“The poorer you are, the shorter your life, and the more of your kids are going to die,” Paterson said.
Though he considers himself an idealist, Paterson said he nevertheless believes that “the chances are good that these problems will still be around” for a long time. He noted that the MDGs, meant to be achieved by 2015, are “non-prescriptive, partly because each country has its own particular set of issues.” He also identified data collection and cultural acceptance as the two major flaws in current sustainability efforts in the developing world.
The D80 Center that Paterson directs focuses on technological solutions for the poorest 80 percent of the global population.
The center, in collaboration with the U.S. Peace Corps, has sponsored a program since 1997 to send students abroad to do research and development in the fields of civil and environmental engineering.
Citing indoor pollution and poor sanitation as the two major health concerns in the developing world, Paterson explained that D80 has two ongoing design projects: a stove that reduces indoor air pollution and a latrine that blocks flies from human waste to prevent the transmission of fly-borne infections.
Princeton’s chapter of Engineers Without Borders (EWB) is currently working in Ghana to improve sanitation through latrine development. EWB has additional projects in sustainability and technology in Peru and Ethiopia.
Paterson said after the lecture that he is optimistic about the future of student and professional involvement to address technological problems faced by underprivileged communities.
He estimated that a quarter of D80 participants are now going on to professional careers with nonprofit organizations.
Alex Gasner ’10, a mechanical and aerospace engineering concentrator, expressed skepticism about the reach of programs like D80, noting that the issue of sustainability is “not an issue of attention, but an issue of thought.” Gasner, who is interested in the University’s new program in sustainable energy, also described issues of sustainability as receiving “attention by a certain small subset [of the campus], but little by anyone else.”
“It is very encouraging what Princeton is doing, and better than most [universities], but certainly behind D80,” Luke MacDonald GS said of Princeton’s recent efforts to create a more sustainable campus and increase its focus on energy research.
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