Week 12

We have all learned that South Africa is known for having frequent power blackouts. I found it crazy how they categorize their black outs by stages depending on the lack of power they have for that specific day.
One of the greatest problems they have is they do not know how to predict these blackouts. The source of the problem is their lack of maintenance they have at the power plants. The demand in electricity has gone up and the country really needs to meet the needs of their people, even those in townships.

http://www.latimes.com/world/africa/la-fg-south-africa-electricity-20150312-story.html

Week 10: Service Projects

I'm incredibly excited to have gotten our service projects! My group is working with Egoli engineering. It makes the wait so much more exciting because there's something even bigger to look forward too now! Our job is to bring electricity to the rest of the township (3/4) who currently do not have electricity. Not having electricity is more than just not having any light; we have to think of the health implications that come with this problem as well. I'm very excited that this will bring tie in with public health as well. Currently Egoli engineering is providing portable electrical batteries to 1/4 of the township.

I found an article over the problem of electricity Africa faces and how the United States is trying to help. It focuses on the continent as a whole and the plans on providing at least 500 million Africans electricity by 2020, which technically isn't that far away when thinking about a problem this big. This article explains how not having electricity really takes a toll. The access to electricity simply would change everyone's life for the better.

http://www.mediaclubsouthafrica.com/economy/3855-electrify-africa-bringing-light-to-the-dark-continent

Week 9: Top 10 list

After going through the top 10 articles/videos comprised of from our class. I have learned so much from getting a better understanding and perspective on South Africa's history and apartheid system to the LBGT community to recreational activities to women's rights. This series of modules have been very interesting since we have all learned from our peers and have all gained insightful knowledge. Every article and video on this list is worthwhile reading and/or watching. From realizing that South Africa still has so much room to grow since poverty and gangs are still a major issue. My favorite of course has to be power and privilege definitions because these really go a long way into our vocabularies. As well as the bucket list, this makes me beyond happy that I will be seeing South Africa for myself and be experiencing a life changing journey. This makes me extremely excited to embark on our study aboard program. I cannot wait!