE
HELP US BRING THIS SOLUTION TO REALIZATION.
TEACHING TRAILERS!
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14. Problem:
Disaster agencies want these kind of
systems, but can’t justify the cost of them
if stored or parked just waiting around for
The Big Emergency.
The solution is to find a good use for the
system in the meantime.
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15. Solution:
The “good use” we propose for the
system is using it as a mobile classroom
on a daily basis, bringing learning
resources to underserved communities
and remote areas.
This activity also maintains the system
for emergency readiness.
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16. • In our classes, students learn hands-on skills,
infused with STEM education.
STEM = Science, Technology, Engineering and Math
• With these skills they make products and learn how
theory, components and systems work together.
• There are a number of potential sponsors and
organizations supporting and promoting STEM
education:
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17. • One product we can make is a solar lantern, which
teaches basic electricity and the technologies of LED
lighting, solar cells, and batteries. Hands-on courses
teach problem-solving skills and design thinking.
• The solar-LED lantern also represents a very practical
product with great value to many developing
countries. And we can train more trainers to make
these products.
• Other products that fit our model include (but are not
limited to) a field microscope, a 100W compact spin
generator, solar cookers, wheelchairs, eyeglasses,
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18. • The lanterns and other products we make will be
collected, tested, and sent to East Africa by Gabriel
and his network of Lost Boys and contacts in Sudan,
Uganda and Kenya as part of our Way To Go!
project.
• Gabriel will also coordinate similar training for Lost
Boys and others to seed enterprise and the Maker
spirit in Southern Sudan.
• We have just added advisors to
Afghanistan and El Salvador!
GABRIEL AKIM NYOK
ONE OF THE LOST BOYS OF SUDAN
SUDAN TEAM LEADER
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19. ME4 What are the benefits?
• It’s good for the environment, because it
quietly generates clean solar energy.
• It’s great for teaching about technology,
because so much cleantech is embedded in
the assembled system.
• It’s green, clean, and sustainable.
• It’s a good potential revenue source for
Designfluence to sustain its mission and
expand its usefulness.
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20. ME4 Why is this valuable?
• It’s valuable for disaster-response agencies
since it reliably produces and stores solar
electric power and purified water, and serves
as a communications station.
• It’s flexible because it can go anywhere and
perform many functions and services.
• The truck and trailer can perform together or
separately in response and recovery
missions…
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21. SO WHEN THAT EMERGENCY HAPPENS… WE’RE READY!
THE SYSTEM WILL DEPLOY TO A DESIGNATED EMERGENCY LOCATION TO PROVIDE POWER & WATER
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22. • We are partners with the TechShop™ for product
development using their resources and to
contribute to our hands-on, STEM-based classes
for kids.
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23. • We’re working with Civic Solar to develop
curricula for hands-on skills to complement their
online solar PV classes.
• Skyline College has a great solar training
program, and San Jose State is a resource for
both design and emergency response.
• And we’re in talks with other organizations
who want to use and further develop our mobile
teaching system.
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24. • Our combined solar/water/wind/veggie diesel/
emergency-response mobile system is
not currently available elsewhere!
• We believe this teaching trailer can demonstrate
many concepts and products on one platform.
It particularly illustrates efficient use of
resources.
• The system will also be available for special
events, movie nights, product demonstrations,
and disaster training exercises.
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25. Our Core Team:
• David Alan Foster
Executive Director
• Frank Ingle, PhD
Science/Strategic Advisor
• Eckhart Beatty
Networker, Writer, Reporter
• In-country Advisors: Gabriel Nyok; Dr. Ahmad
Zamani; Juan Velasco
• NGO Partners: Afghan Care, Programma Velasco
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26. ME4 Please participate with us!
Mobile (it can be moved/deployed anywhere)
Emergency (designed for disaster
response)
Energy (it harvests energy from our Sun)
Education (it can be used to teach and
train)
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27. ME4 We’re building a coalition!
Funding Goal: $27,000.
• Our “tipping point” is $7,000, at which point
we get to keep that money and all funds
raised beyond that point.
• The first $7K will be used to secure the solar
trailer and pay operating costs for 3+ months.
• Funds raised beyond $7K will be used to
continue operations, develop our course
curriculum, and add equipment to the system.
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28. ME4
a project of designfluence.org
for details, contact David Alan Foster
dalan@designfluence.org
650.444.4787
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