Coweta-Fayette Electric Membership Corporation. “Those we help may speak a different language, but they speak the same work.� Funding for this goodwill effort comes in part from the NRECA International Foundation, a registered charitable organization. NRECA International Programs projects are currently under way in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bolivia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, the Philippines, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, and Yemen.
Much more to be done More than 2 billion people around the globe still live without power — 64 million in Latin America, 500 million in Africa, and more than 1 billion in Asia. According to NRECA International Programs, reliable electricity strengthens communities by providing better
educational opportunities and increasing safety. Access to power also paves the way for progress, giving small business a much-needed boost. “It was a humbling experience, to see the way people lived compared to what we have,� recalls Craig Carlan, a lineman for Clarkesville, Ga.-based Habersham Electric Membership Corporation, who also worked in Guatemala. “In the village we electrified, kids will have the opportunity to get a better education. They have dreams, too, just like we have dreams. Maybe they can set higher goals now.� To assist NRECA International Programs efforts, visit www.NRECAFoundation.coop.
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Megan McKoy-Noe writes on consumer and cooperative affairs for the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, the service arm of the nation’s 900-plus consumer-owned, not-for-profit electric cooperatives.
At work in Bolivia Robin Blanton, manager of engineering at Piedmont EMC in Hillsborough, last year joined Todd Nalley, supervisory engineer at a South Carolina electric cooperative, to help train Bolivians in electricity substation operations. NRECA’s International Foundation had planned for Todd and Robin to visit nine urban and three rural substations belonging to CRE, the largest power distribution system in Bolivia and the oldest overseas co-op affiliated with NRECA.
CRE was in the process of upgrading and renewing some 15 substations, and the two volunteers would visit the sites and offer recommendations to CRE regarding standardization of design features and maintenance procedures. CRE staff said later that they gained a greater understanding of the need for by-pass schemes for all main breakers, plus additional details on arrangements for protecting outgoing secondary lines.
Robin and Todd said their approach was to keep things as simple and as standardized as possible. “Don’t try to reinvent the wheel every time something new comes along,� Todd said. “But don’t be afraid to change things when it is truly necessary.� They added that the experience was as much a learning experience for them as it was for the Bolivian staff.
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