LIFELINE.... for the POOR?

A Wind up, solar powered radio for knowledge acquisition

A humanitarian company (oxymoron) called Lifeline (presumptuous) has developed a radio (the lifeplayer) that is mainly powered by solar energy and/or a hand crank system. While it does have an input for direct power connection it is not necessary for it to work. It is a 5 band radio, that can record and playback live voice, download internet audio, play preprogrammed information stored on its 64GB memory and play mp3's. Their target market, sub-Saharan africa and most of the developing world.

It is meant to be an educational resource that has multiple uses in different contexts. Teachers can use it in their large classrooms to teach english, or access educational radio broadcasts, that can be recorded and replayed as often as desired, while women's groups can use it to educate themselves on health and hygiene, and farm groups looking for new agricultural techniques and practices find it a great resource. The capabilities of the machine are limitless, especially since base prerecorded information can be stored on the 64GB microSD card or on mp3 to fit the needs of different groups. The article published in All Africa (2012) mentioned that currently the machines are being sent with lessons for grades 1-7 and early child development already on it.

There are many advantages to this sort of device which includes the fact that unlike computers that need high stable energy inputs and can often be used by a limited number of students at a time, the lifeplay is more suitable to certain rural and cultural lifestyles. These include factors such as large numbers of students per class (lifeplay can be heard by up to 60 listeners at a time), oral traditions (story telling, thus auditory learners), social learning (collective societies), lack of stable electricity and isolation. With the lifeplayer you have virtual access to information at all times, anywhere. It also puts the power of knowledge on diverse tailor made subjects into the hands of women, refugees and children.

From video demonstrations of how to use it, it seems user friendly and especially child friendly.

VIDEO: Introducing The Lifeplayer 

Is lifeplay really the LIFELINE for the poor? With any ICT project meant for development (ICT4D) it is important to look through the glass of caution at the potential faulty foundations it could be basing itself on. This video, Top 7 Reasons Why Most ICT4D FAILS - Dr Clint Rogers, is a good place to start.

While I really like the concept of lifeplay and see how its many uses can be extremely beneficial for places where there is not sufficient access to information and educational material, it is important to exercise caution in all new endeavours. A few warning bells went off for me during my research into the LIFELINE product. It started simply with a quote from the visionary and founder himself Rory Stear found in Time magazine's environmental heroes article, where he describes his company as an, “array of products tailor-made for the poor.” (Lindow, 2007) It has a condescending tone, fault number 7 faults of Dr.Clint Rogers, Project built on condescending assumptions, and an inaccurate reference point in my opinion.

It is not just the poor who could do with renewable energy products but more so the rich countries where a lot of energy is wasted, leaving lights on overnight in public buildings such as offices and commercial stores. We often have computers available for each student that run on separate hardware or each student simply has their own computer. Is it tailor-made for the poor or for humans? This type of vocabulary can send the wrong message and in regards to environmental concerns it is not the poor causing the environmental crisis (Butler & Angus, 2011) despite that Lidow (2007) says “ Millions of Africans live without electricity, forced to make do instead with kerosene and firewood — sources of energy that wreak havoc on the environment.”

This may seem trivial in light of the many advantages of this product. However, Stear goes on to say that “ the commercial side of Freeplay is expanding in Africa, India and beyond” (Lidow, 2007) also a warning sign that maybe the humanitarian intentions are not as pure as they might seem. From a bit of research I read that there was an initiative where for each hand crank radio bought one would be sent to africa,(Carter, 2004) why this can no longer be found (read has been stopped) is a mystery to me. While I understand businesses need to make money if these radios are so good for the environment and for africa they should be more promoted in the rich countries where US $75-80 is not a salary, as well where waste is a real issue. All those campers, hikers, people who could find themselves in emergency situations should have one, enabling africans and indians to get them for free.

Furthermore, it is unclear about the standards of the educational material that is pre-stored in the device. Although it is created in partnership with the british council, it does not mean that it is tailor-made, as Stear would put it, for different countries across the developing world. However, the fact that information can be recorded directly by the users (teachers) does allow for more control over what children are learning. In her article Cahill (2004) states that “ children listen to radio programs that compliment the national school calendar by teaching the same lessons, programs about water and sanitation, AIDS awareness lessons, and even lessons about the recent elections in South Africa - so young people could learn who was eligible to vote (citizens over 18) and what the major issues were.” This is more reassuring than a standardized program sent out to all countries regardless of cultural, social and political context. If what Kristine Pearson, wife of founder Rory Stear and director of the freeplay foundation, says is true that "Children say that the voice they trust is the voice of the radio." (Lidow, 2007) users need to be cautious about what those radios from the rich countries are saying.... That they are poor and destroying the environment and they need a lifeline in order to develop.

In finishing, the lifeplayer only commits one of the 7 deadly sins of ICT4D, which is pretty remarkable!

I'll let the people speak for themselves through this example of how it is used in Rwanda to teach teachers

References

Africa: Lifeline Sells Rugged, Solar Powered Mp3 Player/Radio for Rural Education - Next Generation Device Will Have Video. (2012) Retrieved December 5, 2012, from http://allafrica.com/stories/201208070927.html

SmartMonkeyTV. (2012). Kristine Pearson on the Lifeplayer, an MP3 player for rural education. Retrieved December 5, 2012, from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eh5Y2y951MM&feature=plcp

British Council Africa. (2011). Wind-up radios help English teachers in Rwanda. Retrieved December 5, 2012, fromhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z7BQc_gX8b4

Butler, S & Angus, I. (2011). Is the environmental crisis caused by the 7 billion or the 1%? Retrieved December 5, 2012 from http://grist.org/population/2011-10-26-is-the-environmental-crisis-caused-by-7-billion-or-the-1-percent/

Carter, Tim (2004). Hand Crank Radio. Retrieved December 5, 2012, from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RuiNXVCe800

Cahill, Petra (2004). Bringing radio to rural Africa: Spreading information through crank-ups. Retrieved December 5, 2012 from

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4953281/ns/world_news/t/bringing-radio-rural-africa/#.UMIRrJhVgy4

LifelineEnergy. (2010). Introducing The Lifeplayer. Retrieved December 5, 2012 from

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TrX5x6xLLQQ

Lindow, M. (2007). Kristine Pearson and Rory Stear. Retrieved December 5, 2012 from

http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/article/0,28804,1663317_1663322_1669935,00.html

Rogers, Clint. (2010). Top 7 Reasons Why Most ICT4D FAILS - Dr Clint Rogers. Retrieved December 5, 2012 from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wLVLh0L7qJ0

SmartMonkeyTV. (2012). Kristine Pearson on the Lifeplayer, an MP3 player for rural education. Retrieved December 5, 2012, from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eh5Y2y951MM&feature=plcp

Extra reading

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lifeline_Energy

CASE STUDY: LIFELINE FREEPLAY RADIO http://www.designthatmatters.org/k2/pubs/Gareth_Sumner_Lifeline_Freeplay_Radio.pdf

Radio Education For South African Aids Orphans

http://www.globalgiving.org/projects/radio-education-africa/

http://www.lifelineenergy.org/