We invited more than 20 students and young researchers from different disciplines to Kathmandu, Nepal and took a deep dive into the methods and concepts of transdisciplinary research. Here, participants share their experinces.
Waste to Wisdom – Supporting Biodigester Practitioners in Southeast Asia
Under the framework of our SEPS knowledge exchange programme, Green Empowerment and Sri-Lanka based partner Janathakshan are currently introducing the skills and tools necessary for the rapid delivery of both home and village-scale biogas digester systems to Malaysia and the Philippines.
Eighty percent of rural households in Malaysia’s North Borneo states of Sabah and Sarawak still rely on firewood for cooking, which contributes to lung disease and, in some cases, deforestation. Green Empowerment and our partners aim to address this challenge through the knowledge exchange and follow up work with communities to deliver a cooking fuel alternative, while encouraging these communities to think about waste more creatively.
This SEPS knowledge exchange includes a two-week training course in Sri Lanka with additional training in Malaysian Borneo. While in Sri Lanka, the participants will learn in a classroom setting and visit a number of project sites, as well as participating in the construction of a biodigester. Green Empowerment and Janathakshan aim for the participants to leave the exchange with the ability to design, install and manage low-cost biogas digester systems. They are also expected to be able to teach these skills to their colleagues and to promote the dissemination of biodigester technology within their home regions.
The exchange event in Sri Lanka will take place from 10 – 22 March 2018.
