News
Better Prices for Better Vegetables
May 22, 2018
“We used to carry five kilograms of vegetables walking under the heat of the sun and knocking on doors to sell our produce,” says Remediosa Carballo, a member of the Mabini Farmers Association (MAFA) in Sta. Monica, Siargao Island, Philippines. “But there were times we got home with some vegetables still left in our baskets.” […]
SWP to Conclude Wilson Center Series with “The Challenge of Erratic Water”
May 16, 2018
Water is indispensable, but also highly variable. Communities around the world need a reliable and predictable supply of fresh water, but outdated infrastructure, poor management, and political battles can make this difficult—and this challenge is exacerbated by fluctuating weather patterns and frequent natural disasters. In the fourth and final event of the “Sustainable Water, Resilient […]
In Cox’s Bazar, an Early Adopter
May 16, 2018
First of a series. Name a project and it has early adopters, people who take a new approach and run with it. Though each has a unique story, there are similarities: a boldness of spirit, a willingness to embrace the new and different, a deep concern for others. Josna Akhter has all these traits and […]
When Improving America’s Infrastructure, Don’t Forget Forests
May 14, 2018
America’s water infrastructure is in a state of disrepair, as evidenced by disasters such as the public health crisis in Flint, Michigan and dangerous flooding at the Oroville Dam. While water infrastructure like treatment facilities, flood control systems, pipes, wastewater treatment plants and reservoirs are essential for public health and safety, our current, aging systems are inadequate for […]
Cool Storage for a Hot Market
May 1, 2018
When the vegetable market in Pakistan’s Balochistan Province began heating up, Winrock’s USDA-funded Pakistan Agriculture and Cold Chain Development Project (PACCD) provided the cool upgrade it needed — technical assistance and an in-kind grant to install new equipment and modernize the Safina Cold Store storage facility in Quetta City. That change has spurred the government […]
In Asia, a Project that Puts Market Systems First
April 24, 2018
In the flat fields of Nepal’s southern Terai plains, only miles from the Indian border, small farmers like Ramawati Maurya have for generations grown the same variety of rice. “I was growing only coarse rice before,” says Maurya, during a break from pulling weeds with a group of fellow women farmers. Coarse rice expands when […]
No Water, No Power
April 23, 2018
In 2017, drought in Kenya and neighboring countries became so severe earlier that the government of Kenya declared a national disaster. Already, the effects have been devastating: Food production dropped, leaving more than 2.6 million people without access to sufficient food. Some villagers have lost 40 percent of their livestock. Amidst the human tragedy of this drought, an unexpected actor […]
Solutions for Pollution
April 23, 2018
Addressing the crowd at Washington D.C.’s Wilson Center, Sasha Koo-Oshima immediately establishes the stakes of the matter at hand: the problem of water pollution. When water quality is degraded, she says, it’s “a potential destabilizing factor in global economy and security.” Along with three other panelists, Koo-Oshima, senior adviser of the Environmental Protection Agency’s International […]
Avoiding a Water Crisis: What’s Next for Cape Town – and Beyond?
April 17, 2018
Intense drought in South Africa’s Western Cape Province has led the world-renowned city of Cape Town to the brink of “Day Zero”— the date at which residents would be forced to collect strictly rationed water supplies from shared distribution taps. Water conservation efforts have so far prevented a massive water shutdown, but the city’s rapid population growth and reliance on […]
Power Switch
April 13, 2018
By Chris Warren Less than half of Nigeria’s 186 million people have access to electricity. But in the rural village of Gbamu Gbamu, newly installed utility poles and wires act as markers of a brighter future, powered by a new solar minigrid. The grid, an effort of local developers Rubitec Solar and Winrock’s USAID-funded Renewable […]