World

Gender Equality is the key to a Thriving World

Gender equality is a right. Fulfilling this right is the best chance we have in meeting some of the most pressing challenges of our time—from economic crisis and lack of health care, to climate change, violence against women and escalating conflicts.

Women are not only more affected by these problems, but also possess ideas and leadership to solve them. The gender discrimination still holding too many women back, holds our world back too. (UN)

Environmental Care is our Backbone

Our projects are in partnerships with nature. Not only as our mission is to enable our world to thrive, but also because women and girls are the most affected by climate change consequences (UN). Our work strives to balance gender equality and fight against climate change.

Waste: Worldwide, 14 billion litres of wastewater contaminated with faeces are released into the environment each day, polluting water sources and destroying local ecology. (NRDC)

Soil: The degradation of soil is fuelling climate change. An estimated 3.2 billion people worldwide suffer from reducing food sources because of degraded soil and increasing climate instability. (GEF)

Water: By 2025, an estimated 1.8 billion people will live in areas plagued by water scarcity, with two-thirds of the world’s population living in water-stressed regions. (Unicef)

Our Innovation

To date we have built over 5,000 ecosan toilets. Ecosan units stop waste entering the environment and are water crisis-proof sanitation solutions. Ecosan produces compost that recipients can use to grow fruit and vegetables. Since 2005 we’ve advocated for using human waste as a regenerative resource.

Starting in 2021 we have been in partnership with Cornell University (USA) and Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (India), to pioneer new ways for ecosan compost to be used and treated to heal soil and capture carbon, while improving food quality and quantity in local communities at the same time.

Impact

+ Slow down climate change
Renewing soil captures high levels of carbon and slows down climate change, women and girls face increased vulnerabilities to all forms of gender-based violence (UN

+ Remove waste from the environment
Our toilets and research programmes provide an accessible way for people to turn their waste into a valuable resource, rather than a toxic pollutant.

+ Less food scarcity and improved livelihoods
Improved soils increase crop yields.

+ Save water
Our toilets use little water, saving millions of litres a year.

+ Better health
Nutrient rich soils grow nutrient rich food.