African Women and Water Conference

Sizani Ngubane and Gugu Hadebebe, of South Africa, with the quilts they brought to sell at the African Women and Water Conference (made by the Sweetwaters Quilting Guild in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa).
Holpha Kinya Kirera, of Kenya, sporting jewelry being sold at the African Women and Water Conference; the beaded jewelry is a project of Betty Kamami and the group she works with in Nairobi.
The BioSand Filter day laborers who helped prepare for the African Women and Water Conference by making 4 filters and preparing all the rock and sand to be used for the technology training.
Three of the four African Women and Water Conference organizers working hard to put the final touches on the conference schedule and logistics (from L to R, Jan Hartshough of Crabgrass, Melinda Kramer of Women's Earth Alliance, and Gemma Bulos of A Single Drop).

The self-proclaimed "Langata Women's BioSand Filter Association" celebrating their amazing achievement of learning the ins and outs of the BioSand Filter in 4 days!
Mariah Klingsmith teaching participants of the African Women and Water Conference the BioSand Water Filter technology.
Washing rock and sand...everyone's favorite part of the BioSand Filter construction and implementation! Here, Isaac, the worker hired to help set up the BioSand Filter training is showing Halima Ibrahima and Faustine Obada (of Solar Cookers International) the proper tedious technique for washing rock.
BioSand Filters produced at the African Women and Water Conference curing prior to installation.
Mariah Klingsmith, ASD African Program Manager and African Women and Water Conference BioSand Filter trainer, and Jael Esther Amati, GROOTS Kenya Program Officer. These ladies will be working together in the field over the next year to follow-up with the participants and help them implement their water projects.

Mary Omble Wuya, of Nigeria, completing installation of a BioSand Filter with her fellow trainees.
The lovely stylish ladies of the BioSand Filter technology training...you've never seen such stylish attire when building BioSand Filters!
Rebecca Adarpaya, of Ghana, in her work clothes.
The beautiful ladies putting the mold together in preparation for pouring a BioSand Filter.

Sizani Ngubane, or South Africa, applying the second layer of concrete to the Ferro cement tank.
Beatrice Wamuhu and Lydiah Wambui, of Kenya, making their Solar CooKit.
Jennifer Mutinda, of Kenya, doing her part during the Ferro cement storage tank training.
Transporting the BioSand Filter to its installation location inside the conference hall at the GreeenBelt Langata training center.
Felicia Kuubeka and Faustine Odaba sifting sand for use in constructing and installing the BioSand Filters.

Elizabeth Akinyi Obiero and Benta Akal, with the help of Festus, attaching gutters during the rainwater harvesting training.
Purpose built surfaces for rainwater harvesting.
Priscah Mutia climbing her way out of the Ferro cement tank after plastering the inside of tank with the first layer of concrete
Hannie Ondaye, of Kenya, mixing concrete for the next layer of concrete on the Ferro cement tank.
Solome Mukisa, of Uganda, helping prepare for the final touches on the Ferro cement tank.

Mildred Mkandla showing the participants of the rainwater harvesting training how to use traditional thatch roof surfaces to catch rainwater.
Rock catchments are another type of low cost rainwater harvesting techniques.
Syoni Mnzava, of Tanzania, concetrating on securing the gutters for the roof rainwater harvesting system.
Benta Akal checking to see if the gutters are proprely aligned and secured during the last day of the technology training.
Ah, Mildred Mkandla! What a wonderful spirit and inspiration for the participants of the African Women and Water Conference.

Activity to map resources within a community
Business planning and proposal writing session during the African Women and Water Conference
The classroom
Sarah Mbinji teaching a session on business planning.

The StairMaster of water pumps-the Kickstart is sold all over Kenya as an easy water pumping solution

Portable Microbiology Lab water testing of the water sources the participants of the African Women and Water Conference brought from home.
Lucy Mulenkei teaching a session on global climate change.
Anna Mboka Anatoli, of Tanzania, named "Mama Africa" by her co-participants, sharing her words of wisdom during a classroom session.
Gemma Bulos singing "We Rise" for the African Women and Water participants.
Halima Ibrahima, of Somalia, and her fellow participants starting the day with a song and a prayer.

The display of Solar Cookers International.
Rhoda Chepkopus Rotino and Gugu Hadebebe assembling a Solar CooKit. Mildred Mkandla showing off her 3M Petrifilm 1 ml water test.
Felicia Kuubeka looking on intently as Dr. Robert Melcalf explains to her the results of her water test. The water sample Felicia brought was full of E. Coli bacteria, meaning this water source has a high level of fecal contamination!Solome Mukisa enjoying learning about the Portbale Microbiology Lab water testing process.

The Portable Microbiology Lab for water testing being promoted and implemented by Robert Metcalf, a microbiology professor from California State University, Sacramento. The fireless cooker is a basket with "pillows" in it that, for example, you boil rice for 3 hours, stick it in the basket, cover it with the other "pillow" and an hour later your rice is cooked. The women's group who is making these collect discarded cloth from factories and other places for the "pillows" and use native material to make the baskets.
This is an amazing water testing method. It's nothing new, Dr. Metcalf just put two tests usually used independently in the food industry together to create an easy use to use water testing kit which and is making it available to people who have no experience with microbiology. There is a petrifilm test made by 3M and a test for 10 ml called Colilert. I won't bore anyone with the scientific details, but the short version is it identifies the presence of E Coli bacteria as an indicator of fecal contaminants which can cause major illness and it quantifies approximately how contaminated a water source is.

