Untapped

Recent article from GAVI shares data presented at the Africa Climate Summit 2023. 

Climate impacts such as rising temperatures are exacerbating natural phenomena like El Nino. What does this mean in the fight to DefeatDD?

​​​​​​Droughts, floods, and famine are increasing due to the climate crisis. Among many impacts, these weather extremes are projected to increase the burden of water-linked diseases like diarrhea. This infographic explains the links between the climate crisis, sanitation, and diarrheal disease.

The impacts of a warming planet are projected to increase the burden of diarrheal disease, with an estimated 7% increase in diarrhea cases per every 1 degree Celsius of global warming.

Starting in 2030, the World Health Organization estimates 48,000 additional annual diarrheal deaths among children under 15 due to climate change’s impacts on water, sanitation, and nutrition.

From droughts to flooding, journalist Sushmita Malaviya explores adaptation options for India, emphasizing multi-pronged government programming and community education about water conservation.

​​​​​Water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) are a crucial part of an integrated approach to preventing and treating diarrheal disease and mitigating the effects of climate change. Learn more about the state of WASH in our interactive report.

​​​​​​The majority of the water, sanitation, and nutrition health impacts of climate change will land on children. To address this, young people are taking the lead on climate efforts – and it’s time for adults to follow. 

Sustainable sanitation saves energy, turns waste into resources, and protects communities from contamination and disease.

Safely managed sanitation systems that use minimal water and recycle waste into resources such as fertilizer are a promising climate-adaptive model for the future. Sanergy utilizes this type of model in Nairobi, Kenya.

SOIL, a nonprofit based in Haiti, distributes container-based toilets, collects, and treats the collected waste, and transforms it into compost, which is sold to support agriculture, reforestation, and climate change mitigation efforts in Haiti.

It will take intersectoral collaboration to alleviate the climate-related health impacts of increased waterborne disease.

Sustainable toilet technology is here. Next up is collaboration and commercialization to take the innovations to scale.

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

Environmental journalist Chelsea Wald's book Pipe Dreams details the problems with the world's current sanitation systems and envisions a world - a "lootopia" - where everyone has access to safe, sustainable sanitation that generates resources and helps our planet recover. 

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.

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.

New article from Nature considers progress towards sanitation in the last decades since the invention of the modern flush toilet almost 250 years ago. 

A new study shows abnormal flooding and drought are associated with pediatric diarrhea in some parts of the world.

"Toilets may not be top of mind as a fortification against global health threats, but we can’t afford for them not to be," say PATH leaders Nikolaj Gilbert and Nanthalile Muganda.

For World Toilet Day 2021, NPR's Goats and Soda section featured a series of wacky toilet sign photos sent in by readers - with an introduction featuring DefeatDD! 

​​​​​​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.

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.

​​​​​​​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.

Action is needed! Sign the Call to Action in Support of Young Children at COP 28. 

Insert your own sanitation message or quote related to share on social media using DefeatDD's quote templates.

In this call to action, UNICEF outlines three main takeaways:

1. Water is the primary medium through which we feel the effects of climate change.
2. The WASH sector is already investing in climate resilience and is part of the solution.
3. Investing climate finance in the WASH sector is both an essential and attractive investment.

In her book Pipe Dreams, science journalist Chelsea Wald describes the history, current state, and future possibilities around sanitation systems and their untapped potential to improve health, environment, economies, and equality. This excerpt from the final chapter lists 11 ways that anyone—no matter their background or location—can get involved in the fight for improved sanitation.

Most national policies on displacement do not consider climate-related events. Governments must make proactive plans now, centered around the needs of children.

Learn about the UN Climate Change Conference in November and use these resources to make your voice heard.

 

Tell governments and business leaders to take urgent action against the climate crisis, focusing efforts on helping low-income countries bearing the first and worst impacts.

This resource gives African governments guidance for enhancing or developing clear and comprehensive national sanitation policies and programs.

The climate crisis is a child’s rights crisis at its core. Protecting the youngest children across the globe is integral to the climate crisis response. The Early Childhood Development Action Network (ECDAN), Asia-Pacific Regional Network for Early Childhood (ARNEC), UNICEF, and Save the Children have issued a call to action with four key priorities.