I hope this finds you well. In contrast to Victoria, the Netherlands has not moved to curb the second wave at all. As such, we reported 6,500 new cases today more than three times the (recorded) peak of the first wave. Applying the current mortality rate of 3.9% (likely inflated due to initial policy of only testing severe cases) to today’s cases make for a dire forecast indeed. Sorry for such a depressing start to an email, but I believe the people of Victoria have done a fantastic job bringing the second wave under control.
On a lighter note, my colleagues and I have completed the coursework component of the master’s degree and will start the thesis work from the 19th of October. Tomorrow also marks one year since arriving in The Netherlands! Once again, I am so grateful to you, the members of the Rotary Club of Manningham and the Rotary Foundation for granting me this amazing opportunity to further my career as a WASH professional. This is even more pertinent in the face of the corona crisis as I have been able to continue to study when so many people have lost their livelihoods or worse.
I received my 2nd choice of thesis topic: Economic aspects of pumping and storage design in hydraulic reliability of water distribution networks. During this current proposal period, we have had some scope to modify the direction of the thesis topic, and I wanted to relate this back to Timor-Leste, so it wasn’t purely an academic exercise. Therefore I am proposing to conduct the research on: Optimisation of pumping and storage design in water distribution networks with unreliable power availability. A case study: Dili, Timor-Leste.
Please pass on my regards to RC Manningham members, and I hope that everyone is staying healthy!
