Innovative Solution

Safe water provisioning, water treatment, small communities, rural communities, remote communities, water technology, knowledge management, information technology

technical

Tools, information technology

The purpose of this project is to develop an interactive global knowledgebase of water treatment provisioning solutions for rural, remote and otherwise marginalized communities that will provide simple, yet comprehensive technical information situated within the economic, social, political and cultural contexts within which such knowledge has been proven and can be successfully applied.  In order to achieve this, the knowledgebase will include both water provisioning alternatives as well as real world lessons learned.

The knowledgebase can be applied globally. 

The project was initiated by UNU-INWEH. Project partners include:

Anderson Water

Assembly of First Nations

Arab Countries Water Utility Association

Canadian Water Network

Fleming College Centre for Alternate Wastewater Treatment

Health Canada and Canadian Small Communities Water Network

Hydromantis

Kenya Medical Research Institute

McMaster University

Ontario Centre for Environmental Technology Advancement

Ontario Clean Water Agency

Ontario First Nations Technical Services Corp.

Public Health Agency of Canada

Regional Municipality of Hamilton

Trent University

Trojan Technologies

University of British Columbia (Reseau Network)

University of Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania

University of Toronto

Uganda Christian University

Walkerton Clean Water Centre

WHO and the International Small Water Systems Network

Planning workshops were held June 2009 and November 2010 in Hamilton.  As a result of the workshops, we have completed a stakeholder survey and engaged additional project partners. The platform is currently being developed and some initial content is being entered. A next step is to identify an international expert panel to determine the inclusion criteria. In the final stage, the lessons learned data collection will begin. 

Globally, more than 3.5 million people die every year as a result of water-related illness. This includes over 1.5 million children under the age of 5 who die from diarrhoea alone. Almost 10 % of the total global burden of disease (chronic and acute) is water-related. Designing and implementing the next generation of approaches and tools for the synthesis and exchange of knowledge is key to engaging communities and therefore providing sustainable high quality drinking water for the rural, remote and marginalized communities of the world. The current system of fragmented knowledge is a barrier to breaking into established markets, and contributes to a lack of understanding of the practical challenges facing companies that hope to develop solutions for remote communities.

A globally appropriate and accessible toolbox of alternative approaches to safe water provisioning specific to rural and remote environments is essential for identifying options and making informed decisions. Through the co-ordination of currently fragmented information into a single accessible knowledgebase, individuals, community leaders, drinking water quality practitioners, funding agencies, policy makers, governments, businesses and other stakeholders, from both developed and developing countries, will be able to participate knowledgeably in decision-making for water provisioning.  Over time, it is expected that the application of these strategically integrated tools will have a significant impact in reducing illness from water-related diseases in vulnerable communities around the world. 

The value added by this project goes beyond a simple inventory – it is the positioning of solutions within the environmental, social, economic, political and cultural contexts requisite for successful uptake and sustainability. As a comprehensive information repository on safe water provisioning solutions for small, rural and remote communities around the world, this knowledgebase will serve to inform and empower within the context of safe water provisioning solutions.

Number of contributions and contributors to the knowledgebase content

Number of end-users using the tool

Type of end users using the tool

The knowledgebase will be of interest to a range of end-users to identify options and inform choices, including, but not limited to, the various groups involved with provision of safe water to small, rural, remote and otherwise marginalised communities around the world.  Inter-alia, this will include drinking water quality practitioners, communities and their leaders, NGOs, funding agencies, local governments, businesses and engineering consultants.

The success of the project is dependent upon the contributions of organizations, companies and communities to populate the knowledgebase. 

The existing support and commitment of key private sector players, and the leveraging that they provide, is creating momentum for participation from other organizations and corporations. 

Corinne Wallace

Programme Officer

Water-Health Nexus

UNU-INWEH

cwallac@inweh.unu.edu

www.inweh.unu.edu/Health/VM.htm

www.inweh.unu.edu