We live in an amazingly abundant world. The challenge is learning how to responsibly access, and share, what is available. Particularly in local areas where the normal facilities are scarce, non-existent, or difficult to put in place. The result: Local solutions to local problems with global potential. Lima, Peru: Engineers have put “imagination into action” by creating a billboard advert that literally turns air into drinking water. The project was launched in an arid rural village where access to clean water was a daily struggle. Researchers wanted to take advantage of the air humidity which can be as high as 98%. Scientist's from Lima's University of Engineering and Technology teamed up with a local ad-agency to created a panel display that traps the humidity, condenses it, then filters the water and stores it in tanks above the structure. The advert currently produces up to 96l a day and is accessible to everyone in the village. France: In the isolated mountains of Northern France, inventor Marc Parent, pondered the issue of “intelligent water management”. The result was a 15 metre-high wind turbine. The turbine sucks in air and then uses self-generated electricity to cool the air until it is transformed, through condensation, into water. Designed for remote areas, the model can be installed in an hour and produces up to 80l of filtered drinking water a day. India: In a land where some 800 000 000 people lack safe drinking water, and even more have to do without basic sanitation, innovators have found an ingeniously cheap and simple way to tap “a guaranteed source” of daily water. Huge plastic sheets, spread out on the ground and kept at temperatures lower than the ambient temperature are being used as “dew extractors”. The sheets collect condensation from the atmosphere, which then simply flows into storage units. Perfect for rooftops, the method can provide a family with 10l of filtered drinking water night, or up to 40l for larger structures. Water extracted in this way is currently a third of the cost of commercially provided water, and thus also affords families a potential source of income should they want to sell it. Israel: A technology firm, tackling the issue of “portable water generation” for mobile troops, has hit on a solution that can actually benefit all people everywhere. Watergen is a small unit that uses the same principles as a standard air-conditioner to filter incoming air and extract water from it. Attached to the outside of a tank or troop carrier it can produce from 20 – 60l a day depending on environmental conditions. Looking beyond the military scope, its inventors hope to have the United Nations pick up this water generation technology for use in remote or disaster-struck areas. All these local solutions seek to put power back into the hands of individuals and communities. As production increases and technologies improve time and monetary costs will go down and health, safety and well-being will continue to rise. Localizing water production is also a teaching tool that encourages more responsible use. A spokeswoman for the university in Lima mentioned the need to attract “creative minds”, stating”We want to change the minds of future engineers...” We all need to change. Each year global military spending far exceeds what it would take to eradicate world hunger and address the water crisis. And every day precious water is lost, or diminished in quality, due to poor management. There is enough for everyone. Everyone can be an innovator.
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