Learn about the UN Climate Change Conference in November and use these resources to make your voice heard.
A global collaboration led out of Georgia Tech has developed a reinvented toilet prototype for households that would be self-contained, not connected to a sewer. Innovations like this will help enable universal access to safe, sustainable sanitation.
Among infrastructure investments that could help create prosperity in the years to come, one of the most powerful is universal access to taps and toilets – and a large part of those dividends results from empowering women. Additionally, the economic value of investments in water, sanitation, and hygiene is likely to rise due to the increasing impact of climate change.
South Africa’s efforts to scale up access to sanitation through non-sewered approaches looks beyond technology to the enabling of a new sanitation services market. South Africa hopes to achieve universal access to safe toilets by 2030.
By adapting to climate change, we can promote significant health and development benefits now and in the future. Climate adaptation measures that protect us from climate variability, such as improved sanitation, can also create resilience to storms and floods and enhance water security, directly contributing to health and development.
The health impacts of climate change will disproportionately affect women and girls. Women’s leadership will be key to mitigating the effects of climate change, and when women lead, the overall health of families and communities improves.
Doubling down to prevent diarrheal disease is a form of climate change adaptation, argues climate researcher Dr. Karen Levy. Improving sanitation, vaccination, nutrition, and access to essential medicines will improve health now and help prepare for the effects of climate extremes in years to come.
In addition to improving health, universal access to safely managed sanitation systems would bring significant economic benefits for families, communities, and countries. Source: WaterAid/Vivid Economics
Sustainable toilet technology is here. Next up is collaboration and commercialization to take the innovations to scale.
It will take intersectoral collaboration to alleviate the climate-related health impacts of increased waterborne disease.