News
Letter from Sumba
November 9, 2017
Illustration by Jessica Kelley; Story and Photographs By Anne Cassidy To reach Kataka School, you drive east along the coast from Waingapu, then head south into the rugged hills of Sumba, Indonesia. Flashes of silvery ocean appear outside the car windows, and, deeper inland, a herd of wild horses. As you near the school you […]
Hydraulic Despots and the Origins of Water Planning
November 8, 2017
To understand modern water management, it helps to go back thousands of years, to the Hydraulic Empires of Ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, China and Mesoamerica. These early advanced civilizations grew out of the need to divert water for human use and to harness the power of flowing water. The more control the ruling elites took over […]
Taking a Big Picture Look at Water Security
November 7, 2017
As the world faces drought, floods, water pollution and other risks, countries often respond by building infrastructure — anything from community pumps to large-scale dams. But while these infrastructure solutions provide short-term benefits, they often fail to deliver long-term water security. The Sustainable Water Partnership (SWP) offers robust, big picture solutions to water problems — ones […]
Refuse in Use
November 6, 2017
“I had no confidence and made no economic contribution to the family,” says Sunita Karmacharya of Ilam, Nepal, about her old life. “I could never visualize myself walking out of my kitchen. I was like a frog in a well.” But then she heard about the PPP for 4Gs project, funded by the European Union/Switch Asia […]
A Stepping Stone to Security
November 6, 2017
Children with dirty hands. Long lines at public water points. Cholera sweeping through a densely populated settlement. In the short-term, these public health issues can often be solved through Water, Sanitation and Hygiene projects – WASH, for short. But as the storms of climate change and variability, urbanization, and migration gather on the horizon, the […]
Creating A Virtuous Cycle
November 1, 2017
At the 2017 Concordia Summit, Tamara Laine of the Karma Network spoke with Winrock’s Amit Bando, Senior Director of Clean Energy and Water, about how addressing clean energy, water, land use and environmental issues will empower the disadvantaged, increase economic opportunity and sustain natural resources across the globe. The conversation ranged from Winrock’s boots-on-the-ground approach […]
Free Guidebook Highlights Significant Plants in Cambodia’s Sandan Region
October 26, 2017
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – October 23, 2017 – The USAID Supporting Forests and Biodiversity (SFB) project, implemented by Winrock International, recently compiled a guidebook of culturally significant plant species found in the community forests of Kampong Thom Province, Cambodia. Following a similar format to the project’s previous guide “Birds in Sandan,” the book presents short profiles of more […]
Seeds of Hope in Bangladesh
October 19, 2017
Southwest Bangladesh is a watery world. Houses perch on steep river banks. Storms pummel fragile coastlines. It’s hard not to see this starkly beautiful place as engaged in a battle between water and land — with the water winning. But the land has a new ally, a living hem of mangrove forests made possible by […]
Planting Interest in Ecotourism
October 16, 2017
In the lush Sandan District of Cambodia’s Kampong Thom Province, plants run wild. The region’s mosaic of different habitats — dense evergreen forests, important riparian buffer zones, cultivated land, seasonally flooded farmland — provides a diverse sampling of plant species and functions. Local communities use local flora as food, medicine and building material, while several […]
The Challenge of Too Little Water
October 2, 2017
There’s a hum in the air, an audible energy, as more than 60 water experts, practitioners and stakeholders take their seats at Washington D.C.’s Wilson Center on September 26. They’ve come for the first installment of SWP’s “Sustainable Water, Resilient Communities” series. In the words of Winrock President and CEO Rodney Ferguson, everyone present shares […]