TEDGlobal 2009
William Kamkwamba: How I harnessed the wind
William Kamkwamba: De cómo dominé el viento
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A la edad de 14 años, en la pobreza y hambruna, un niño de Malawi construyó un molino de viento para dotar a su casa de electricidad. Ahora William Kamkwamba, a la edad de 22 años y en TED por segunda ocasión, comparte con sus propias palabras la emotiva historia del invento que cambió su vida.
William Kamkwamba - Inventor
To power his family's home, young William Kamkwamba built an electricity-producing windmill from spare parts and scrap -- starting him on a journey detailed in the book and film "The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind." Full bio
To power his family's home, young William Kamkwamba built an electricity-producing windmill from spare parts and scrap -- starting him on a journey detailed in the book and film "The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind." Full bio
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
00:12
Thank you.
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Gracias.
00:15
Two years ago, I stood on the TED stage in Arusha, Tanzania.
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Hace dos años estuve en TED en Arusha, Tanzania.
00:19
I spoke very briefly about one of my proudest creations.
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Y hablé acerca de una de las creaciones que me llena de orgullo.
00:24
It was a simple machine that changed my life.
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Es una sencilla máquina que cambió mi vida.
00:28
Before that time,
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Antes de esa época
00:30
I had never been away from my home
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nunca había estado lejos de mi casa
00:33
in Malawi.
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en Malawi.
00:36
I had never used a computer.
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Nunca había usado una computadora.
00:38
I had never seen an Internet.
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Nunca había visto el Internet.
00:42
On the stage that day, I was so nervous.
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En la presentación de aquel día yo estaba muy nervioso.
00:47
My English lost,
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Se me olvidó el inglés,
00:51
I wanted to vomit.
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y quería vomitar.
00:53
(Laughter)
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(Risas)
00:57
I had never been surrounded by so many azungu,
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Nunca había estado rodeado de tantos "azungu",
01:01
white people.
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o sea hombres blancos.
01:03
(Laughter)
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(Risas)
01:06
There was a story I wouldn't tell you then.
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Hay una historia que no pude contarles en aquel entonces.
01:09
But well, I'm feeling good right now.
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Pero ahora me siento mejor.
01:12
I would like to share that story today.
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Y me gustaría compartir con ustedes esa historia.
01:15
We have seven children in my family.
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Somos siete hermanos en mi familia.
01:17
All sisters, excepting me.
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Todas mujeres, excepto yo.
01:21
This is me with my dad when I was a little boy.
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Este soy yo con mi papá cuando era un pequeño.
01:26
Before I discovered the wonders of science,
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Antes de descubrir las maravillas de la ciencia,
01:29
I was just a simple farmer
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yo era un simple granjero
01:31
in a country of poor farmers.
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en un país de granjeros pobres.
01:34
Like everyone else, we grew maize.
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Como todos, nosotros sembrábamos maíz.
01:38
One year our fortune turned very bad.
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Un año nuestra suerte se oscureció.
01:43
In 2001 we experienced an awful famine.
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En 2001 experimentamos una terrible hambruna.
01:48
Within five months all Malawians began to starve to death.
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Durante cinco meses todos en Malawi empezaron a morirse de hambre.
01:55
My family ate one meal per day, at night.
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En mi casa comíamos sólo una vez al día, por las noches.
01:59
Only three swallows of nsima for each one of us.
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Solo tres bocados de "nsima" (maíz) para cada uno.
02:03
The food passes through our bodies.
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La comida entraba a nuestros cuerpos,
02:05
We drop down to nothing.
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y seguíamos adelgazando.
02:09
In Malawi, the secondary school,
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En Malawi, para recibir educación secundaria,
02:12
you have to pay school fees.
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debes pagar la colegiatura de la escuela.
02:14
Because of the hunger, I was forced to drop out of school.
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Pero por la hambruna, me vi forzado a dejar la escuela.
02:20
I looked at my father
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Miré a mi padre,
02:22
and looked at those dry fields.
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y también miré a aquellos sembradíos secos.
02:24
It was the future I couldn't accept.
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Era un futuro que no podía aceptar.
02:28
I felt very happy to be at the secondary school,
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Estaba feliz de haber llegado a la educación secundaria.
02:32
so I was determined to do anything possible
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Estaba determinado a hacer todo lo que pudiera
02:37
to receive education.
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para recibir educación.
02:39
So I went to a library.
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Así que fui a la biblioteca.
02:41
I read books, science books, especially physics.
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Leí libros de ciencia, especialmente de física.
02:45
I couldn't read English that well.
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No podía entender mucho de inglés.
02:47
I used diagrams and pictures
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Así que veía los diagramas y las fotos
02:50
to learn the words around them.
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para aprender las palabras alrededor de ellos.
02:55
Another book put that knowledge in my hands.
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Otro libro puso en mis manos el conocimiento que necesitaba.
02:59
It said a windmill could pump water and generate electricity.
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Decía que un molino de viento podía bombear agua y generar electricidad.
03:05
Pump water meant irrigation,
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Bombear agua significa riego.
