Lindbergh Grant Awarded to Joshua Kearns
Lindbergh Grant Awarded to Joshua Kearns for an Appropriate Technology Approach to Providing Safe Drinking Water to Rural Communities in Thailand
MINNEAPOLIS, October 15, 2008 — The Lindbergh Foundation announced today that Joshua Kearns of Aqueous Solutions http://www.aqsolutions.org/ in Huntington, WV, has been awarded a 2008 Lindbergh Grant sponsored by the Lloyd Grant Endowment for his project entitled, “Providing Safe Drinking Water to Rural Communities in Thailand Using Charcoal Filtration to Remove Pesticides.” According to the World Health Organization, 1.1 billion people, roughly 1/5 of the world's population, are without access to safe drinking water sources. Although nearly 3/4 of the surface of the earth is water, less than 1% is freshwater available for drinking and much of that is unsafe due to biological and chemical pollutants - such as pesticides - that can cause cancer, infertility, neurological disorders, birth defects, etc. Currently, residents of the Pun Pun Farm, an organic farming community of 50 in rural Thailand, collect rainwater run-off from rooftops during the rainy season for their drinking water. It is not possible, however, to collect and store enough water to sustain the community during the dry season. Bottled drinking water is expensive and must be transported over long distances, contributing to fossil fuel consumption. Irrigation canals fed by a nearby lake would provide a reliable year-round source of freshwater, however it is contaminated by agricultural runoff from neighboring farms. Mr. Kearns plans to develop a household-to-community-scale drinking water treatment system. An earthen kiln will be constructed on-site and will be used to make home-made charcoal from various local sustainably harvested materials such as bamboo, straw, rice husks, nut hulls, etc. He will then test each charcoal sample to determine which is most effective at removing chemical pesticides. In addition, sand filtration and ultraviolet radiation will be used to remove harmful microorganisms. The entire treatment system will be constructed and maintained by the local people using simple, inexpensive and locally abundant materials. Mr. Kearns has also developed a curriculum that details a variety of water purification techniques so that the knowledge from this project can be shared with others. Mr. Kearns believes this is an appropriate technology approach to empowering communities worldwide to ensure access to safe drinking water. Mr. Kearns received one of 10 Lindbergh grants awarded so far this year. He was chosen from 166 applicants from around the world. Lindbergh Grants are made in amounts up to $10,580, a symbolic amount representing the cost of building Charles Lindbergh‟s plane, the Spirit of St. Louis, in 1927. To date, nearly $3 million has been awarded to 294 researchers. “Today‟s students will share this planet with more than 8 billion people. If we are to sustain our species and our planet, it is imperative that we make full use of the one expandable resource available to us: human intelligence,” said Gregg Maryniak, Chairman of the Grants Committee and Vice Chairman of the Foundation. “The Lindbergh Grants program attracts researchers who are passionate about the environment and about finding solutions to protect and sustain our world.”
“As an unknown in aviation, Charles Lindbergh struggled to find the financial backing he needed to pursue his dream of making a non-stop, solo flight from New York to Paris in 1927. The Lindbergh Foundation Grants Program identifies and supports highly creative and dedicated researchers from around the world and provides them with the same opportunity for success as Charles Lindbergh received. That‟s why the Lindbergh Grant is set at $10,580,” said Maryniak. “Many of our grant recipients are „unknown‟ in their fields, too. For them, receiving a Lindbergh Grant provides much-needed credibility to their work and typically enables our recipients to secure additional funding, providing them with valuable leverage.” The Lindbergh Grants program maintains an excellent reputation among the scientific community and the public sector for supporting exceptional, high-quality projects and dedicated researchers. Lindbergh grant applications undergo a rigorous five-step review process focused on evaluations by two independent all volunteer review groups, including a 73-member Technical Review Panel. This international panel is comprised of knowledgeable and respected individuals drawn from the various fields in which Lindbergh grants are made. The annual deadline for all Lindbergh Grant applications is in mid-June for funding the following year. Anyone interested in applying for a Lindbergh Grant will find information and a downloadable application at http://www.lindberghfoundation.org .
Editor’s Note: For photos, click here http://lindberghfoundation.org/media-press-kit/2008-lindbergh-grant-recipient-photos.html or visit the “Media” section of our web site and click on “Press Photos” in our Media Press Kit. The Lindbergh Foundation is a public 501(c)(3) non-profit organization based in Minnesota that supports great innovations that foster the environment for a planet in balance. Its programs are devoted to supporting, honoring, and educating individuals, through the annual honorary Lindbergh Award and the Lindbergh Grants program, which provides grants for research or education projects that will make important contributions to a technology/environment balance.