Oscar Guzman is my cousin and currently a student at the Illinois Institute of Technology.  He is starting his 3rd year in Chemical Engineering and already is using his knowledge to help others.  He recently became vice president of the Engineers Without Borders Chapter at IIT and had the opportunity to travel to Nicaragua with that organization helping communities assess the possibilities of implementing latrines that can be successfully and safely built.

He now has the opportunity to travel to Bolivia with Engineers in Action during the summer months and to make a bigger impact.  Bolivia is the poorest country in South America, and this organization is focusing on projects in the 30 poorest counties in Bolivia.  Engineers in Action is a non-profit organization which focuses on clean water solutions in Bolivia.  They work to build strong relationships with partners to bring these solutions to indigenous villages throughout the country. They also emphasize maintenance of projects that have been implemented throughout the country to ensure they are in working condition.

He will be traveling with various project teams around the whole country and help them work on their current projects.  Some of the projects include setting up irrigation systems, helping install wells and upkeep of existing wells, water filtration system installation and various other community building projects.

The money raised will help with his travel expenses.