Initial research

1. Eco-Challenge
.
2011Fremd High
School
Eco- Challenge

2. Location and Temperature
• Located on the Atlantic in the southern part of West
Africa
• Liberia’s capital, Monrovia, is situated
• on a peninsula and is the country’s
• major port. Other major towns include
• Buchanan and Ganta. The country
is divided into fifteen administrative
counties.
Leone, Guinea, and Côte d'Ivoire.
• Liberia is bordered by Sierra
 It is comparable in size to
Tennessee
 Most of the country is a
plateau covered by dense tropical forests, which thrive under an annual
rainfall of about 160 in. a year.
http://www.infoplease.com/atlas/country/liberia.html
 Liberia has a tropical climate with average temperatures ranging from 70
degrees Fahrenheit.
 The temperature never goes above 100° F.
 There is a very small temperature change from day to
night.
 There are two seasons – the wet from May to October and the dry from
November to April
 In August 2003, a comprehensive peace
agreement ended 14 years of civil war
http://blog.conservation.org/wp-
content/uploads/2009/06/boy_liberia.jpg

3. http://www.der.org/films/image
s/liberia-americas-stepchild.jpg
 Liberia was plunged into civil war when Charles Taylor led a rebellion
against Doe’s Government in 1989; Taylor won the presidency, through
duress, in 1997. A number of factions became involved in the fighting
and the United Nations (UN) estimates that 150 000 Liberians were
killed with a further 850 000 fleeing into
neighboring Côte d’Ivoire, Sierra Leone, Guinea and Ghana
 The security situation is still volatile and the process of rebuilding
the social and economic structure of this war-
torn country remains sluggish.
http://www.30-days.net/muslims/wp-
content/uploads/p37_d22_liberia.jpg
 The president is Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf
http://news.brown.edu/files/article_ima
ges/Sirleaf.jpg
 The population is: 3,685,076
 Natural resources: Iron ore; rubber; timber; diamonds; gold;
tin; possible offshore deposits of crude oil.
 Liberia is linguistically diverse: there are approximately 30
languages spoken and,
as with ethnic groups
 two decades of political instability, government corruption
and poor economic management have left the Liberian economy destitute; the
unemployment rate stood at an estimated 85 per cent in 2003 and external debt
 totaled $3.2 billion in 2005.
 Many business people fled the country during the
violence and foreign investment was significantly reduced. Sources of overseas
aid declined during the civil war and its immediate aftermath due to concerns
about human rights abuses and bureaucratic corruption

4.  Approximately 40 per cent of Liberians practice Christianity while 20 per
cent are Muslim. The remaining 40 per cent follow traditional indigenous
animist beliefs (which may include belief in spirits). Ancestors are
sometimes worshipped in Liberian culture as they are believed to influence
current events.
 Liberia has extremely poor standards of public health.
 Liberian literacy rates have risen steadily since 1990. However, while adult
male
literacy is around 72 per cent, adult female literacy is very low with only 39
per
cent of Liberian women being literate.
 Schooling in Liberia consists of primary schools providing six years of
study and
junior and senior high schools that each provide three years of study.
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the- http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/assets/images/2009/11/25/091125165555_liberia_westpoint_s
world-factbook/graphics/flags/large/li-lgflag.gif hanty466.jpg
http://www.lutheranworld.org/Images/LWF_Pho
tos/Photos_DWS/DWS-Countries_Photos/DWS-
Liberia-Refugees-big.jpg
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5047/5302898617_cb99d9e82b.jpg http://cache.boston.com/resize/bonzai-
fba/Globe_Photo/2008/11/26/1227759048_1684/539w.jpg

5. The Need
Shoes can offer protection and comfort to countless people in Liberia who lack these essential
needs. Also, they are mandatory in some regions for a child to receive a full education. Just by
wearing a pair of shoes, a child could be on the path to a healthier and prosperous future.
Why do we need shoes?
For people in developed nations, shoes are regarded as a customary possession and are not seen
as a privilege to own. They mainly serve as a fashion statement and are designed with color and style in
mind. This is not the case for many people in the Liberia. For them and most other third world nations,
shoes are seen as a gift of survival and opportunities. Proper sanitation cannot be placed under high
priority in a nation that struggles to fight unstable government and economic issues. Having pathways
and areas near living places that cannot be distinguished between waste and feces infested areas pose a
serious threat to most children and adults. This concern is amplified with the fact that the method of
transportation is largely by foot
and that most natives cannot
afford foot protection. It is
clearly evident that problems
such as these are a major
influence on the decrease in
population between the age
groups of adolescence and
adulthood as seen in this graph.
http://www.nationmaster.com/country/li-liberia/Age-_distribution
There are many diseases and parasitic infections that can be contracted through the feet. One common
disease that one could receive by walking barefoot is Podoconiosis, or "mossy foot". It is a type of non-
filarial Elephantiasis, rampant in many African nations. It is obtained when small particles of silica
penetrate the skin of people walking barefoot across volcanic soil. The particles enter the lymphatic
system and clog the lymphatic, causing Elephantiasis. This gruesome disease can easily be prevented
by wearing some type of foot protection to keep ones feet separated from the soil. Schistosomiasis is a
disease caused by parasitic worms. It affects 200 million people worldwide including much of Africa.

