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Almost half the global population lacks access to safely managed sanitation, and over two billion people are without safe drinking water. Planning and implementing various water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) services can be complex. To address this, SEI has developed an array of tools and methods to enhance services within and support decision-making in WASH.
Research from SEI informs the development of diverse tools and frameworks for planning and implementing WASH services across urban and rural context. Our tools range from implementation frameworks for the safe management of human and animal waste in rural settings to the estimation of resource recovery potential from urban organic waste streams. These also include the transfer of resource recovery science-policy knowledge and analytical tools to estimate the use of WASH services at the household and community levels, assessing gender outcomes of WASH interventions.
Below are five tools to help practitioners, communities, policymakers and researchers working on WASH-related topics.
Clean and green is an implementation framework aimed at bolstering WASH services in rural households and communities. It emphasizes the safe management and reuse of human and animal waste, including for agricultural purposes. This innovative approach has been piloted in Burkina Faso, in partnership with WaterAid.
Project / Piloting an innovative rural sanitation framework with the aim to strengthen health and food security.
Clean and Green is operationalized through tools that manage risks and resources. These include rapid risk-assessment and participatory resource flow mapping, the latter tool mapping local consumption and production patterns, including food, fodder, water, fuelwood and construction materials at the household level.
This comprehensive mapping aids in identifying current waste management practices, potential interventions and facilitates monitoring the transition towards Clean and/or Green status at household and community levels.
This framework is integral for enhancing sanitation and hygiene after community-led total sanitation interventions, ensuring long-term benefits in smallholder-dominated rural areas. It is most effective in fostering sustainable sanitation practices, leading to improved health and agricultural productivity.
Designed for use by governments and NGOs proficient in WASH and agricultural sectors, Clean and Green leverages benchmarking to spur progress. It promotes a constructive competition among households and communities, enhancing regional standards of health and hygiene.
SEI actively supports the framework’s development by piloting in different contexts and rigorously evaluating impact to solidify its evidence base. Through this ongoing process, SEI aims to continuously refine the framework and offer evidence-based best practices for wider application.
WASH-Flows is a unique analytical tool designed to evaluate WASH services utilization at both household and community levels. It crucially informs water balance, quality and distribution, offering decision-makers comprehensive data to optimize watershed management.
Tool / WASH-Flows is an innovative analytical tool that improves the assessment and estimation of water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) service vulnerabilities.
WASH-Flows integrates the “service ladders” methodology established by the Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP) of the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the World Health Organization (WHO) to measure service levels It bridges the data gap between water management and WASH sectors, providing a community-level service profile.
The tool necessitates household-level data on population, WASH infrastructure, service quality and wastewater disposal, processed through an Excel-based platform. It yields graphical and tabular outputs, delineating community-level WASH service conditions.
The tool is pivotal for regions striving for sustainable, resilient and equitable WASH services, particularly where local data is sparse. By illuminating local service vulnerabilities, WASH-Flows aids policymaking, intervention targeting and infrastructure improvement, focusing beyond mere access to the quality and sustainability of services.
WASH-Flows serves utilities, planners, practitioners and local governments, facilitating:
Training sessions in Guatemala and Bolivia have targeted local government representatives, practitioners and researchers. For training queries or to explore tool application in different contexts, reach out to Nhilce Esquivel. The beta tool is available in English and Spanish, with a Spanish user guide available upon request.
Resource Value Mapping (REVAMP) is an innovative decision support tool designed to estimate the resource recovery potential from urban organic waste streams. It equips planners, engineers, developers, researchers and policymakers with the ability to comprehend and capitalize on the recovery of water, energy and nutrients from organic waste, facilitating sustainable urban development.
Tool / Resource Value Mapping (REVAMP) helps city planners estimate resources and reuse potential in a city's wastewater and their financial values.
REVAMP uses material flow analysis to enable rapid estimation of resource recovery from organic waste, including faecal sludge, sewage sludge and municipal solid waste fractions. It evaluates four recovery technologies–anaerobic digestion, solid fuel production, black soldier fly processing and composting. This tool is pivotal in urban infrastructure planning, enhancing circular economy strategies and contributing to climate change mitigation.
REVAMP processes input data on the quantities and physical-chemical quality of organic waste. Users can specify preferred resource recovery products to assess. The tool outputs detailed tables and graphs depicting potential quantities, revenue generation and comparisons based on nutrient and energy recovery from the waste streams.
As urban populations surge, city leaders face the dual challenge of managing increasing waste and providing essential resources. Organic waste, a significant portion of city waste, holds untapped potential for resource conversion. REVAMP equips cities with the knowledge to transform organic waste into valuable products, supporting resource needs sustainably.
REVAMP is intended for urban stakeholders to evaluate resource recovery potentials and inform sustainable urban planning. It assists in:
Training on REVAMP usage is incorporated into the Bolivia WATCH program, with plans for further capacity building. For training inquiries or to explore the tool’s application in other contexts, users are encouraged to contact the REVAMP team. A comprehensive manual for the tool is available on the REVAMP website.
The Empowerment Wash Index (EWI) is an innovative survey-based tool that quantifies agency, participation and empowerment within the water and sanitation sector, areas often overshadowed by the focus on infrastructure and public health.
Project / The empowerment in WASH index (EWI) project measures empowerment and social inclusion of water, sanitation and hygiene interventions.
EWI measures how WASH interventions can promote gender and social equality, using data gathered from surveys to track empowerment in water and sanitation initiatives. It was developed by former SEI researcher Sarah Dickin, now at Uppsala University, and Elijah Bisung from Queens University.
The EWI serves as both a diagnostic and monitoring tool, ideal for assessing gender outcomes of WASH interventions. It establishes baselines and tracks changes in empowerment, providing data to design more inclusive WASH interventions and policies that target gender disparities. This tool is crucial for creating interventions that not only meet technical needs but also foster gender and social equality.
EWI is designed for policymakers, practitioners, development entities and researchers. It facilitates the monitoring and evaluation of WASH projects and is instrumental in planning and designing gender-sensitive WASH interventions. While EWI provides quantitative insights, it is recommended to pair its use with qualitative research to fully grasp cultural and social norms affecting gender and empowerment in the context studied.
For detailed guidance on EWI’s application and comprehensive training sessions, stakeholders are encouraged to contact Carla Liera.
Feature / Ahead of World Toilet Day, learn how SEI's research supports SDG 6 on clean water and sanitation for all by 2030.
Feature / Co-created citizen science empowers communities, reshaping research to reflect their real needs and priorities.
Past event / Rachel Pateman shared methods and lessons from a co-created project to understand unhoused people's access to water, sanitation, and hygiene in Mexico City.
Design and development by Soapbox.
