RWSN Forum Programme Announced Today! Le programme du Forum RWSN est annoncé aujourd’hui!

We are delighted to announce that the programme of the 7^thRWSN Forum (29 Nov-2 Dec in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire) is now available. As you can see, it is a very diverse programme, covering rural and small towns’ water access from policy, financial, practice and user perspectives – with contributions from over42 countries. It is by bringing so much diversity, and many different players that this Forum is tackling the SDG challenge of Water for Everyone! The quality of contributions means that those attending will return home with new knowledge and new connections.

For more information see: https://rwsn7.net/programme/

As our programme is just out now, we have also extended the deadline for regular registration to the 31^st October 2016. So those who have not yet managed to register and pay, please try to do so by the 31^st October to benefit from the €600 fee. Over 500 people have registered so far, with confirmations from over 130. As with previous RWSN Forums, we expect a very diverse group to participate including government, private sector, NGO, donor, academia and civil society. You can register here.

Many people have been contacting us for sponsorship to attend the event. Alas we have very limited funds as Forum organisers. However, we have prepared a help sheet for you to use within your organisation and with partners in trying to obtain assistance to attend.

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Veuillez nous excuser pour tous les emails en ce moment, mais nous sommes heureux de vous annoncer que le programme du7ème Forum RWSN (29 nov-2 déc à Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire) est maintenant confirmé. Comme vous pouvez le voir, c’est un programme très divers, qui couvre les perspectives des usagers, des professionnels, des décideurs politiques et les aspects financiers de l’approvisionnement en eau en milieu rural et dans les petites villes – avec des contributions de plus de 42 pays. C’est en rassemblant un tel nombre d’acteurs et une telle diversité que le Forum envisage d’aborder le défi de l’ODD “L’eau pour tous”! La qualité des contributions reçues va permettre aux participants de rentrer chez eux ensuite avec de nouvelles connaissances et de nouvelles connections.

Pour plus d’informations, veuillez consulter: https://rwsn7-fr.net/programme/

Notre programme étant seulement paru maintenant, nous avons étendu la date limite pour les inscriptions au tarif normal jusqu’au 31 octobre 2016. Si vous ne vous êtes pas encore inscrit, vous avez jusqu’au 31 octobre pour bénéficier du tarif de 600 Euros. Environ 500 personnes se sont inscrits, avec plus de 130 personnes confirmées. Comme lors des Forums RWSN précédents, nous nous attendons à avoir un groupe divers de participants, y compris des membres du gouvernement, du secteur privé, des ONG, des bailleurs de fonds, des chercheurs et de la société civile. Vous pouvez vous inscrire ici.

Beaucoup de personnes nous ont contacté pour pouvoir bénéficier d’un soutien financier pour participer à l’évènement. Hélas, nos moyens sont limités en tant qu’organisateurs du Forum. Cependant, nous avons préparé un guide que nous vous encourageons à utiliser auprès de votre organisation et avec vos partenaires pour obtenir un soutien pour votre participation.

Warm wishes et cordialement,

Kerstin

Dr. Kerstin Danert

Director – Secretariat

Why is there a handpump in the car park?

Invitation to launch event 17 October at 5-6pm

About the Smart Handpump

Delivering reliable drinking water to millions of rural people in Africa and Asia is an elusive and enduring global goal. A systematic information deficit on the performance of and demand for infrastructure investments limits policy design and development outcomes.

Since 2010, the ‘Smart Handpump’ project has been exploring new technologies, methods and models to understand and respond to this challenge. A mobile-enabled data transmitter provides foundational data on hourly water usage and failure events which has enabled the establishment of performance-based maintenance companies in Kenya that are improving handpump reliability by an order of magnitude.

The research is a collaboration between the School of Geography and the Environment and the Department of Engineering Science with a range of partners including government, international bodies such as UNICEF and the private sector. New research involves modelling the accelerometry data from the handpumps to predict aquifer depth.
We invite you to test the Smart Handpump in the car park and debate how the ‘accidental infrastructure’ of rural handpumps can spark bolder initiatives to deliver water security for millions of poor people in Africa and Asia.

17 October 2016 at 5-6pm
Hertbertson Room and the Car Park, School of Geography and the Environment, South Parks Road, Oxford, OX4 1LY

Invite_oxford_smarthandpump_17october

RWSN webinar: Participation: The key to gender equality in the human rights to water and sanitation?

