For as long as I can remember I’ve been interested in learning how to leverage creative solutions to address complicated social issues, particularly in low resourced settings. I’m working on a dissertation which explores how Design Thinking might be used to improve water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) programs for people living in Kibera. So, my research is currently desk based and so I haven’t been able to interact with the community directly yet. But now I can read through reports, exercises, and data about Kibera life available, and I got some useful insights of the challenges people have regarding their day to day lives in Kibera. I found that most of these challenges go beyond just the access to basic facilities. One good example of this is the disadvantage that women and children suffer from the absence of safe and clean toilets. Issues like privacy and safety at night plague women, more so the children are more prone to illness because of contaminated water sources. These findings have also caused me to see that a lot of past efforts have been very focused on the infrastructure without considering the social barriers that prevent people effectively accessing these services.
This pushed me to rethink the problem, but what can we do to design solutions, that not only increase access, but solutions that make these services truly sustainable and inclusive? In my mind I began to envision what it would be like if we were to use Design Thinking in WASH programmes in Kibera. I was helped by successful examples from all over the world, such as solar powered water kiosks and mobile toilets that can be moved depending on the community’s needs. In the absence of fieldwork, it was possible only to develop theoretical models on which future projects could be based. Consider water kiosks that were run by local women’s groups not only supplying clean water but generating economic opportunities for these women. In addition, I considered how compostable, modular toilets could not only solve sanitation issues, but also as a source for composting waste into fertilizer. It’s a tough sell to work on solutions on the back of a desk without working with the community. But this was my perspective for what works vs. what doesn’t at some of the other informal settlements I was comparing to my models. For example, I’ve learned that community managed projects can be good but tend not to work very well without proper maintenance. It got me thinking about incentivising local managers to keep these projects running smoothly over time.
Reflecting on our process, we learned that Design Thinking can be quite powerful even remotely. I can more confidently support solutions that are creative and human that create meaningful change when I focus on peoples’ lived experiences and work to brainstorm solutions that answer their personal needs. I hope these ideas can soon be translated into actual, on the ground solutions for Kibera’s residents, not only to solve their immediate problems, but instead to ultimately put these people in the position to be taking charge of this work long term.
