Project Report
| May 28, 2013
Technology to Replace the Horses
By Joan Fuetsch | Project Leader
![Khan Academy and more coming soon to Tatumbla]()
Khan Academy and more coming soon to Tatumbla
A big "muchas gracias" to those of you who have donated to this project thus far. As we have recently received funding for technology based resources and some of that technology can be used in remote regions where there is neither electricity nor computers we are shifting our focus from the "bibliobus." We are looking to replace those horses with internet connectivity, computers and both on and offline education resources and also to increase our collaboration with local schools. Our first pilot project community will be Tatumbla, outside of Tegucigalpa, Honduras.
As a result we will be closing out the bibliobus project. We encourage you to watch this space for a new project related to providing access to the vast amount of information available on the internet.
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Feb 25, 2013
Ten Communities Waiting for Wheels
By Joan Fuetsch | Member, Board of Directors
![Chorti volunteers watching a Khan Academy video]()
Chorti volunteers watching a Khan Academy video
In the rural, Chorti communities surrounding Copan Ruinas, Honduras there are ten communities high up in the hills waiting and hoping for the arrival of a "bibliobus." Currently, each community has a small supply of books provided by the Riecken library in Copan Ruinas. When it is possible to navigate the unpaved roads with either a four-wheel drive vehicle or horses the books are rotated among the communities. There are young people in these communities yearning for access to the global community without walking three hours a day to find both electricity and internet. With a bibliobus we could not only provide more books and a lending library but access to the internet using tablet and cellular technology.
Honduras is a country on the verge of being called a "failed state." Our mission is to provide access to information so that the people of Honduras might change that. Each of our 53 libraries in the country could benefit from having a "bibliobus" but we are asking for your help in just getting one up and running. Once we have a prototype we can then go on about raising additional funds for more.
The photo included with this video shows two community reading promotors from the rural communities getting their first look at a Khan Academy math video and an iPad. Now they know what is possible.
We thank you for your donations to date and hope that you will continue to support us in our mission to get more information on wheels to rural communities in Honduras.
Saludos,
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Nov 19, 2012
Our "mobile" libraries need wheels!
By Joan Fuetsch | Project Leader
![One way to get books to the Chorti villages]()
One way to get books to the Chorti villages
During a recent visit to Honduras hiking was necessary as the mostly dirt path had had some fresh cement added to its most challenging places. At the end of our hike was an eager group of youngsters waiting for their story hour. A small collection is moved from the central library in Copán Ruinas to ten different "mobile" libraries in indigenous Chorti communities accessible only by four-wheel drive, foot or horseback. Lacking our bibliobus means that each library has a very small selection of books at any one time. However, having just a few books has changed the lives of many of the young people in these villages. They have learned to read and have learned that there is access to information just a 90-minute walk down the hill into town. Students who are pursuing their education past the 6th grade make that walk twice a day. Raul, age 23, is very proud that he is now in middle school. He volunteers his spare time reading to kids and helping to move the books from library to library. With your help we could have a well-equipped "bibliobus" that could serve these communities much more efficiently and given them greater access to not only books but also technology. Muchas gracias.
![The "soul of the community" - their library.]()
The "soul of the community" - their library.
![Waiting to hear a story.]()
Waiting to hear a story.
![Raul getting his first look at a tablet.]()
Raul getting his first look at a tablet.
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