Just A Windmill. Just a Kid. Right?

No wonder TED raved about this 'kid' (okay, he's 19, but he's a self-taught engineer with an infectious smile and crazy-wide-open mindset about what is possible).

William Kamkwamba (check out his "Malawi Windmill" blog here) describes himself in pretty humble terms:

I am a secondary school student in Malawi who is interested in wind and solar energy, irrigation pumps and anything mechanical or electrical.

Oh, yes, and he taught himself how to conceive/build a working windmill to aide his family.  He's right of center of this family photo.

I'm no engineer.  But something about this solution and this self-taught student makes me sit back in awe. 

The bicycle tire(s).  The framing. The rigor that went into the research and execution.  And the spirit he continues to share with us all. 

A great excuse to add a new blog to your feed stream. A great reason to remember what is possible outside the 'formal' walls of education.  A great reminder that both fundamentals and 2.0 can find connection points.

William writes:

Two weeks ago I used a computer for the first time. I learned about Google and searched for "windmill" and "solar energy." I was amazed to learn how many entries there were for both subjects. My friends showed me how to create an email address and now I am on Gmail. Now I am practicing sending and receiving emails when I have access to a computer. I don't have regular access to a computer yet, but I'm working on a way to get online more easily. You can write me at williamkamkwamba at g mail dot com.

Comments

[joe bruzzese]

Brilliant addition Christian! People like this young guy add incredible value to the world. Your inclusion of his genius on your site furthers the commitment we have to bringing the world closer together through the magic of the web.

Thanks for an inspiring start to my day.

Regards,

Joe Bruzzese

[Christian]

Joe -- You're welcome, but I think your passion will ignite as much as anything I've done as well.

My wife -- a middle school principal -- just took a look at your blog after I sent her the link. A very positive response from her. Hopefully you can connect one day soon.

Thanks for commenting! Cheers, Christian