Hey guys,
The man who revolutionized the Personal Computer Industry is putting his efforts - and foundation - to revolutionizing toilets. Microsoft founder Bill Gates said he will dedicate 42$ million towards the reinvention of the toilet.
Water hygiene and safe waste disposal are two of the biggest causes for infant mortalities in the developing countries. Gates and his foundation hope to create inexpensive toilets to grately improve the living conditions of millions of people. "No innovation in the past 200 years has done more to save lives and improve health than the sanitation revolution triggered by invention of the toilet," said Sylvia Mathews Burwell, the president of the Global Development Program at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
"But it did not go far enough. It only reached one-third of the world. What we need are new approaches. New ideas." Part of the foundation's plan is the Reinventing of the Toilet Challenge, which funds research at eight universities around the world to develop a toilet that will turn waste into energy, clean water or nutrients.
The solution must be a stand-alone unit without piped-in water, a sewer connection or outside electricity. The foundation partnered with USAID to fix water sanitation as part of the UN's 2015 Millennium Development Goals. The foundation is prioritizing convenience and affordability in the solutions it considers. The toilets must be easy to install and cost no more than $0.05 a day to maintain.
More to read here: http://mashable.com/2011/07/19/bill-gates-reinvent-toilet/
Cosmin | Pixelfind