03:08
a defense against hunger,
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Una defensa contra la hambruna
03:10
which we were experiencing by that time.
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que estábamos pasando en ese tiempo.
03:14
So I decided I would build one windmill for myself.
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Así que decidí construir un molino de viento.
03:18
But I didn't have materials to use,
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Pero no tenía materiales para construirlo.
03:21
so I went to a scrap yard
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Así que fui al almacén de chatarra
03:23
where I found my materials.
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donde encontré mis materiales.
03:26
Many people, including my mother,
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Mucha gente, incluyendo a mi mamá,
03:30
said I was crazy.
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decía que estaba loco.
03:32
(Laughter)
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(Risas)
03:34
I found a tractor fan,
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Encontré el ventilador de un tractor,
03:36
shock absorber, PVC pipes.
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un amortiguador, tubos de PVC.
03:38
Using a bicycle frame
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Utilicé el cuadro de una bicicleta
03:41
and an old bicycle dynamo,
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y un dínamo
03:45
I built my machine.
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para construir mi máquina.
03:47
It was one light at first.
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Al principio fue sólo un foco.
03:50
And then four lights,
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Y después cuatro,
03:53
with switches, and even a circuit breaker,
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con interruptores e incluso un cortado automático de corriente,
03:58
modeled after an electric bell.
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similar al de un sistema eléctrico común.
04:02
Another machine pumps water
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Otra máquina bombea agua
04:06
for irrigation.
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para riego.
04:09
Queues of people start lining up at my house
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Largas filas de personas se formaban frente a mi casa
04:12
(Laughter)
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(Risas)
04:14
to charge their mobile phone.
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para cargar sus teléfonos celulares.
04:16
(Applause)
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(Aplausos)
04:20
I could not get rid of them.
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No me los podía quitar de encima.
04:22
(Laughter)
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(Risas)
04:24
And the reporters came too,
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Y después llegaron los reporteros,
04:27
which lead to bloggers
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que llevaron el mensaje a los blogs
04:29
and which lead to a call from something called TED.
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y después me llamaron de algo llamado TED.
04:34
I had never seen an airplane before.
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Nunca había visto un aeroplano en mi vida.
04:36
I had never slept in a hotel.
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Nunca había dormido en un hotel.
04:39
So, on stage that day in Arusha,
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Así que, en mi presentación de aquel día en Arusha,
04:43
my English lost,
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me olvidé de mi poco inglés,
04:46
I said something like,
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Dije algo como:
04:49
"I tried. And I made it."
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"Lo intenté. Y lo conseguí."
04:53
So I would like to say something
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Así que quisiera decir algo
04:55
to all the people out there like me
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a todos aquellos allí afuera que, al igual que yo,
04:58
to the Africans, and the poor
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a los Africanos, a los pobres
05:01
who are struggling with your dreams.
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que están luchando por sus sueños,
05:05
God bless.
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Dios los bendiga.
05:07
Maybe one day you will watch this on the Internet.
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Tal vez algún día ustedes vean esto en Internet.
05:11
I say to you, trust yourself and believe.
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Yo les digo, confíen en si mismo y crean.
05:16
Whatever happens, don't give up.
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No importa lo que pase, ¡No se rindan!
05:18
Thank you.
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Gracias.
05:20
(Applause)
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(Aplausos)
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
William Kamkwamba - InventorTo power his family's home, young William Kamkwamba built an electricity-producing windmill from spare parts and scrap -- starting him on a journey detailed in the book and film "The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind."
Why you should listen
William Kamkwamba, from Malawi, is a born inventor. When he was 14, he built an electricity-producing windmill from spare parts and scrap, working from rough plans he found in a library book called Using Energy and modifying them to fit his needs. The windmill he built powers four lights and two radios in his family home.
After reading about Kamkwamba on Mike McKay's blog Hactivate (which picked up the story from a local Malawi newspaper), TEDGlobal Conference Director Emeka Okafor spent several weeks tracking him down at his home in Masitala Village, Wimbe, and invited him to attend TEDGlobal on a fellowship. Onstage, Kamkwamba talked about his invention and shared his dreams: to build a larger windmill to help with irrigation for his entire village, and to go back to school.
Following Kamkwamba's moving talk, there was an outpouring of support for him and his promising work. Members of the TED community got together to help him improve his power system (by incorporating solar energy), and further his education through school and mentorships. Subsequent projects have included clean water, malaria prevention, solar power and lighting for the six homes in his family compound; a deep-water well with a solar-powered pump for clean water; and a drip irrigation system. Kamkwamba himself returned to school, and is now attending the African Leadership Academy, a new pan-African prep school outside Johannesburg, South Africa.
Kamkwamba's story is documented in his autobiography, The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind: Creating Currents of Electricity and Hope. A documentary about Kamkwamba, called William and the Windmill, won the Documentary Feature Grand Jury award at SXSW in 2013 (watch a trailer ). You can support his work and other young inventors at MovingWindmills.org.
William Kamkwamba | Speaker | TED.com