This article written by WSSCC and distributed via the Guardian.com advocates for the linkage between sanitation and menstrual hygiene management (MHM).
We whole-heartedly share this message, and have embodied this in our work in the lab as well as our field testing in India to develop our prototype systems. Our continued efforts are significant, and are informing design iterations where we are including MHM into our sanitation and waste treatment strategies. We are dedicating engineering R&D resources to MHM waste management and incineration strategies, social science research tools and approaches, as well as participating in extensive community engagement on how to best link MHM with innovative sanitation.
Our prototype cabin provides a space, actually with extra space, for women and girls, all with the intent to ensure a clean, private, and safe toilet space that facilitates managing menstruation, provides water and space for washing, and encompasses safe strategies for menstrual product disposal. Our prototypes have an integrated pad disposal chute and provides a mechanism for, and the distribution of, pad products.
We have much to learn and refine, but our mission and purpose to address MHM as a central part of innovative sanitation technology development is clear.