Water Champions
Water Champions initiate or implement water reforms in their chosen field, and are directly involved in improving the water situation in their respective countries.
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Minanto Pushing for Greater Farmer Participation in Irrigation Management October 2009 Indonesia has made significant progress in introducing participatory irrigation management (PIM), but it was not to happen in a day. “PIM thrives in a decentralized environment, characterized by democracy, transparency, and good governance. Both the government and farmers need to understand this,” PIM expert Minanto says. For more than 25 years, Minanto has been pushing for greater participation of farmers and communities in managing Indonesia’s irrigation systems. |
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Harry Seah Making the Unthinkable Drinkable July 2009 Singapore’s NEWater isn’t an overnight success story. “It’s the product of years of investment in used water infrastructure and research on water technologies,” says Harry Seah, Director of the Technology and Water Quality Office of Singapore’s Public Utilities Board. “Good infrastructure, proper water management, competent, and correct pricing of reclaimed water are just few of the crucial ingredients for a successful water reuse program,” adds Harry. |
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Maria Lourdes Fernando Keeping Marikina River in the Pink of Health April 2009 The cleanup of Marikina River was a resounding success but the city government is not resting on its laurels. “We have many strategies to ensure that the river stays clean, and we will continue to dream up more to ensure that we deliver results,” says Marides Fernando, Marikina’s dynamic mayor. True to her word, Marikina has various initiatives to improve the river’s water quality and its environs— from better solid waste management to waste recovery to flood proofing and more. |
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Sahari Ani Floating Toilets for Floating Villages February 2009 Members of Tonle Sap’s floating villages defecate directly into the lake, harming their health and environment in the process. Can Lien Aid alter this behavior through customized floating toilets? “We listened to them before designing the toilets,” says Lien Aid CEO Sahari Ani. Will these efforts be enough to change a generations-long habit? |
Nguyen Thai Lai championed the establishment of water rights in Viet Nam by designing a water licensing approach that aims to ensure sustainable development of water resources and convey legal access rights to the people. “We have to make sure that decisions about water sharing are made at the local river basin level. Only at this level can the competing interests of the environment, water for living, towns, irrigation, industry, power generation, etc be assessed in terms of the long term interests of the community and the highly variable flow regimes of each river source.”
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