While other students are looking forward to summer breaks, those in Colorado State Universities Global Social and Sustainable Enterprises MBA program are gearing up for a summer that could steer much of their future.

This summer, seven teams will set out to locations across the globe to conduct fieldwork on diverse projects:



PowerMundo

PowerMundo is looking to tackle the developing world's problems, several products at a time. The team - Nandini McClurg, Sule Amadu, Jacob Castillo, Michael Callahan and Patrick Flynn - hope to implement a market-driven approach to bringing efficient, sustainable and affordable products to remote areas of the world. The team will return to Peru this summer, having already visited in the spring.

"The team coalesced around household energy products," Castillo said. "All of our passions are really linked by alleviating poverty using business as a vehicle."

In Peru, the group is exploring implementation of cook stoves designed by local non-profit Envirofit and solar lighting. PowerMundo hopes to leverage analysis of various markets to bring in products that will improve the lives of people living there, and the group will help co-develop new products with the knowledge gained.

A major issue in the Peruvian market is the use of indoor cook stoves for heat, food preparation and lighting. The stoves currently in use are not very efficient and highly polluting - smoke exposure of women and children can be equivalent to smoking two packs of cigarettes a day.

PowerMundo will also explore solar lighting as an alternative to kerosene. Callahan explained that alpaca ranchers are a great market for the technology, as they need the improved lighting for windy evening in the mountains. He estimates that solar-charged lights could save $1 per week in kerosene for an initial $20 to $25 investment in the system.

Part of the team might also spend time in India this summer. New markets and new products will be part of the ongoing evolution of PowerMundo. The concept behind all of the products, Castillo explained, is that they will pay for themselves, increase health and function more efficiently.

This summer, the group wants to recruit a Peruvian staff member, land 1,000 product orders, conduct product data research, identify distribution channels and visit with other companies successfully using similar models.

For more information on PowerMundo, visit www.powermundo.com.



Cambodia Cooperative

The Cambodia Cooperative group has partnered with the Wildlife Conservation Society and the Farmer's Livelihood, a non-governmental organization in Cambodia, according to the GSSE Web site. The team hopes to develop a business plan for Farmer's Livelihood and develop a long-term plan for international marketing of the cooperative's products. Attempts to contact a team representative for this story were not returned in time for publication.



Su Casa

"Billions of people are aspiring to have a nice home," explained Joseph Darnell. "It's not just the American dream."

Darnell and teammate John McKinney have formed Su Casa and will spend the summer in and around Merida, Mexico. The two have teamed up with the students and faculty at the Universidad Autonoma de Yucatan to explore potential solutions to a growing housing problem. Darnell previously lived in Mexico and saw that many in the area would work and save for years just to build little block houses.

Su Casa will attempt to design affordable, eco-friendly, desirable homes. In Merida, that will probably include using elements of traditional Mayan huts. Darnell said that the traditional huts used recycled materials and made efficient use of design to maximize lighting and airflow. However, the huts long ago fell out of favor.

"There's a stigma now attached to them, linking them to poverty," he explained. A major objective for the group will be to determine not only what the market can afford, but also what it will want.

By the end of the summer, Darnell hopes to have a better understanding of the market and its mentality and to have a design for a home. It remains to be seen whether the home would be a kit, pre-fabricated or constructed by a contractor. While the home designs are the anticipated deliverables for the summer, the work doesn't end there.

"Su Casa hopes to launch and become a viable business," he said, adding that the Mexico market is only the start. "Indigenous knowledge (worldwide) has been neglected because it's not modern. There's a lot to learn."



Czero Inc.

Local startup Czero Inc. has been heavy on engineering talent, having already tapped CSU's expertise in the field. The GSSE team of Kent Gneiting, Swapnil Morande and Mark Schlink will bring the necessary business expertise to bring the company's hydraulic hybrid engine to developing markets.

Czero has been working with CSU's Engines and Energy Conversion Lab to develop a hydraulic hybrid system for dynamically driven vehicles that works like an electric hybrid system - the hydraulics are used to power the motor during certain times. The hydraulic system is charged when a vehicle brakes by pushing fluid into a tank. The system is then reversed, releasing the energy for vehicle acceleration.

"We don't have a lot of business strength ourselves," said Guy Babbit, founder of Czero. "We're mostly tech."

The Czero team will visit four or five major cities in India this summer. Pollution is a major issue in the country, with many fleet vehicles running older, relatively dirty engines. Gneiting said the group hopes to speak with government officials, non-profits, think tanks and local businesses. One of the main goals will be to determine the barriers to using a hydraulic hybrid.

 "The biggest thing we're encountering is that most people haven't considered hydraulic hybrids as a viable alternative," he said.



Small Engines

The Small Engines group has teamed with the CSU Engines Lab with a goal of developing a sub-horsepower, two-stroke diesel engine to replace existing four-stroke engines used in agriculture.

The GSSE team of Chelsea DeFoort, Mitesh Gala, Angelina Pramatarova and Krupa Ventrapati hope the new engine, which is striving toward vegetable oil fuel, will replace existing four-stroke engines that are more polluting and less efficient. DeFoort said that the four-stroke engines run on three to seven horsepower, have about 4 percent efficiency and cost $150 to run annual. Comparatively, the engine in development will have only one horsepower, have an efficiency of 30 percent and cost $30 to run in a year.

"It's a lot for someone who make $300 a year," she said.

The group will split in two this summer to conduct fieldwork in Bangladesh and Ethiopia where they hope to investigate the market and competition before meeting in India to field-test a prototype.

For more information on the Small Engines project, visit smallengines.weebly.com.



Disacare

The Disacare Wheelchair Center was formed in 1991 to bring mobility aids to the disabled in Zambia, but changes outside the organization's control are threatening to shut it down.

"The sources of funding they've had for several years are drying up," said Diane Dodd, a member of the Disacare GSSE team. "They either have to improve their business model or they will no longer survive."

Dodd and team members Kristin Brinkman and Lucinda Kerschensteiner will travel to Zambia this summer to evaluate the organization's current model and collaborate with the staff on transitioning from a donation-based organization to an enterprise model.

"Disacare has these fabulous designs, but it's not well-rounded," explained Kerschensteiner.

During the summer, the group hopes to help Disacare develop a business plan, help them with funding and conduct a little business training. Going forward, the team hopes to leverage what it learns with Disacare at other organizations.

"Disacare is one of hundreds, if not thousand, of small mobility firms," Brinkman said. "There is a lot of potential, if this works."



Dhaka Weaves

Dhaka Weaves - a Nepali organization founded in 1991 - has struggled the past several years in a tumultuous political climate.

The organization is focused on preserving the Nepali tradition of weaving and providing women there a source of self-sufficiency. It once operated a retail location to sell the crafts - ranging from tablecloths to clothing - but was forced to close it when civil unrest made the operation too dangerous and not profitable.

"When they closed their store, they lost 80 percent of their sales," said Lindsay Neenan. Neenan and her teammate Stacey Baumgarn will spend the summer in Nepal helping Dhaka Weaves to develop a business plan and explore potential distribution markets.

Now, the only source for distribution is direct to customers through the all-volunteer Tewa Tea, similar to a Tupperware party.

"It's a very high-quality product," said Baumgarn, so the issue is just getting it out there. The team hopes to help Dhaka Weaves explore options for distribution, including local retail and Fair Trade certification. They will also work on a market analysis, industry assessment, marketing plan, business modeling and other partnership development.