A HUMAN-CENTERED HUMANITARIAN PROJECT

how I led a team of 35 US Marines, Royal Thai Marine Corps, and Korean Naval engineers to put the 'human' in humanitarian construction project through collaboration and asking the right questions

Team: US Marines, Royal Thai Marines, Republic of Korea Naval Engineers

GOAL

build positive relations by constructing a school to support 7 teachers & 120 students in Thailand

How Might We: bring joy to the community by building a more functional, long-lasting educational facility

APPROACH

asking the right questions and seeking first to understand the users

during preliminary planning meetings I met with military officials, community leaders, and teachers to understand their needs within the project scope

it was customary to hold a ceremony for the installation of the first pillar, so it was important to make this concrete building a special, long-lasting piece of the community

WHAT THEY ASKED FOR

the project plan called for a basic concrete building but our collaboration made it special

by directing our engineers to make blueprints in English and Metric measurements, we were able to fully engage US, Thai, and Korean engineers during the construction process

when met with delays due to the late arrival of equipment and materials, this robust collaborative effort was crucial to getting the project back on track

IMPLIED NEEDS

ensure the structure is an asset to the community for generations to come

before construction, I noticed a steep slope very close to the project site that posed a high risk of erosion

since there were no other viable project sites, I advocated for special sod and mesh fixtures to prevent erosion, even though it wasn't in the initial project request specifications

these measures, which also looked great, helped maintain the long-term structural integrity of the school

ADDED JOYS

more ways to add value and specialize the space

because I was able to save costs in other areas of the project, I encouraged my team to brainstorm ideas for ways we could make the space more useful

though simple, bookshelves were a thoughtful way to bring additional functionality to the space and delight the users

ADDRESSING PAIN POINTS

increased collaboration lead to resource surplus

the team of cross-cultural engineers worked so well together, our team saved more materials and time than similar projects conducted concurrently at other sites

we used this surplus to repave the dilapidated sidewalk leading towards the new school for a cleaner entrance

RESULT

we built both a long-lasting, highly functional school for a community and lifelong friends

we completed the project on-time and within budget with no major mishaps despite cultural and language barriers

the teachers, students, and community loved the finished product and care we took to make it special

it's hard to say who had more fun: the military or the kids...

LESSONS LEARNED

key takeaways

asking the right questions enabled us to address explicit requests, implied needs, added joys, and mitigate pain points

our highly collaborative effort increased efficiency and formed relationships that will last a lifetime; achieving strategic objectives and having a lot of fun along the way

SPECIAL THANKS

to my to Thai counterparts

for all their help and advice in the planning and execution phases of the project as well as truly embracing us as welcomed guests to their beautiful country

especially Pi-Yut (far left), whose subject matter expertise was instrumental to the project's success

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