About Us

In joint projects with local partners at schools and in rural communities in the Global South, we develop and implement practical and professional solutions in the areas of water, electricity, and sanitation as well as the construction and expansion of educational facilities. We use regionally sourced materials as much as possible and adapt our solutions to local conditions. Our projects are successfully completed when local people have the capacity to manage them independently - in line with the principle of helping people help themselves.

In Germany, we carry out educational work in the areas of STEM, Global Citizenship Education and integration. Examples include educational work at schools on water and sustainability, repair clubs, and combined technology and language courses for refugees.

Vision, Mission & Values

Vision

Our vision is a world in which everyone has access to basic infrastructure and can therefore lead a life in dignity.

Mission

Our mission is to use technical knowledge to sustainably improve people's livelihoods and to build bridges between cultures. This is why we plan and implement infrastructure projects and carry out educational work at home and abroad.

Values

It is particularly important to us to learn from each other and to work together as partners on an equal basis.

Together, we research and develop customized local solutions. When implementing them, we use regional materials whenever possible. We believe that sustainable impact can only be achieved if projects can be continued independently.

The foundation of our work is built on voluntary commitment. This enables us to pool a wide range of skills and collaborate across disciplines.

Our Guiding Principles

1. Help People Help Themselves

Our aim is to support people in the Global South where technical cooperation is necessary and possible. We support people whose basic infrastructural needs are not being met due to hardship or poverty - regardless of skin color, gender, origin, religion or sexual orientation.

For us, successful development cooperation means developing and implementing practical and professional solutions in joint projects with local partners. We use regional materials whenever possible and adapt our solutions to local conditions.

Effective support means that a project is only successfully completed when local people have the capacity to successfully maintain it on their own - according to the principle of helping people help themselves.

2. Work Areas and Activities

We provide technical assistance and support people in meeting their basic needs in the areas of water, sanitation, energy, education amongst others.

Our core competencies lie in:

1. planning and implementing infrastructure projects,
2.  training and educating local partners,
3. research and development, in particular on appropriate technology.

Together with our local partners, we build educational facilities (schools and training centers) and sanitary facilities, ensure water treatment, water distribution, water storage and the supply of energy. We primarily use renewable energy sources. During the planning phase, we explore the local conditions together with local partners to find out which materials and other resources are available and thus to ensure the efficient use of funds.

We plan in a forward-looking and growth-oriented manner, as well as in an ecologically and socially responsible way. We develop and implement the projects together with the local people and support them in realizing their own ideas. This also includes training in the operation and maintenance of completed projects, which ideally leads to the creation of new permanent jobs.

We conduct research into new technologies and methods and promote knowledge exchange with our partners so that we can make our technical development cooperation as effective as possible.

3. Quality and Sustainability

We work reliably and place great value on quality. We use resources sustainably and build functional and durable infrastructure together with local partners. We only consider our projects to be successfully completed when local people have the ability to continue them independently.

We optimize the use of resources by ensuring that our projects are adapted to local conditions and make a significant contribution to solving problems. Furthermore, we ensure the functionality and sustainability of our projects through technical expertise, careful planning and the use of high-quality, preferably local materials.

Through comprehensive documentation and the professional training of local people, we ensure that the jointly built infrastructure is used and maintained autonomously. We promote self-reliance and enable future generations to independently develop solutions for their basic infrastructural needs, and thus improve their long-term quality of life.

4. Volunteering

Our volunteers provide the foundations for our work and enable us to combine different skills and work in an interdisciplinary manner. Engineers, architects, geologists, sociologists, economists, communication experts and many others contribute their skills and support the interdisciplinary work of the association. They are selflessly and enthusiastically committed to the common cause.

5. Health & Safety

Our top priority is the health and safety of our members, partners and project participants. We make sure that health and safety measures are always in line with the challenges of the project. We only carry out projects where neither our volunteers nor our partners are exposed to disproportionate risks. 

Political developments may require us to temporarily interrupt or terminate our work in project countries in order to ensure the safety of our project participants and partners. We communicate these decisions transparently and openly to our donors.

6. Funding

We are funded by private individuals and companies, who donate money and pay membership fees. Additionally, we receive funds from foundations.

With their donations, our donors and supporting members place a great deal of trust in us. In order to do justice to this, we have clear guidelines for the allocation of funds, both for monetary donations and donations in kind. We ensure that the funds entrusted to us are used carefully and efficiently.

7. Transparency

We are committed to communicating the use of donations and funds transparently, correctly and objectively. 

Our annual report provides information on all the facts and figures of a financial year. 

We maintain open and respectful communication, both internally and with our partners. Self-criticism is important to us, as is the promotion of constructive criticism. We actively foster the sharing of experiences between partners, members and experts. Our fundraising and communications are objective and convey an authentic image of our activities and our mission.

Annual Reports (in German)