Greetings/Buenos días (para el texto en castellano, por favor ver más abajo)

RWSN is delighted to announce the first two sessions of our mini-series of webinars (on-line seminars) on October 13, 2016. The first two sessions focus on the Human Rights to Water and Sanitation and will be take place both in English and in Spanish. Here is the more detailed information:

Topic: Participation: The key to gender equality in the human rights to water and sanitation?

Date: 13.10.2016

Time: 1.30 – 2.30 PM (Central European Time, CET – check this out in your local time zone here)

Speakers:

– Léo Heller, Special Rapporteur to the UN on the Human Rights to Water and Sanitation

– Mayra Gomez, Global Initiative for Economic, Social and Cultural Rights

– Seema Kulkarni, Society for Promoting Participative Ecosystem Management (SOPPECOM), Pune India

The event will consist of three short presentations, followed by a Questions&Answer session where all participants are invited to ask questions or make comments. In order to participate, simply use the following link on the day of the webinar – it will take you to a “Skype for Business” session, where you first have to install a plug-in if you never used this platform before. It’s fast and free – after completing this process, you can join the session. We recommend you start this process about 30 minutes before the webinar starts.

https://meet.lync.com/skatconsulting/martinlaeng/D4JNC1YC

Feel free to pass on this message to others – there is no need to register for this event. At RWSN, we are looking forward to a wide and active participation.

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Buenos días

Es con mucho placer que RWSN está anunciando los primeros dos webinars de la mini-serie de otoño 2016, los cuales se efectuarán el 13 de octubre. La primera sesión en español enfocará en el tema de los Derechos Humanos al Agua y Saneamiento. A continuación estamos enviando la información detallada respecto a este evento:

Tema: Participación: ¿La clave para lograr la igualdad de género en el derecho humano a agua y saneamiento?

Fecha: 13.10.2016

Hora: 4.00 – 5.00 PM (Central European Time, CET – para conocer el horario en su zona local, por favor utilizar este vínculo)

Presentadores:

– Léo Heller, Relatador Especial ante Naciones Unidas respecto a los Derechos Humanos al Agua y Saneamiento, Brasil

– Mery Quitón, consultora independiente, Bolivia

El evento consistirá de dos presentaciones y posteriormente los participantes tendrán la oportunidad de hacer preguntas o comentarios. Para participar, simplemente hay que hacer clic en el vínculo abajo – le llevará a un sitio de “Skype for Business”, donde tendrá que seguir las instrucciones para instalar el plug-in. Es un proceso rápido y fácil – posteriormente, podrá entrar al webinar. Recomendamos empezar este proceso unos 30 minutos antes de empezar el evento, para asegurar que todo funcione bien.

https://meet.lync.com/skatconsulting/martinlaeng/LM2ND2AY

Por favor, comparta este vínculo con otras personas que podrán estar interesadas – no hay necesidad de registrarse con anterioridad. Por parte de RWSN, nos hace mucha ilusión poder contar con una amplia y activa participación.

MOOC “Planning & Design of Sanitation Systems and Technologies”

Eawag-Sandec in collaboration with EPFL, the World Bank Water and Sanitation Program and the World Health Organization are launching the new revamped online course about urban sanitation on 17 October .

About the course
Do you want to learn how to plan affordable and context-specific sanitation solutions? The course deals with citywide planning and programming and focuses on specific contexts such as informal settlements. It covers the whole sanitation chain providing detailed
information about appropriate sanitation systems and technologies.
For the 2nd round of this course, we added new videos about recent developments such as sanitation safety planning or excreta flow diagrams.

• Week 1: Introduction to sanitation planning & systems approach
• Weeks 2&3: Sanitation systems & technologies
• Week 4: Urban sanitation solutions – Case studies
• Week 5: Urban sanitation tools

Sign up
The course is offered for free in English and French with subtitles in Spanish and Hindi. Please visit the course pages to sign up.
• Course in English: http://www.coursera.org/learn/sanitation
• Course in French: http://www.coursera.org/learn/sanitation-fr

Find out more: factsheet-mooc-planning-design-of-sanitation-systems-and-technologies

WEDC Vacancy: Research Associate in Sanitation and Water

Fixed-term for 18 months

A good opportunity to undertake innovative research on sanitation and water in developing countries at the internationally renown WEDC (Water Engineering and Development Centre). The role will include: supporting and managing assessments and research on the sustainability aspects of the DFID funded South Asia rural WASH results project. Other work will include research on improving water security for the poor in slums.

A good masters degree in water and sanitation or related subject is essential, as are excellent communication and analytical skills, the ability to carry out research, write reports and a willingness to travel. Practical experience of work on projects or related research in developing countries would be highly advantageous, as well as working as part of a team.

