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Why Hand Hygiene Is the Perennial Third Wheel of WASH – and How It Can (Finally) Become a Global Development Priority
There has long been an imbalance in the global WASH sector, with water and sanitation prioritized far more than hygiene. As Geoff Revell at HappyTap explains, this lack of emphasis extends to both money and mentality – even as the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the crucial importance of handwashing and other hygiene measures. He shares three options that could improve the prospects for hygiene initiatives in developing communities — and explains why the best option might be the least flashy.
- Categories
- Coronavirus, WASH
- Tags
- coronavirus, global development, hygiene, sanitation, WASH, water
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Co-Creating a More Equitable World: The Transformative Benefits of Participatory Design
Technology is often designed for people — not with them or by them. Participatory design, says Sher Vogel of MIT D-Lab, is meant to change that. She explores how the method, which actively involves end-users in the design process, can produce products that are better aligned to people’s needs, while also building the skills and confidence of participants. Vogel explains how the process can be applied to business, technology and humanitarian aid, summarizes some challenges it can present, and shares links to upcoming MIT D-Lab courses that can provide a framework.
- Categories
- Entrepreneurship, Technology, WASH
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What’s the Matter with WASH?: Why Struggling Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Businesses Need More than Just Investment
Despite limitless demand, most water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) businesses – particularly those serving the poorest customers – are struggling to find a market and attract investors. Annie Hall at Water & Sanitation for the Urban Poor shares insights from a new report that explores where WASH businesses are going wrong – and how investors and development sector players can help.
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Kimberly-Clark, Kotex To Mentor Startups Focused on Women’s Health, Access To Sanitation
The Toilet Board Coalition (TBC), with the strategic support of Kimberly-Clark and its Kotex brand, has launched the Women in the Sanitation Economy Innovation Lab — which seeks to cultivate and catalyze early-stage ideas and businesses within the Sanitation Economy that are led by women and/or focused on women’s health.
- Categories
- Entrepreneurship, Finance, Investing, WASH
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Healthcare Cannot Exist Without Clean Water: Why WASH is the Foundation of an Effective Pandemic Response
Hospital beds and masks are often seen as the basic elements of defense against COVID-19. Yet for many developing countries, the pandemic has exposed even more fundamental disease prevention needs – namely, clean water and sanitation. Nafisa Jiwani at U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) discusses the vital role WASH plays in combating the pandemic, and how DFC is supporting water and sanitation efforts around the world.
- Categories
- Coronavirus, Health Care, Investing, WASH
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For Billions Without Clean Water, ‘Wash Your Hands’ Is Complicated
Conservation News spoke with the director of Conservation International’s WASH in Watersheds program, Colleen Sorto, about how when it comes to water and human health, where your water comes from can be just as important as how you use it.
- Categories
- Coronavirus, Education, Environment, Health Care, Investing, WASH
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Small Business and WASH in the Age of Coronavirus
Since the coronavirus began spreading throughout the world, few things have been unaffected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Our activities to develop markets for WASH products and services are no exception.
- Categories
- Coronavirus, Education, Health Care, WASH
- Tags
- coronavirus, electricity, emerging markets, hygiene, NGOs, USAID, WASH, water
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WASH Away Inequity: Lack of Access to Safe Water is the Most Crippling Obstacle Limiting Human Potential
On World Water Day, consider that 844 million people (nearly 1 in 9) lack a drinking water source that is accessible within a 30-minute round trip from their home. But though this problem can be solved by installing a tap or rain harvesting system, the upfront cost of up to $200 is often prohibitive for people living in poverty. Water.org co-founder and CEO Gary White highlights the power of the poor, when given affordable financing, to provide their own solution to the global water crisis.
- Categories
- Environment, Investing, WASH
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