Product/Service Development

Lack of appropriate treatment of human waste, especially in rural communities, is unnecessarily impacting human health and well-being. We will explore ways to ""create wealth from waste"in Uganda, to reduce environmental pollution, increase access to 'green' energy, decrease waterborne and respiratory diseases, and contribute to development.

Urban India produces 69 million tons of waste annually, most of which is dumped, causing hazards to public health. In collaboration with Hasiru Dala and I Got Garbage, this project will prototype waste picker-owned franchises to collect, compost and recycle up to 85% of waste. A mobile metrics tool will track operations to develop a rapidly replicable model.

TakaTaka Solutions collects waste from lower income households and turns the organic waste into high quality bio-charcoal. This leads both to a waste-free environment as well as providing households with an emission free energy source for cooking.

Matadi city inhabitants rely on septic tanks. Human excreta are directly discharged into rivers without pre-treatment. The same water is used to water vegetables, therefore spreading pathogens within the population. We have initiated the biological treatment of these wastewaters with Vetiveria zizanoides prior to their discharge into the natural rivers.

WaterSHED's Hands-Off Sanitation Marketing program unlocks the power of the private sector to deliver safe sanitation products and services to rural Cambodians. This project will identify and cultivate civic champions to encourage latrine adoption and enable local enterprise, thereby helping communities change behaviour norms and achieve total sanitation. Follow Hengly Aun on Twitter @watershedasia"

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 2.6 billion people in the world do not have access to improved sanitation, resulting in 1.6 million deaths every year. The vast majority of that burden is borne by children under five. Affordability is considered a major barrier. A high-quality and environmentally safe toilet will be delivered and maintained for a nominal fee and a regular premium. Customers can pay the premium through mobile money solutions, thus making the service available to users without access to conventional banking systems.

In Kenya's slums, 8 million people using unhygienic sanitation options and practices dump 4 million tons of faecal sludge into the environment each year and negatively affect community health.  A dense network of accessible, affordable and hygienic toilets will be franchised by this project for slum residents, to run as profitable, sustainable businesses, removing the waste hazard and converting it into saleable by-products.  For more information visit Saner.gy"

Healthcare Associated Infections (HAIs) are global health challenge, but more so in developing countries, where HAIs are poorly executed due to financial and related reasons. Our approach is to enable removal of bacteria from surfaces in clinics and hospitals using an nontoxic inexpensive coating that has a persistent long term effect.

This project: “Improving rural water service delivery using mobile phone technology” seeks to address the high rates of non-functional rural water systems which lead to poor public health. The mobile phone technology will be used to improve the spare parts supply chain and also pool funds for financing capital maintenance.

A safe, affordable and re-usable women's personal hygiene kit that empowers women to be the decision-makers regarding menstrual hygiene management, reproduction and the prevention of HIV in low-resource settings Menstruation, contraction of HIV and unplanned pregnancies are health issues that impact and restrict young women in low-income settings from living full, dignified and economically productive lives. Providing an affordable kit that addresses these issues will empower girls and women to be the decision makers regarding their own lives.