What is the name of your organization?
COVA: Conservación, Vida y Agua
What is the name of your solution?
Wetland Management
Provide a one-line summary or tagline for your solution.
"Natural solutions to treat wastewater and improve the environmental health of rural and indigenous communities."
In what city, town, or region is your solution team headquartered?
México
In what country is your solution team headquartered?
Mexico
What type of organization is your solution team?
Nonprofit
Film your elevator pitch.
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What specific problem are you solving?
In hard-to-reach rural and indigenous communities, thousands of people live without adequate wastewater treatment technologies, causing serious public health problems, environmental pollution, and the deterioration of local ecosystems. Globally, more than 3.6 billion people lack safely managed sanitation services (WHO/UNICEF, 2023). In the state of Oaxaca, Mexico, it is estimated that at least 60% of rural communities lack functioning sanitation infrastructure.
Although constructed wetlands represent an effective, sustainable, and low-cost solution for decentralized wastewater treatment, their adoption in rural contexts has been limited. This is mainly due to a lack of technical knowledge, community training, and support schemes for their proper operation and maintenance. The problem is exacerbated by superficial and sporadic interventions in marginalized areas, which impedes the consolidation of lasting solutions. Our proposal seeks to close this gap through practical training and ongoing community support for the use, operation, and maintenance of constructed wetlands, thereby strengthening local water resilience and promoting sustainable access to sanitation in vulnerable communities.
What is your solution?
Our solution is based on community training for the use, operation, and maintenance of constructed wetlands, a natural, accessible, and low-cost technology for decentralized wastewater treatment. Through practical workshops, we train people from rural and indigenous communities to understand, build, and maintain these systems independently. We apply an intercultural approach, adapted to the local context, that facilitates learning through visual materials, clear language, and ongoing technical support. Constructed wetlands use plants, gravel, and microorganisms that purify water without the need for electricity or chemicals. Beyond the transfer of technical knowledge, this process strengthens local capacities, empowers communities, and promotes sustainable water management, health, and environmental care. The solution has already been implemented in Oaxaca, Mexico, with positive results in pollution reduction, community participation, and improved local water resilience.
Who does your solution serve, and in what ways will the solution impact their lives?
Our solution is aimed at rural schools, girls, boys, youth, and women from communities facing social disadvantage who currently lack access to adequate wastewater treatment technologies. These populations face health and environmental risks due to a lack of infrastructure and also barriers to participating in technical or water management processes. Through practical training and technical support, our solution enables them to learn how to build, operate, and maintain constructed wetlands, thereby improving the environmental health of their surroundings. It also promotes environmental education, youth leadership, and the empowerment of women in water stewardship. The active participation of historically excluded groups strengthens community self-management and generates concrete benefits in health, education, and sustainability. This solution contributes to reducing the gap in access to sanitation, fosters local water resilience, and promotes a culture of conservation and responsible water use.
