Connecting rural Colombia to the the Future

Dear friend, 

On the 10th of August, a powerful 7.4 magnitude earthquake struck western Colombia, taking an untold number of lives and causing widespread destruction across affected communities.  When an earthquake strikes, we think about houses, roads, hospitals, water, and food. But there is something else that is affected—something we talk about far less: education.

In Chocó, Cali, and Buenaventura—areas already facing significant gaps in learning, infrastructure, and connectivity—a catastrophe can widen those divides even further.

But it doesn't have to be that way. Reconstruction offers an opportunity to close some of those gaps if we approach it using AI—Augmented Intelligence. That means involving the children and young people who need to keep learning, making them active participants in the rebuilding process as they think through and solve the "Big Questions" arising from this emergency.

At SOLE Colombia, we believe that the Augmented Intelligence of diverse communities taking charge of their own learning—combined with the technology and methodology that enable them to create solutions—can play a vital role in that reconstruction. We have therefore redirected this projects focus to support the areas affected by the earthquake. 

That’s why we created SOLE Labs HUM (DIY - Do It Yourself): easy-to-assemble technology infrastructure that allows communities to connect to the Internet in groups and create spaces for learning and collaborative problem-solving. Supported by training and networking opportunities, these spaces link up to form the Library of the Future.

Since the earthquake, we have received numerous requests from communities and organizations in need of a SOLE Lab HUM to support communities where schools collapsed. We currently have 3 ready for deployment, but that isn't enough to reach every place asking for our help.

And this is where you can make a difference.

Your donation can help fund a SOLE Lab for a community that needs to get connected right now—so they can keep learning and creating solutions to the challenges they face together.

You don't have to do it all. You just have to do your part. By working together, we can build more SOLE Labs, reach more areas, and ensure that a disaster doesn't turn into an educational crisis as well.

If you want to make a difference, donate to SOLE Colombia. Because rebuilding is also about helping communities keep on learning.

With gratitude,

The SOLE Colombia Team

Links:

• SOLE Lab HUM
• SOLE Colombia Website