News
Keeping Heads Above Water
November 8, 2017
Arriving in Katmandu days after Hurricane Harvey made landfall, I watched footage of the storm’s torrential rains batter southern Texas and saw heartbreaking images of families trapped on rooftops surrounded by toxic stormwater. Here in Nepal, more than 13,000 kilometers (8,077 miles) away from Houston, the worst monsoon season in years is also inundating villages […]
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 […]
Local Heroes
November 7, 2017
Saiful and his friend Kalam* are as close as brothers. They work together in an easy rhythm, laughing and talking as they sort the day’s harvest of shiny green brinjals (eggplants). Looking at the men now it’s hard to imagine what they endured — and survived. “I thought I was trapped forever,” Saiful says. “I […]
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 […]
Branching Out with Farmer-to-Farmer
October 26, 2017
Ples Spradley has deep Arkansas roots. Seven generations of his family have lived in the state, a line stretching all the way back to 1842. An associate professor at the University of Arkansas, Division of Agriculture, Spradley still lives in his hometown of Little Rock, growing blueberries and pecans on a farm with his wife. […]
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 […]