Developing countries

$MIT spinout PlenOptika has developed a highly accurate, portable autorefractor called QuickSee that measures refractive errors of the eye. More affordable than the current technology, the device has potential to reach patients in previously inaccessible areas of developing countries.$

Startup aims to make vision care more accessible in developing world

Portable device can generate corrective lens prescriptions in areas with no optometry care.

January 10, 2018

“The idea of SurgiBox is to take the operating room and shrink it down to just the patient’s size. Keeping an entire room clean and surgery-ready requires a lot of resources that many hospitals and surgeons across the globe don’t have.” — MIT graduate student Sally Miller

Turning any room into an operating room

With a product called SurgiBox, grad student Sally Miller hopes to make safe, clean surgery possible anywhere.

January 8, 2018

Physician Chris Zahner at the University of Texas Medical Branch designing sensor systems in the MakerHealth Space.

How to turn clinicians into makers

Providing training and resources, MakerHealth helps nurses and doctors hack medical equipment to improve patient care.

December 19, 2017

Many rural communities are turning to microgrids, small-scale power systems that supply local energy, typically in the form of solar power, to localized consumers, such as individual households or small villages.

No more blackouts?

New framework guarantees stability of microgrids that supply local power in developing countries.

November 8, 2017

Members of J-WEL convene on MIT campus to explore new developments in brain science, pedagogy, and digital learning practices.

Abdul Latif Jameel World Education Lab holds inaugural J-WEL Week

Educators, researchers, policy makers, and technologists from 27 countries gather to spark a global renaissance in education for all learners.

October 9, 2017

Amy Smith is the founding director of the MIT D-Lab.

Designing for a more equitable world

D-Lab founder Amy Smith teaches MIT students to tap into the heart of international development.

October 6, 2017

Erica James, associate professor of medical anthropology and urban studies in the Department of Urban Studies and Planning, co-presents with Dennis McLaughlin, H.M. King Bhumibol Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (not pictured) on the results of their research project, Leverage Points: Opportunities for Increasing Food Production in Developing Countries, funded by ...

Projects make inroads on global food and water challenges

MIT researchers supported by J-WAFS present results of their work on food and water security.

September 21, 2017

“We are trying to solve the issue of youth unemployment through entrepreneurship and through making small businesses more efficient — starting more businesses, starting them well, having them grow up to the point where they can be employers,” says graduate student Meghan McCormick about her company, Osez Innover, which operates in three countries in West Africa.

Empowering young entrepreneurs in West Africa

MBA student Meghan McCormick leads a venture that helps African youth develop small businesses.

September 17, 2017

“We are very excited about this work because, for the first time, we can create a library of tiny, encased vaccine particles, each programmed to release at a precise, predictable time,” says professor Robert Langer.

One vaccine injection could carry many doses

Microparticles created by new 3-D fabrication method could release drugs or vaccines long after injection.

September 14, 2017

Mark Brennan (left) and Prithvi Sundar are graduate students working with MIT’s Comprehensive Initiative on Technology Evaluation to better understand and evaluate the food aid supply chain.

Researchers identify opportunities to improve quality, reduce cost of global food assistance delivery

Research from MIT's CITE program leverages a procurement process to identify opportunities for improving food aid supply chains.

September 13, 2017

D-Lab research associate Megha Hegde and two local students from India conduct a hands-on workshop on water filters with the women of Mujholi village in Ranikhet, Uttarakhand, India, for the new xylem filter technology, funded by J-WAFS Solutions.

J-WAFS awards commercialization grants to develop technologies for water and food solutions

Three new projects and two renewals receive J-WAFS Solutions grant funding for 2017-2018.

September 7, 2017

Danielle Wood spoke at the Media Lab’s space event, Beyond the Cradle, in March. She will join the faculty full-time in January 2018.

Danielle Wood joins Media Lab faculty

MIT alumna is establishing a new research group aimed at harnessing space engineering to improve life on Earth.

August 28, 2017

MIT Professor Evan Lieberman, the Total Chair on Contemporary Africa, has created the Department of Political Science's first online course through MITx.

Political science debuts on MITx

New online course takes a deep dive into democracy in Africa.

August 25, 2017

D-Lab Scale-Ups Fellow Chebet Lesan holds a bag of her company's innovative charcoal briquettes, which are made from recycled waste. Lesan is the founder and CEO of BrightGreen Renewable Energy, which provides affordable, clean, safe, and eco-friendly charcoal briquettes for low-income households in Kenya.

Bringing poverty-alleviating solutions to market in India, Kenya, Nigeria, Tanzania, and Uganda

2017 D-Lab Scale-Ups are tackling energy access, small farm irrigation, portable medical diagnostics, online education, and support for local artisans.

August 16, 2017

A new study shows that without significant reductions in carbon emissions, deadly heat waves could begin within as little as a few decades to strike regions of India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. This map shows the maximum wet-bulb temperatures (which combine temperature and humidity) that have been reached in this region since 1979.

Deadly heat waves could hit South Asia this century

Without action, climate change could devastate a region home to one-fifth of humanity, study finds.

August 2, 2017

MIT News | Massachusetts Institute of Technology

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