As a veteran of what we then called community development projects abroad — in my case, in the hillside barrios of Caracas — I recognized immediately the problem this young engineer is addressing. Our organization, like almost any NGO then or now, was shaped for the donors, not the end users, so if the project looked good, that was enough even if it didn't make people's lives any better.
I applaud the bold solution that Engineers Without Borders has adopted— acknowledging failure when it occurs and figuring out how to remedy it instead of replicating it.
David Damberger: What happens when an NGO admits failure | Video on TED.com
For more, check out the EWB Canada branch's Failure Reports.
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