WASRAG Newsletter - January 2020
WASH Done Right
In January 2019, the Rotary Club of Boxhill Central , Australia and Rotary Club of Nasik Road , India cut the ribbon on a new toilet block and hand washing station at the Vidya Prashala School, Nasik, India.

Recently, members of the Boxhill Central Club returned to assess the impact. They knew what was built was making a difference when a young girl said β€œThe toilets you gave to our school have changed my life. They have also changed my village.”

The headmaster told them that there has been a large reduction in absentee days among the girls and an increase in girls enrolled in the school including some returning to school now that good toilets are available.

At a village where the students come from, the Mayor indicated that before the toilets were built at the school many of the homes did not have toilets. Immediately after the toilets were opened at the school the children started putting pressure on their families. Within months every home had a toilet and today nobody in the village would even consider going in the open any more.

To learn more about this project visit: Rotary opens toilets, handwash stations in Nashik.
WASH Not Done Right !
WASRAG will be leading a break-out session at the RI Convention in Honolulu on the topic β€œ Learning from WASH Failures ”.

The failure could be due to any of a number of causes: inappropriate technology, failure of the community to take ownership, lack of funding for ongoing operations, etc.

Contact Ron Denham, ron.denham@atkearney.com with your examples, so he can coordinate a panel on this important topic. Let's stop making the same mistakes.
Build Partnerships That Work
Join RI President Mark Maloney at the World Water Summit 12 (WWS12) being held June 5, 2020, in Honolulu.

What can we learn from Rotary's 75 year successful partnership with the United Nations. Building WASH Partnerships that Work will provide sessions geared to help build partnerships that work.

Register TODAY at WWS12
Clean Water for a Kenya Health Clinic
Ten years ago, the Ngoswani Health Clinic was established in South-western Kenya, where it serves about 500 people daily. The clinic needs requires clean water to meet the needs of this community.

Working with the non-profit, BeyondWater, Rotary Clubs in New Zealand ( Huntly, Franklin/Te Rapa, Ellerslie Sunrise, and Waipukurau) and Australia ( Umina Beach, Broadbeach, Gold Coast and Erina) supported the construction of a system to catch rain water.

Work is underway to secure funding to drill a borehole and install a solar pump.
10 Years in Ghana - Lessons Learned
The December 2019 Issue of The Rotarian had an excellent article starting at page 19, on the 10 year Rotary and USAID water and sanitation partnership. Rotary spent $9 million on this project that included 174 latrine blocks (mostly at schools), 166 community hand pumps, six mechanical boreholes and three reticulated water systems, that are benefiting over 160,000 people.

Sprinkled through the article are important lessons learned. One of the outcomes of this massive project was the development of the WASH Sustainability Index Tool that is available for free download.
Water and Peace
Rotary District 5340, located in San Diego, CA, used a Global Grant to send seven water professionals to take part in the Water Conservation and Diplomacy Program. In Central Asia, access to water and conflict resolution are closely intertwined. This video prepared by the students highlights the issue in the Aral Sea, Kyrgyzstan. Read the Rotary Voices article to understand more about this program
Cheers - Aloha Style with BREW
While in Hawaii for the RI Convention, plan to attend:
BREW / WASRAG Hawaiian Beer Luau
Sun, Jun 7 - 6:00 pm
Honolulu Beerworks

Over the past few years, Beers Rotarians Enjoy Worldwide (BREW) Fellowship group have donated thousands of dollars to WASRAG to support clean water projects.
Upcoming and previous E-Club Speakers
On the first and third Thursday of each month at 8 pm Eastern time, all Rotarians are welcome to join into the Rotary E-Club of WASH that is focused on global Water, Sanitation and Hygiene issues. All their presentations are on-line for viewing at a later time if you can not make a meeting.

Recently, Sasha Kramer, from SOIL gave a presentation on transforming human waste into a resource. On Thurs Feb 20, 2020 PDG Carolyn Johnson will be presenting on WASH and Literacy. To attend a meeting go to https://zoom.us/j/314362718
Household Water Filters & Testing
A Vision for Clean Water has coordinated with the Centre for Affordable Water and Sanitation Technologies (CAWST), to produce a 4 day workshop (April 24-26, 2020) that will provide participants with the knowledge and skills to implement, monitor and evaluate household water treatment and storage and small community water supplies in developing countries.

For details and to register visit Water Workshop.
Calendar of Events
E-Club of WASH - Online Meetings
On the first and third Thursday of every month at 8 pm Eastern attend an online meeting focused on a common interest of WASH Issues. To learn more visit https://www.rotarywasheclub.org/ or join at https://zoom.us/j/314362718

Mar 22, 2020 - WORLD WATER DAY

Apr 24 - 26 - Household Water Treatment & Safe Storage Workshop
Ridgetown, Ontario, Canada

May 28, 2020 - MENSTRUAL HYGIENE DAY

Jun 5, 2020 - WORLD WATER SUMMIT 12, Honolulu, Hawaii

Jun 7, 2020 - BREW and WASRAG Hawaiian Luau

Oct 15, 2020 - GLOBAL HANDWASHING DAY

Nov 19, 2019 - WORLD TOILET DAY
To submit stories, videos, and pictures for the WASRAG Newsletter send an email to info@wasrag.org .
The Water and Sanitation Rotarian Action Group (WASRAG) is pleased to consider partnerships with any corporate supporter. Due to the unique attributes of water sources and water provision, acceptance of corporate support does not imply an endorsement of any particular water technology. Rotarians, Rotary clubs, and Rotary partners must evaluate any technology to determine if it is the best solution for the conditions where the program will be implemented. WASRAG can provide guidance about where different technologies work best, but Rotarians and Rotary clubs must make the final decision about how to implement their programs.