6. Its highest occurrence and severity is in school-aged children.
Infection occurs when your skin comes in contact with
contaminated fresh water in which certain types of snails that carry
schistosomes are living. The parasite leaves the snail and enters
the water where it can penetrate the skin of persons who is in
contact with the contaminated water. Within several weeks, worms
grow inside the blood vessels of the body and produce eggs. The
body reacts to the eggs with fever, chills, cough and muscle aches.
Excretion of the eggs through urine and feces complete the life
cycle of the worm. Repeated infections can damage the liver,
intestines, lung and bladder. Use Once again, simply wearing
shoes can minimize the occurrence of this disease. Another major
concern of the lack of shoes to children are the minimal education opportunities offered to them. In
regions of Africa, a child is required to wear a pair of shoes; otherwise they are denied a proper
education. This offers numerous limits to the individual people but to the countries as well. If a child is
not allowed to get a thorough education, they are most likely not going to be able to prosper and
advance sociably. And with this pattern occurring to millions of children across the nation, the country
as a whole will not have the potential to advance both humanly and regarding technology.

7.  Shoes 4 Souls collects shoes from people and then gives them to people in need.
 over 125 countries, including Kenya, Thailand, Nepal and the United States
 useful only if your shoe size has been donated and old shoes may not last much longer or be good for wearing constantly.
 Shoe4Africa gives shoes and education to Africans.
 They also help educate about AIDS
 Also building a school and a hospital

8.  Heart and Sole MSU collects shoes to send overseas to needy people
 Also accepts donations of money to cover shipping costs
 Does not have enough money to ship all shoes off
 One World Running collects shoes and donates them to those in need of running shoes
 Some of the shoes are new; many are "near-new," which are the ones sent overseas. The shoes that are beat up and not suit-
able for shipment are sent to Nike in Beaverton, Ore., through Boulder's Eco-Cycle program, to be ground up and made into
running tracks and playgrounds through the Reuse-a-Shoe program.

9.  The Shoe Bank collects shoes and donates them to those in need around the world
 In 2006, five thousand children received shoes in India, Sri Lanka, and Thailand, following the tidal waves that hit Southeast Asia.
 In 2001, seven thousand pairs of children’s shoes were shipped to El Salvador and distributed to earthquake victims.
 In 2000, four thousand pairs of shoes were delivered to orphans of war in Burundi, Kenya, and Mozambique.
 In 1999, four thousand pairs of children’s shoes were sent to Albania and given to refugees fleeing Kosovo.
 When Hurricane Mitch hit Central America in September of 1998, The Shoe Bank provided six thousand pairs of shoes for children in
Nicaragua, Guatemala, and Honduras.
 The Shoe Bank has also supported orphanages in Rumania, Turkey, Ecuador, Columbia, Mexico, and Costa Rica.
 Also Cameroon and Afganistan

10.  Sole Responsibility collects gently used running shoes and donates them to those in need
around the world through the guidance of the United Nations High Commission for
Refugees.
 After consulting with the United Nations to determine the area of greatest need, we have
been asked to send our shoes Ethiopia in Africa this year. Since starting in 2005, our
collections have gone to Chad, Rwanda, Lesotho, and Cameroon.
 Only collect running shoes

11.  TOMS shoes gives a pair of shoes to a children in need for every pair someone buys
 Children get new shoes that are stylish

12. Works Cited
C.I.A. "CIA - The World Factbook." Welcome to the CIA Web Site — Central Intelligence
Agency. 19 Apr. 2010. Web. 09 Feb. 2011.
<https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/li.html>.
"Geography and Map of Liberia." Geography Home Page - Geography at About.com. 1 Nov.
2005. Web. 09 Feb. 2011.
<http://geography.about.com/library/cia/blcliberia.htm>.
“Liberia.” Infoplease: Encyclopedia, Almanac, Atlas, biographies, Dictionary
Thesaurus. Free Online Reference, Research & Homework Help. – Infoplease.com.
<http://www.infoplease.com/country/profiles/liberia.html>
May 2001. Web. 09 Feb. 2011.
LBC. "Shoes + Love = TOMS." Hugbacker - People with Really Big Shoulders…. 16 Aug. 2009.
Web. 09 Feb. 2011. <http://www.hugbacker.com/tag/toms-shoes>.
"MSUCOM: Public Relations - Heart and Sole." MSU College of Osteopathic Medicine - Front
Page. Web. 10 Feb. 2011. <http://www.com.msu.edu/pub-rel/heartandsole/>.
NationMaster. "NationMaster - Liberian Population Pyramids." NationMaster - World
Statistics, Country Comparisons. 17 July 2003. Web. 09 Feb. 2011.
<http://www.nationmaster.com/country/li-liberia/Age-_distribution>.
Palmer, Philip. "Tropical Medicine Central Resource." Tropical Medicine Central Resource -
from USUHS. Web. 09 Feb. 2011.
<http://tmcr.usuhs.mil/tmcr/chapter26/clinical19.htm>.
Sandrock, Michae. "One World Running ." One World Running. Web. 10 Feb. 2011.
<http://oneworldrunning.blogspot.com/>.

13. "Shoes4Souls." Soles4Souls | A Shoe Charity Recycling Shoes For People In Need. Web. 10 Feb.
2011. <http://www.soles4souls.org/>.
"Sole Responsibility." Sole Responsibility - Home. Web. 10 Feb. 2011.
<http://www.soleresponsibility.org/>.
"The Shoe Bank." The Shoe Bank. Web. 10 Feb. 2011. <http://www.shoebank.org/>.
"TOMS Shoes." Official Store - TOMS Shoes - One for One - A Pair of New Shoes Is Given to a
Child in Need With Every Pair Purchased | TOMS.com. Web. 10 Feb. 2011.
<http://www.toms.com/>.
"Why It Is Extremely Important to Get Shoes To Africa… « Shoes4schools’s Blog."
Shoes4schools’s Blog. Web. 10 Feb. 2011.
<http://shoes4schools.wordpress.com/2008/12/28/why-it-is-extremely-importan
t-to-get-shoes-to-africa/>.
Wikipedia. "Liberia." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. 8 Feb. 2011. Web. 09 Feb. 2011.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberia>.