FALL 2015
A Letter from the DIL Directors
Dear Colleagues,
Since our launch in 2012, the Development Impact Lab (DIL) has been developing a range of solutions and services for low-income
communities, and this year several of our innovations began to achieve scale. The Community Cellular Network -- a Berkeley
technology bringing solar, low-cost mobile communications to off-network regions -- recently launched as a Silicon Valley startup,
called Endaga. Within months, the Endaga team was “aqui-hired” by Facebook. The ElectroChemical Arsenic Removal project
(ECAR), which removes heavy metal contamination from drinking water, has evolved from a “proof-of-concept” pilot to a 10,000 Liter
plant that will provide water to thousands of students. The technology has been licensed for further scale by the private sector.
In all, DIL has invested in more than 135 projects in 35 countries around the world. The portfolio crosses sectors and regions, but the
common element is a new approach to pro-poor technology design, which we call Development Engineering (Dev Eng). The idea is
to integrate innovations in the social sciences-- like behavioral economics, A/B testing, and willingness-to-pay experiments-- with
advances in technology. This approach allows us to build scalability and sustainability into the design of new products and services.
Dev Eng is one of DIL’s institutional legacies. It is being formalized through a new open access journal, Development Engineering. The
peer-reviewed publication will highlight pro-poor innovations at the nexus of technology and social science. The journal also seeks
to strengthen the voices of developing country scholars, through a unique co-mentorship program that pairs authors from low- and
middle-income countries with senior faculty in established research groups. Long term, this initiative will facilitate international
collaboration and will add critical insight to a growing body of knowledge on technology for development.
Alongside the new journal, DIL has been helping multiple universities to formalize the practice of development engineering. At
UC Berkeley, we have launched a minor in Dev Eng for doctoral students. Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne (EPFL) in
Switzerland is launching a similar program for undergraduate students. The private sector is also picking up on this trend, with
companies like Bechtel beginning to train its engineers in new ways.
As an impact-focused research network, DIL recognizes the power of translating data into actionable insights. As we end our third
year and enter the fourth, we will be actively sharing our findings with development actors in the public and private sectors. This
includes sharing our failures and highlighting some of the common barriers to achieving impact at scale. We also encourage those
interested in Dev Eng to contact us and start collaborating! We are always looking for new ways to improve the innovation process,
shape student career trajectories, and transform the field of technology for development.
Ashok Gadgil
DIL P.I. and Co-Director
Professor, U.C. Berkeley
S. Shankar Sastry
DIL Co-Director
Dean of Engineering, U.C. Berkeley
75
DIL Year 3: By The Numbers
RESEARCHERS
500
35