Indonesian design challenge for students from Lund

Access to safe drinking water is one of the foremost issues when it comes to the health of people and communities all over the world. Good water quality improves human and environmental health; reduces disease, illness and child mortality; and supports the empowerment of women who tend to have the primary responsibility for management of household water supply, sanitation and health. 

“Now, there is a possibility for students at Lund University to help, through an innovation challenge. The best team will win a trip to Indonesia. This is not only a great way to create a better world, but also implement the knowledge students get during their university studies”, says Sandra Rabow, who together with Rolf Larsson at LTH is organizing the competition.

Lund University, Department of Water Resource Engineering (DWRE), is working together with Tanjungpura University, Department of Environmental Engineering (DEE), to address these issues in Indonesia: one of the top 5 countries with populations that still do not have access to improved water sources. The project is part of a Sida Partner Driven Cooperation (PDC) initiative in the province of West Kalimantan, a region known for being rich in forested resources as well as for their turbulent past.

West Kalimantan is situated on Borneo Island. Its land surface is covered by five large river basins, which, along with their tributaries, are a source of freshwater to about 80 % of West Kalimantan inhabitants and provide a multitude of ecosystem services. Most people take raw water from small creeks, streams, well water, or collect rainwater. Water resources, however, are becoming increasingly polluted due to various activities such as sanitation practices (open defecation), farming, industry, urban settlements, and most notably palm oil plantations. The significant shift in land use, coupled with expanding plantation projects, for example water intensive sugarcane, are relevant challenges to governmental agencies overseeing water and environmental protection, as well as to the health and well being of inhabitants.

The cooperation between Lund University (DWRE) and Tanjungpura University (DEE) is targeted at facilitating the innovation and development of simple and inexpensive facilities/tools for water recycling and environmental monitoring such as household water treatment systems and mobile-based environmental data acquisition. This will be achieved by promoting innovation through student competitions and prototyping at the respective universities. Ultimately, the project hopes to support the capacity and incentive for long-term water resource protection in the region of West Kalimantan by establishing a local water product design, innovation and fabrication company.

The project also showcases how sustainable partnerships and mutual interests are scaling up the presence of Swedish actors (authorities, trade unions, private companies, NGO’s, Universities, local governments, cultural institutions and scientists) overseas while shifting away from traditional unilateral aid relationships. Since 2007 Sida has adopted a policy of PDC, particularly in countries where they are phasing out long-term programmed aid in favor of selective cooperation.  More and more countries are not in need of traditional aid, but are eager for opportunities that foster and develop innovative partnerships. What characterizes PDC is that it is hinged on common interests and shared responsibilities. Time-limited funding catalyzes relationships and plays a significant role with respect to long-term development goals. Cooperation that is not financed from aid provides a self-sustainable road forward by targeting global issues and developing local skills, knowledge and initiatives.

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