By Stem for Tomorrow
A makerspace only helps the students who can reach it. The van is for everywhere else: it drives the equipment out to communities that have no lab of their own and no realistic way to get to one. The budget is mostly the vehicle. A used cargo van in India runs around $6,000, and outfitting the inside with shelving, benching, and restraints so equipment survives the roads is about another $800. On top of that go two 3D printers, four laptops, and a power setup that can run them away from mains, plus the first year of fuel and a driver. Funds go to the van, the equipment inside it, and keeping it on the road for a full first year of stops.
