Greetings friends, associates and all those in between,
Today, I decided to write more about the Aid, education and STEM projects that I run within Iraq, Syria and Turkey.
There will be no 'Virtue Signalling', 'Self Aggrandising', or any form of manipulation as to gain support.
What I will write about is based on experiences, both good and bad, as well as my motivation for running such projects there. If it’s right or wrong then it will be up to you to judge, all I ask is here me out.
Science and Engineering are amazing subjects, they have helped mankind to reach out from the caves and into the Moon. We're now connected by the Internet and can instantly exchange information and video calls with others from almost anywhere on the Globe, via a computer or even a Cell Phone. This was the stuff off science fiction back in the 80's.
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Students in Iraq having a lesson by former Space Shuttle Engineer, Anita Gale.
With every generation, we see great wondrous advancements which help enable mankind to achieve its potential. Children who are born today may have the opportunity to work on the Moon or even Mars. In their lifetime they may see the end to terrible debilitating disease such as Alzheimer's and will see successful treatments for Cancers or even the end to some cancers.
We as a race have such potential and creativity. It is easy to forget our own inner potential in this modern age, but it's there within you and I, we can do wonderful things if we chose to do so, be it with arts or with the sciences. Humanity has such untapped wonder.
You may be wondering why I am talking about this. Well, I believe that there is so much untapped potential in not only the UK but also within the Middle East. Despite the conflicts within Iraq, Syria and Turkey, despite the politicking, bickering, and theatrics, I believe that the children there have such potential. But with such problems, they may not realise what they can achieve.
A dream and some hope can lead people to do wonderful things. But it is easy to forget the dream when your life is an eternal struggle, where your next meal may seem as far away as the stars themselves.
During the height of I.S back in 2014, I started a series of STEM outreach projects within Iraq, that has since spread to Turkey and to some extend Syria.
These STEM projects were focused on not only supporting STEM education there but to also help respark the imaginations there and to get them to realise that there can be a better tomorrow for themselves.
The following picture is from the first successful record STEM talk in Erbil, Iraq with Dr Metzger from NASA and Dr Robert Zubrin from the Mars Society. This was two talks for students there at a time when we were unsure as to the future of Iraq.
Young students in Erbil, Iraq, listening Aerospace talks from both Dr Metzger and Dr Zubrin.
At that point I had spent almost 2 years approaching almost every UK STEM based university as well as numerous 'progressive' STEM outreach groups, asking them to provide help. Most did not reply, in the end I suspended my career as an Aerospace Engineer and took matters into my own hands.
Since then I commissioned numerous projects from STEM talks to supporting schools, from supporting Women in Science to setting up Science Clubs. All without support from the UK or so called progressive groups. Those who helped were brave and kind colleagues who went out of their way to help.
Even colleagues at CERN have helped with talks for Refugee kids in Turkey as well as kids in Iraq
The talks are still running within Iraq with the recent one in Sulimaniha, Iraq for a Women in Science event with Anita Gale. We've even managed to run some for Refugees in Turkey and are at the moment working to set up a women in Science group there as well as a science club at one of the refugee camps.
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Young Iraqi female students at their Women in Science and Engineering event.
My hope is to expand upon these sort of projects, and to eventually get help as I am overwhelmed by the sucess of them. So far tens of thousands of locals, and refugees within the Middle East have been involved and I believe this can expand greatly.
Thanks for reading this. Let me know your thoughts in the comments below. Also, please do let me know if you have any STEM professional colleagues who'd like to help out or know of any possible ways for sponsorship/support for these sort of projects.
Other charity posts
Dave's astro lessons for Refugees
Books and bears for kids in Turkey and Syria
Support packages for schools in the Middle East
https://steemit.com/education/@epicdave/dave-s-astro-lessons-for-kids-in-turkey
https://steemit.com/education/@epicdave/books-and-bears-for-kids-in-turkey-and-syria
https://steemit.com/charity/@epicdave/dave-s-support-packages-for-schools-in-turkey-as-well-as-iraq-and-syria
Until next time,
Dave.
Great to know. Really a very good initiative. Keep up the good work ane keep sharing :)
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