WASTE Helps Nilgiris, India, Become Defecation-Free After Decades.  As recently as 2009, over seventy percent of the Nilgiris households had no access to toilets. In a region that is known for its tea and coffee plantations, dumping faecal sludge into forest areas and heavy uses of chemicals for farming were affecting traditional agricultural practices. WASTE worked with the non-profit Rural Development Organisation (RDO) Trust to create facilities for treatment of the faecal sludge, producing a dry sludge that eventually results in the production of agriculturally friendly compost. Learn more about this collaboration for success.

Bhungroo Awarded the US State Department's Gold Star Recognition. A member of the Bhungroo team was selected for the International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) earlier this year. During that visit, the US State Department organized information sessions where Bhungroo had the opportunity to present its innovation to ambassadors of fifteen developing nations. Subsequently, the State Department rolled out a series of media stories about Bhungroo. You can view a video produced here.

Water Governance Institute and Executive Director, Henry Mugisha on CNBC Africa. The Global Resilience Partnership (GRP) announced the sixteen winners of their Innovation Challenge. The Water Governance Institute was one of the Challenge winners and had the opportunity to discuss its innovation with CNBC Africa. Henry Mugisha shares his view on the promotion of commercial farming and economic inclusion for refugees. Watch the interview here.

Centre for Environment Concerns' SWAR Technology Featured in Business India. This September, Business India magazine did a feature titled "India's Climate Leadership." Within the Water portion of the feature, the magazine highlighted the SWAR technology as one of India's promising start ups. The article highlighted SWAR's success in helping farmers decrease their water consumption by fifty to seventy percent in drought-prone regions. Congratulations to the Centre for Environment Concerns.

MIT/Jain Irrigation Systems Piloting the Newest EDR System . MIT and Jain Irrigation Systems have developed their lastest PV-powered electrodialysis reversal (EDR) system. The team is currently conducting pilot testing on it's new system with the US Bureau of Reclamation. They're projecting that this newest PV-ED will cost less to run than conventional desalination. The big insight was the discovery that the system can run on variable power, and thus match its power consumption with available solar irradiance. The team hopes to conduct field pilots programs and commercialization in India next year.  

New SWFF Leadership and Inspiration. For the past 5 years, the SWFF program, its 40 Innovators, and its core leadership have been blessed to have Donna Vincent Roa at the helm as Chief of Party. Over the next few weeks, Donna will be transitioning from her role as SWFF's Chief of Party to Project Director for one of The Kaizen Company's new projects - USAID's New Partnerships Initiative Incubator. In her recent Communique, Donna reflected upon her experience by reflecting, "As I searched through the over 425 photos that I've used to illustrate this Chief of Party Communiqué since May of 2015, I was reminded of the richness of the experiences I've had over the last five years and the wonderful people that I have met during my tenure with SWFF. I am both blessed and honored to have been a part of the business journey of the 40 SWFF innovators - cheering your successes, documenting your social impact, and working directly with you to provide advice or deliver services." 

Starting November 1, Donna will pass the SWFF Technical Assistance Facility baton over to Nikki deBaroncelli, who will serve as the Chief of Party until the project close date of May 2020. Nikki brings a wealth of program management experience to the role, has intimate knowledge of the entire SWFF ecosystem and the Kaizen Home Office, and has unparalleled energy to devote to the close-out activities that this project requires. SWFF looks forward to leveraging her experience, insights, and leadership. 

Best of luck Donna! You will be missed, but your legacy and leadership will live onward.