Rainwater harvesting (RWH) is the collection and storage of rain, rather than allowing it to run off. Rainwater is collected from a roof-like surface and redirected to a tank, cistern, deep pit, aquifer, or a reservoir with percolation, so that it seeps down and restores the ground water. Rainwater harvesting differs from stormwater harvesting as the runoff is typically collected from roofs and other area surfaces for storage and subsequent reuse. Its uses include watering gardens, livestock, irrigation, domestic use with proper treatment, and domestic heating. The harvested water can also be used for long-term storage or groundwater recharge.
Alight, formerly the American Refugee Committee (ARC), is an international nonprofit, nonsectarian organization that has provided humanitarian assistance and training to millions of beneficiaries over the last 40 years.
Ceramic water filters (CWF) are an inexpensive and effective type of water filter that rely on the small pore size of ceramic material to filter dirt, debris, and bacteria out of water. This makes them ideal for use in developing countries, and portable ceramic filters are commonly used in backpacking.
iDE, formerly International Development Enterprises, is an international nonprofit organization that promotes a business approach to increasing income and creating livelihood opportunities for poor rural households. iDE was founded in 1982 by Paul Polak, a Denver, Colorado psychiatrist who promoted the concept of helping poor people become entrepreneurs instead of simply giving them handouts. Originally, iDE was devoted to the manufacture, marketing, and distribution of affordable, scalable micro-irrigation and low-cost water recovery systems throughout the developing world. iDE facilitates local manufacture and distribution of these products through local supply chains that sell to farmers at an affordable price which they can repay in one growing season. This strategy allows farmers to grow higher value and surplus crops, and in turn links them to high-value crop markets where they can realize profits from their higher yields. Recently, their success is in the promotion of sanitation products to decrease the practice of open defecation leading to diarrheal disease.
A biosand filter (BSF) is a point-of-use water treatment system adapted from traditional slow sand filters. Biosand filters remove pathogens and suspended solids from water using biological and physical processes that take place in a sand column covered with a biofilm. BSFs have been shown to remove heavy metals, turbidity, bacteria, viruses and protozoa. BSFs also reduce discoloration, odor and unpleasant taste. Studies have shown a correlation between use of BSFs and a decrease in the occurrence of diarrhea. Because of their effectiveness, ease of use, and lack of recurring costs, biosand filters are often considered appropriate technology in developing countries. It is estimated that over 200,000 BSFs are in use worldwide.
Living Water International is a faith-based non-profit organization that helps communities in developing countries to create sustainable water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) programs in response to the global water crisis. It is based in Houston, Texas, United States. It was established in 1990 and currently operates in 17 countries. As of 2024, the organization had completed more than 24,000 water projects which included drilling new water wells, harvesting water, and the rehabilitation of non-working wells. Living Water was a founding member of the Millennium Water Alliance, and is a member of the 58 Alliance, a coalition of Christian organizations united to help eliminate extreme poverty.
Ronald Rivera was an American activist of Puerto Rican descent who is best known for promoting an inexpensive ceramic water filter developed in Guatemala by the chemist Fernando Mazariegos and used to treat gray water in impoverished communities and for establishing community-based factories to produce the filters around the world.
CNN Heroes: An All-Star Tribute is a television special created by CNN to honor individuals who make extraordinary contributions to humanitarian aid and make a difference in their communities. The program was started in 2007. Since 2016, the program was hosted by Anderson Cooper and Kelly Ripa. Honorees are introduced during the fall of each year and the audience is encouraged to vote online for the CNN Hero of the Year. Ten recipients are honored and each receive US$10,000. The top recipient is chosen as the CNN Hero of the Year and receives an additional US$100,000 to continue their work. During the broadcast celebrating their achievements, the honorees are introduced by celebrities who actively support their charity work. To celebrate the 10th anniversary, the 2016 edition had an additional segment where five previous Hero of the Year winners were chosen as candidates for the Superhero of the Year award, which was decided with an online poll.
Charity: water is a non-profit organization founded in 2006 that provides drinking water to people in developing nations. As of 2019, the organization has raised $370 million. According to the organization, by October 2024, it has funded more than 171,000 projects in 29 countries though it does not know how many of the projects are still functional.
Timothy Michael Carney is a retired American diplomat and consultant. Carney served as a career Foreign Service Officer for 32 years, with assignments that included Vietnam and Cambodia as well as Lesotho and South Africa before being appointed as ambassador to Sudan and later in Haiti. Carney served with a number of U.N. Peacekeeping Missions, and until recently led the Haiti Democracy Project, an initiative launched under the presidency of George W. Bush to build stronger institutional foundations for the country's long-term relationship with the United States.
Water.org is an international nonprofit organization that helps people living in poverty get access to safe water and improved sanitation through affordable financing. This organization was founded by Matt Damon and Gary White.
Dickson Beattie "Doc" Hendley is the founder of Wine to Water, an American charitable organization devoted to providing clean water and sanitation to people around the world.
blueEnergy is a non-profit organization building sustainable energy and water systems on the Caribbean coast of Nicaragua. The organization began in October 2002 with an award-winning class project by co-founder Mathias Craig while he was a graduate student at MIT. The organization's main administrative office is located in San Francisco, while project work is centered on their shop in Bluefields, run by Guillaume Craig. Michèle Grégoire runs their office in Paris.
Water supply in Southern Sudan is faced with numerous challenges. Although the White Nile runs through the country, water is scarce during the dry season in areas that are not located on the river.
The Portable Aqua Unit for Lifesaving, also known as Water Backpack is a portable membrane water filter developed at the University of Kassel for humanitarian aid. It allows the decentralized supply of clean water in emergency and disaster situations.
Water supply in Cambodia is characterized by a low level of access in rural areas compared to relatively high access to an improved water source in urban areas. In 2015, 76% of the population had access to "improved" water, 100% in urban areas and 76% in rural areas. Still, in 2015, around 9 million did not have access to "improved" water.
Camille Dow Baker is a Canadian humanitarian and engineer. She is co-founder of the not-for-profit engineering consultancy Centre for Affordable Water and Sanitation Technology (CAWST). She has held senior positions in the petroleum industry, received national and international honors and was president and CEO of CAWST until September 2011.
Failures of water supply and sanitation systems describe situations where water supply and sanitation systems have been put in place (for example by the government or by non-government organizations but have failed to meet the expected outcomes. Low resource settings are scattered with the artifacts of WASH projects - include tanks, taps, toilets and pipes - from the period when WASH was predominantly considered a problem of infrastructure, engineering and technology. These failures not only represent a massive loss of investment of donor and community members’ resources, their creation persists, with non-functionality of water systems remaining at 30%–40%.
Sudan is a country that is half desert and much of the population suffers from a shortage of clean drinking water as well as a reliable source of water for agriculture. With the Nile river in the east of the country, parts of Sudan have substantial water resources, but those in the west have to rely on wadis, seasonal wells which often dry up. These imbalances in water availability are a source of hardship, as well as a source of conflict. While storage facilities are limited, many local communities have constructed makeshift dams and reservoirs, weirs, which help in stabilizing farming communities. Farmers also utilize hafirs to store rain water which falls in the rainy season, but groundwater remains a vital source of water for over 80% of Sudanese people. For decades, political instability has led to terrible conditions and thwarted many projects and relief efforts, but aid is making its way through. Several water infrastructure projects have been enacted in recent years, with both domestic and international sources of funding. Funding from the UN has provided 9,550 local farmers with better access to water and fertile soils. A project which also plans to replant forest cover in the wadi to reverse desertification.
