Water Changes Everything
A shift in design is occurring. Designers and engineers are more conscious than ever of a product’s impact. We set out to make a positive impact and develop a simple low-cost product that could drastically improve public health at the family level.
Providing clean and safe water is the easiest way to directly impact health, happiness, and productivity. Every day millions of people wake up concerned about the amount of water they have stored for the day and how to make it safe to drink.
On a fall day in Colorado, Roger, the founder of Global Access, met with Rob, the owner of Loophole, to share his mission to reduce the number of children that die every day from consuming unsafe water in developing nations.
After an inspiring conversation, they determined that the proposed water filter adapter would be completed in several hours as a pro-bono contribution to this cause. Roger and Rob developed water filtration systems based on open-source designs and research conducted with remote communities in the Peruvian Amazon. They learned that simplicity was the key to adopting new routines.
The system’s assembly requires minimal parts; and cleaning requires no disassembly, tools, or backwashing.
“The Amazon is one of the most challenging rivers in the world. If we solve the problem in Peru, the people of Peru solve the problem for the world.”
Rob learned that design was not enough to form healthy water practices. Local partnerships in Peru established a model for locally-led workshops and collaborative monitoring of filter efficacy that is used worldwide.
Now several years later, Rob is leading the development of new clean and safe water solutions in remote communities in over ten countries. Rob believes it is paramount that solutions are not merely delivered, but empower development. All instructional materials, education programs, and cleaning methods are universal by design.
As the integration of point-of-use water filter systems into rural households grows, sustainable economic systems will develop naturally. Rob’s goal is to slowly remove charities from the clean water equation by uplifting entrepreneurs who wish to support community health. To move towards this goal, Rob is focused on making programs in Uganda, Rwanda, and Peru more self-reliant while growing infrastructure and data collection in expanding locations.
Please join Loophole in supporting our partner Global Access.
