In February, we told you about our trip to San Quintin, Mexico,to teach the local families about building waterless bathroom facilities.
Our CEO, Angelica Ocampo was joined by Toilets for People Founder and President, Jason Kass. Toilets for People has developed an affordable, sustainable, and ecological toilet solution for communities without access to sanitation infrastructure. They provide on-location toilet fabrication and training services to partner organizations and local craftsmen to bring this technology to those most in need.
During the visit, Gabriel Soria Cuevas, International Relief Teams Program Manager in San Quintin, and a group of local community representatives learned the technology applied by Toilets for People around the world and built several bathrooms using material commonly found in the region.
This simple yet highly functional solution was presented to different community groups in San Quintin, including Engineering students from the Universidad Intercultural de Baja California.
Gabriel later shared details on how to build these waterless bathrooms on his weekly radio show “Pequenas Acciones, Grandes Cambios”(Small Actions, Big Changes). Broadcast both in Spanish and in Mixteco, an aboriginal language spoken in the South of Mexico, the purpose of the show is to share information that can improve the quality of life of listeners all over the region.
One such listener, a rancher who lives in a remote area up in the mountains, was so intrigued by the toilets that he decided to build one.
Not only did he implement the technology correctly, but he added a solar panel to the roof so that his family could turn on the light when utilizing the bathroom at night. As you can see on the video, he also added some beautiful artwork!
Just as the radio program states, small actions can create big changes in people’s lives!
