Celebrating Menstrual Hygiene Day with the Padini!

HydrateLife May 28, 2014March 6, 2017 Health, Sanitation, WASH 1 Comment

Happy Menstrual Hygiene Day! Today is a very important day for women and girls all over the world, and a day to break the silence surrounding menstrual hygiene. Menstrual hygiene is an important topic because without it girls cannot go to school during their period, women cannot go to work during their period, and neither girls nor women can be themselves when they have to hide their period every month. When girls can’t go to school, and women can notcontinue reading

The Qanat: An Ancient Technology Still Delivering Water Today

HydrateLife May 8, 2014March 6, 2017 Sustainable Practices, WASH, Water Technology 13 Comments

I was doing some light reading on hydrogeology the other day and came upon something that interested me, and hopefully will be of some interest and/or use to you. I’m always fascinated by history and the way ancient civilizations came up with ingenious ways to survive in harsh conditions, and what I found in my book was exactly that. The technology I’m talking about is called a qanat. Well, that’s what it was called in what is present-day Iran, whichcontinue reading

The SWA process: is it worth all the effort?

HydrateLife April 9, 2014March 6, 2017 Health, Sanitation, WASH No Comments

I thought this article by Erma Uytewaal from Water Services that Last was pretty interesting and a good introduction to the SWA process. We are now in the final sprint of preparations for the Sanitation and Water for All (SWA) High Level Meeting (HLM) that will be held in Washington on 11 April. “We” represent the almost 100 members of the SWA partnership. At country level, High Level Country Dialogues (HLCD) are being wrapped up; governments are revisiting and updatingcontinue reading

Battling Waterborne Diseases: Where They Come From, What They Do, and How to Beat Them

HydrateLife March 29, 2014March 6, 2017 Health, Sanitation, WASH, Water Treatment 1 Comment

Waterborne diseases affect millions of people around the world every year. However, it doesn’t need to be this way. Clean water, proper sanitation facilities and good hygiene can eliminate the risk of these diseases. Below you’ll find several brief overviews of the most common diseases, how they are treated, and how they can be prevented. The links at the bottom of the article can be used to help your community stay safe and healthy. Let’s start with what is maybecontinue reading

Got Toilets? Benefits of the Rural Sanitation Mart

HydrateLife February 6, 2014March 6, 2017 Health, Sanitation, Sustainable Practices, WASH No Comments

Happy New Year to everyone, and I hope it’s been a good one so far! I’m going to start out this year by talking about sanitation and a type of business that is helping people to gain access to improved sanitation and hygiene, the Rural Sanitation Mart (RSM). But first, let’s talk about why RSMs are even needed. Maybe some of you are sitting on your porcelain throne right now as you’re reading this, but unfortunately 2.5 billion people worldwidecontinue reading

Nudge, Don’t Shove: A Case for Reflexive WASH Behavioral Change, Part II

HydrateLife January 9, 2014March 7, 2017 Health, Sanitation, WASH 1 Comment

About the author: Stephanie Tam specializes in behavioral approaches to sanitation and hygiene in international development, with a focus on how cultural practices mediate the impact of technology in operations and maintenance. A graduate of the Harvard Graduate School of Design, she has been working on human behavior through the lenses of performance studies and behavioral economics, and thanks Dilip Soman at the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto for support on this current project. She is deeplycontinue reading

Nudge, Don’t Shove: A Case for Reflexive WASH Behavioral Change, Part I

HydrateLife December 11, 2013March 7, 2017 Health, Sanitation, WASH No Comments

The Story of Ralegan Siddhi: Bringing Water Back to Life

HydrateLife November 14, 2013March 7, 2017 Environment, Studies, Sustainable Practices, WASH 13 Comments

Today I want to share with you an inspiring story of success. It’s a sort of rags-to-riches story. But this story doesn’t have to do with money (specifically); it has to do with the power of water. This story starts in 1975 in the Indian village of Raleghan Siddhi. Raleghan Siddhi is in a drought-prone and rain-shadowed area of India, receiving between 450-650mm (17.5-25.5 inches) of water annually in a place where temperatures can reach 44 degrees (111 degrees fahrenheit). continue reading

Water Heroes – Dr. Peter Morgan: 2013 Stockholm Water Prize Winner

HydrateLife October 31, 2013March 24, 2017 Environment, Health, Sanitation, Sustainable Practices, WASH, Water Heroes, Water Technology 4 Comments

There are a lot of good people in the world that are making great efforts to bring clean water and improved sanitation facilities to those who need it throughout the world, and their efforts are paying off. Between 1990 and 2010 two billion people gained access to clean water and 1.8 billion people gained access to improved sanitation facilities according to the World Health Organization. Even with these encouraging figures, there are still a lot of people in the worldcontinue reading

The Best Way to Pump it Up – Part 3

HydrateLife October 17, 2013March 24, 2017 WASH, Water Technology 8 Comments

Today I will be concluding my series on water pumps with the India Mark pump and the EMAS Flexi-Pump. One of these pumps, the India Mark, has been widely used in developing countries for decades and continues to be improved on (there is the Mark II and Mark III). The EMAS Flexi-Pump has a simpler design and is easy to make on your own. Let’s get started. The India Mark Pump The India Mark II was designed during the 1970’scontinue reading

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Author: HydrateLife