Developing countries

(Left to right) L. Rafael Reif, President of MIT; Fady Mohammed Jameel, president of Community Jameel International; and Sanjay Sarma, MIT vice president for open learning

Abdul Latif Jameel World Education Lab (J-WEL) to spark global renaissance in education through innovation at MIT

Empowering underserved populations will be a guiding focus.

May 2, 2017

Hadley Sikes, an associate professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering, is one of an increasing number of MIT faculty members who do what might best be called public engineering — emphasizing the interaction between society and technology.

The creation of a public engineer

Hadley Sikes is bridging the gap between engineering and public policy to solve big social problems at home and abroad.

April 27, 2017

Richard Fletcher, research scientist in the MIT D-Lab

Revolutionizing global health

In more than 20 years working on wireless sensors and radio frequency identification (RFID), Richard Fletcher has produced several startups and over a dozen patents.

April 26, 2017

Solstice Energy Solutions co-founders Ugwem Eneyo (left) and Cole Stites-Clayton (center) stand with Kristian Bodek of National Grid.

Solstice wins MIT Clean Energy Prize with efficient metering for developing nations

Technology will give Nigerian households greater control over energy consumption.

April 25, 2017

MIT graduate student Tonghan Gu (right) works with technicians at a facility in Vasai, India, to produce a batch of ready-to-use therapeutic food in powdered form. The formula he has developed uses local ingredients to make it more appealing to children.

Fighting child malnutrition with nanoscience

New research on ready-to-use therapeutic food seeks drastic reduction in fatalities from severe acute malnutrition in India.

April 21, 2017

Engineers at MIT have found a way to cut the cost of solar-powered drip systems by half, by optimizing the drippers. Furthermore, these new drippers can halve the pumping power required to irrigate, lowering energy bills for farmers. Pictured is an example of a current drip system.

Watering the world

New design cuts costs, energy needs for drip irrigation, bringing the systems within reach for more farmers.

April 19, 2017

Tata Center students and staff pose with Ratan Tata (center-right), chair of the Tata Trusts.

Tata Center adds 14 new projects to its portfolio for 2017-18

MIT principal investigators will apply cutting-edge research to the challenges of the developing world, seeking a large-scale impact.

April 7, 2017

MIT D-Lab researcher Eric Verploegen (seated) kicks off a CITE evaluation of vegetable cooling technologies with partners at the World Vegetable Center.

MIT researchers launch technology evaluations for global development in Mali, India

MIT's Comprehensive Initiative on Technology Evaluation announces its latest product evaluations and global partnerships.

April 6, 2017

Renato Lima de Oliveira in front of a shipyard in Baku, Azerbaijan.

Grounded in geology

PhD student Renato Lima de Oliveira examines how a country's natural resources affect its politics and policies.

April 6, 2017

“In the future I want to be an innovator of the visual arts, with respect to technology. To become a technical artist, if you will,” senior Evan Denmark says. While interning at Pixar Animation Studios last summer, Denmark built tools for modeling artists to use to when creating animations.

Exploring the world and filming the unfamiliar

Senior Evan Denmark explores new cultures through travel and documentary making.

March 28, 2017

MIT scientists have found that climate change will likely worsen drought conditions in parts of Africa, dramatically reshaping the production of maize throughout sub-Saharan Africa as global temperatures rise over the next century.

Climate change to worsen drought, diminish corn yields in Africa

Over the next century, southern Africa will see widespread decreases in maize production.

March 16, 2017

MIT's Maria T. Zuber and Conservation International's Peter Seligmann

MIT, Conservation International announce collaboration on climate adaptation and mitigation

Collaboration will explore ways of working with natural systems to address climate change.

January 27, 2017

Kevin Kung, a Tata Fellow and PhD candidate in biological engineering, feeds rice husks into the torrefaction reactor in his lab at MIT. A thermochemical process will convert the biomass to a more energy-dense form, making it easier to transport and use as fuel.

Tapping the hidden value of farm waste

MIT researchers are developing mobile torrefaction technology that can convert biomass into clean-burning fuel, unlocking potential income for farmers.

January 25, 2017

MIT Assistant Professor Amos Winter (right, blue shirt) and Tish Scolnik ’10 were inspired to build a more rugged wheelchair after visits to Tanzania.

Building the mountain bike of wheelchairs

An MIT professor helped turn a class project into a mass-produced product that is helping people in developing countries.

January 23, 2017

“MIT has not only provided a very valuable classroom experience, but also given me all these other tools in research, technology innovations, and social entrepreneurship that I can take and [use to] help people in developing countries,” says Jiwon Park, a chemistry major, global traveler, and accomplished pianist.

Jiwon Park: Reaching out to the world

MIT senior leads diverse projects to help women and students in developing countries.