Since mid-March, Engineers Without Borders South Africa (EWB-SA) & EWB – UCT (University of Cape Town) have been running an interactive series on water. The series aimed to use the current Western Cape drought as a catalyst for new learning platforms, projects and research surrounding water in South Africa.
The first event was an educational panel discussion inviting people to reimagine the future of sanitation in South Africa. To increase the event’s reach we collaborated with the Young Water Professionals, CESA YPF, SAICE YMP. The experienced multidisciplinary panel included the Social Justice Coalition activist Axolile Notywala ; CEO of bioconversion company Biocycle Marc Lewis ; Aurecon civil engineer Lulama Ngobeni and Stellenbosch University Sustainability Institute academic director Professor Mark Swilling. Their diverse experiences wove us a complex way forward. We had an impressive mid-week turnout from students and professionals.
The second event included the screening of DamNation. The film investigates dam removals in North America and it lead to an in depth discussion regarding dams and alternative water sources in South Africa; facilitated by Future Water UCT.
These discussions informed a workshop run with EWB-UCT students. Aided by innovative bioprocess engineer Bernelle Verster, the workshop was reflective and emphasised the need to focus on our own everyday interactions with water. UCT came out as a natural place for us to start with :
– A water awareness campaign involving a public urination capture station
– A competition demystify UCT’s water infrastructure
Last week we presented some of our findings at African Utility Week. The emphasis placed on education and skills development at this event validated our humble contribution to a more resilient society in a drier future.
We will also continue to create interactive educational platforms, with another movie screening planned and relevant site visits on the cards. Organising the series thus far has been flexible and spontaneous; moving forward we will focus on setting up more formal communication networks to help keep interested people involved.
Written by Anthony Fry
For more information contact: antfry13@gmail.com.
For more insight read: http://m.engineeringnews.co.za/article/discussions-to-spark-innovative-solutions-2017-04-28/rep_id:4433/searchString:sanitation%20discussion