Informal enquiries should be made to Kevin Sansom at WEDC – K.R.Sansom@lboro.ac.uk or by telephone on +44 (0)1509 222885 or 222617.

Application closing date: 13 October 2016.

FULL DETAILS: http://wedc.lu/ra-vacancy

RWSN Update – September 2016

If you are having trouble reading this then download the more readable PDF version: ENGLISH / FRANÇAIS.

Pour les francophones – Si vous souhaitez recevoir le bulletin trimestriel en français, veuillez nous écrire un e-mail à ruralwater @ skat.ch intitulé Bulletin Trimestriel en français.

English

The late Ton Schouten: 1955 – 2016

The sudden loss of Ton Schouten in May 2016 came as a shock to many of us, and sitting here looking at his photo I find myself still not quite believing that he has left; thinking that he might just call, send a message, or that we may bump into each other in the corridor of a sector meeting.

We miss you Ton. I think that you would have gazed with eyes wide, stood with ears pricked at the farewell given to you by your family, friends and colleagues in Delft on the 30 May. We learned so much about other parts of your life; your rich and full life. A life of listening, of caring, of giving, of philosophising and of humour. You touched the hearts and minds of people in so many places, and from multiple walks of life. Thank you Ton. Thank you.

Patrick Moriaty (CEO, IRC) helped us to know more about Ton in his tribute, so allow me to borrow from him: Ton worked with IRC for more than 17 years, and was equally a leading figure in the WASH sector, a steadfast champion of the cause of sustainability and above all of an approach to development that was based on respect and support to national actors and institutions. During his time at IRC, Ton led Triple-S (Sustainable Services at Scale), RiPPLE and SMARTerWASH and supported IRC’s Ghana country team. Ton brought his original passion for film making to IRC, producing the Seventh Video in 2000, a compilation of lessons on community water management from Nepal, Pakistan, Cameroon, Kenya, Colombia and Guatemala. Ton later used clips for another video “What if?”, which illustrated the concepts behind the Triple-S initiative. Other significant works that Ton co-authored include “Doing things differently: stories about local water governance in Egypt, Jordan and Palestine” (2008) and “Community water, community management: from system to service in rural areas” (2003). In recent years Ton became a champion of sector monitoring as a critical building block for national ownership and sustainability. It was with great pride that he organised IRC’s 2013 international symposium on “Monitoring sustainable WASH service delivery” in Addis Ababa. The outputs of the symposium formed the basis for a state-of-the-art book on WASH monitoring, for which he was co-editor: “From infrastructure to services: trends in monitoring sustainable water, sanitation and hygiene services”.

Many RWSN members sent their condolences and wishes, which we passed onto IRC and Ton’s family. Thanks to all of you. There is an online condolence register on www.memori.nl/ton-schouten.

Ton’s departure as our chair has certainly been felt. However he has left his mark, fired us up with ideas, and so as we nominate a new chair in the coming months and move forwards, we will keep on carrying the bright torch that Ton handed us – particilarly of listening to RWSN members – and enabling you, the membership to engage more with one another and keep on improving water supply services in rural areas.

Dr Kerstin Danert, Director RWSN Secretariat

HEADLINES

Continue reading “RWSN Update – September 2016”

#RWSN @ #WWW : the presentations

RWSN co-convened two sessions at last week’s SIWI World Water Week in Stockholm and presentations are available to download:

WASHoholic Anonymous – Confessions of Failure and how to Reform

All presentations: http://programme.worldwaterweek.org/sites/default/files/panzerbeiter_lt_1400.pdf

Build and Run to Last: Advances in Rural Water Services

Continue reading “#RWSN @ #WWW : the presentations”

Handing over Self-supply

André Olschewski will be leaving Skat and handing over his role as Theme Leader for Accelerating Self-supply (ACCESS) to Matthias Saladin. André reflects on the last five years:

Dear all,

There is widespread recognition that many people particularly rural dwellers improve their water supplies with their own investments. This was barely part of the discourse when RWSN launched the Self-supply theme and term in 2004 under the leadership of Dr. Sally Sutton, supported by WSP and UNICEF. As with any innovations, taking the concept of Self-supply from the periphery towards mainstream development has not been simple or an easy journey.

Continue reading “Handing over Self-supply”

The late Ton Schouten: 1955 – 2016

HEADLINES

[OPEN ACCESS]

WASHoholic Anonymous – Confessions of Failure and how to Reform

Build and Run to Last: Advances in Rural Water Services