Clean Water Access (10/25/2004)

I'm acting as a project advisor to Rebeca Hwang for her Public Policy 192 "Intro to Social Entrepreneurship" project. Rebeca's a Ph.D. student in the Interdisciplinary Program on Environment and Resources (IPER) division. With a bachelors in Chemical Engineering and a masters in Environmental Engineering, additional classes in the business school and law school, plus actual on the ground experience in studying water filters in Nicaragua, she's got a more credible background as a social entrepreneur than I do. So, following the philosophy that the best way to learn more about a field is to try to teach someone about it, I'm acting as the student, trying to learn the different approaches to water purification: chlorination, filtration; at the household, community, or regional level; for chemicals or microbes or viruses; paid for by government, NGO's, industry, or consumers. Rebeca has a wealth of knowledge, and the challenge now is to organize and zero in on the most promising directions to provide access to clean water for millions more people.