This is the Solar CooKit! Check out the website-http://solarcookers.org/. It is very cool and simple and cost effective and all the participants of the African Women and Water Conference got to make one of their own. It's a piece of cardboard with reflective material glued on and you put your food in a black pot (the cheap thin kind) inside a clear transparent plastic bag, set it in the sun for several hours (depending on the kind of food) and voila! Very neat idea in a place where sun is abundant and fuel resources-wood and charcoal-are expensive and becoming incresingly scarce. You can also use the solar cooker to pasteurize water and milk and they come with WAPIs (Water Pasteurization Indicators-a little devise with wax inside that melts when the liquid reaches the appropriate temperature to the kill the bugs)
Mildred Mkandla gluing reflective material onto her cardboard during the first stage of making a Solar CooKit.
AWWC co-organizer Melinda Kramer helping cut the excess reflective paper from the Solar CooKit.
AWWC co-organizer Gemma Bulos helping to make a Solar CooKit.
Faustine Odaba helping Lucy Mulenkei put together her Solar CooKit.

Faustine Odaba, more fondly know as "Mama Solar" sporting her solar-powered fan cooling hat.
Olanike Olubunmi Olugboji, of Nigeria, receiving birthday hugs from her fellow African Women and Water Conference participants.
The spontaneous dancing and singing that erupted frequently during the African Women and Water Conference!
The inspirational faces of the particants of the African Women and Water Conference.
Hard at work making Solar CooKits.

Evening activities of the African Women and Water Conference focused on teaching strategies for WASH (water, sanitation and hygiene) education. Here the women are identifying transmission routes of fecal-oral contamination.
Annette Fay, employee of Peer Water Exchange, and Anna Avong "Mama Nigeria" looking on on one of the evening education sessions of the African Women and Water Conference.
Amira Diamond, of Women's Earth Alliance
Celebrating women working together to make work easier by sining a song shared by Mildred Mkandla!

A young mother showing us how they gather water from these water holes dug within the riverbed.
Anna Mboka Anatoli spreading the bad news of the evil of eucalyptus trees to the members of the rural community in the Machakos region. "Cut down all your eucalyptus trees, they are robbing your land of water and littering your soil with poisonous, slow decomposing leaves!" Of course we don't want to support her suggestion to start cutting down trees but it must have been an awakening for these community members to hear about the detrimental effects of this non-native species on their natural environment.
The song and dance which greeted our arrival in the rural community in the Machakos region.
Gemma and Dr. Robert Metcalf at a strategic planning meeting between A Single Drop and Solar Cookers International.

Mildred Mkandla listening to the presentation about the sand dam in the Machakos region during the African Women and Water Conference field trip.
The woes of the sand dam project in the Machakos region. The participants of the African Women and Water Conference learned a valuable lesson about community ownership in project implementation and its necessity in order to see projects succeed.
Doing the laundry
The children of the Machakos region-water carriers and cattle herders.
The youth of Kenya hard at work.

We met this little angel during our field visit to the Machakos region.
A BioSand Filter relic. This one was reportedly knocked over by playing children and there it has lain for over 5 years. Another good lesson about follow-up and monitoring and sustainibility for the ladies who learned about the BioSand Filter during the African Women and Water Conference.
The hike down to the Machakos sand dam project.
Faustine Odaba collecting water from a riverbed water hole in the Machakos region for testing with the Portable Microbiology Lab.
The Machakos sand dam projected supported by the GreenBelt Movement.

Micheal Schoenfeld, of Channel G, diligently and tirelessly capturing the wonderful moments of the African Women and Water Conference on film.
Melinda Kramer and Felicia Kuubeka after the water ceremony which opened the African Women and Water Conference.
The closing ceremony of the African Women and Water Conference
Jan and the African Women and Water participants on the bus headed for the field trip to see the sand dam project in Machakos region.
Always dancing here! This was our welcome program in Machakos.

Gemma Bulos with the ladies of Meru, Kenya, Holpha and Betty.
Melinda Kramer showing pride for the wonderful gift of the quilt her mother made especially for the African Women and Water Conference.
Anna Anatoli and Wangari Maathai during the African Women andWater Conference reception.
The final picture of the African Women and Water conference organizers, trainers, and participants.
Honoring Jan Hartsough!

Singing "Maji," the African Women and Water Conference anthem composed by participant, Betty Kamami.
Showing the Solar CooKit to special surprise guest, Wangari Maathai.
The African Women and Water Conference ogranizers with Dr. Wangari Maathai.
Wangari Maathai and Mildred Mkandla
The beauty of the African Women and Water Conference participants!

Celebration dance at the African Women and Water Conference reception. All participants were asked to share something from the country they come from.
The other guests of the African Women and Water Conference. The weather for the Conference was amazing but for the final night when it poured, unfortunately keeping some guests away and inviting in others that were a nuisance.

Halima and Halima from Somalia showing us the beauty of Somalian traditional dance