Let’s start with a quick introduction – who are you, and what’s your connection to the sanitation sector?
My name is Dr George Wainaina, and I’m a researcher and group leader at Eawag, working within the SANDEC department, the department for sanitation, water and solid waste for development, based in Zurich, Switzerland. My work focuses on water and sanitation, and over the past few years my research has increasingly shifted towards the organisations that provide these services. I’ve been working in the water and sanitation sector for more than ten years, and my training and professional background have been rooted in this field throughout my career.
What originally brought you into this field? Was there a key moment or motivation?
I first entered the field through my undergraduate studies in water and environmental engineering in Kenya. One of my earliest formative experiences was an engineering attachment at a large industrial company. As part of that placement, I rotated through several departments, but what really captured my interest was the water treatment side, particularly the industrial-scale treatment of tannery wastewater and the removal of chromium to meet municipal discharge standards. That was my first real exposure to wastewater treatment in practice.
My second attachment was with a water and sanitation company, where I learned more about sewered sanitation systems, and later I also worked with a utility. Through these experiences, my understanding of water and sanitation issues deepened, and my interest in the sector continued to grow.
Academically, my path has evolved alongside this interest. I completed my master’s degree in water policy at the Pan-African Institute for Water and Energy Sciences in Algeria, which marked a shift from engineering towards policy. I then moved to Switzerland and completed my PhD in the Netherlands as an external student, focusing on the social sciences of water and sanitation and other basic services, particularly service delivery and infrastructures. While my journey has moved from engineering to policy and social sciences, water and sanitation have remained at the core of my work throughout.
What keeps you passionate and motivated to work in this sector?
I enjoy solving puzzles, and sanitation is one of those challenges that often looks simple from the outside, until you realise how complex it really is. People tend to think the problems have already been figured out, but once you work in the sector, it becomes clear very quickly that they haven’t.
What motivates me to stay is the fact that there are real, solvable problems that still need attention, and often not enough people working on them. Being able to contribute, even in a small way, to developing practical solutions in the sanitation sector is what keeps me engaged and passionate about the work.
In your view, how can we break the taboo around toilets and sanitation – and why does that matter?
Within the sanitation sector itself, talking about toilets and sanitation is completely normal, it’s part of everyday conversations at work and even over lunch. But that changes quickly outside those circles. When I meet new people and tell them what I do, I often hesitate and wonder whether it’s really a topic they want to discuss over a meal.
I think the key to addressing taboos is first understanding them properly within the specific context you’re working in. Sanitation taboos are highly contextual and can take many forms. In some places, they relate to cultural values, such as who is allowed to share a toilet or even which direction a toilet door should face. In others, it’s simply the “yuck factor”, people don’t want to hear about toilets at all.
These taboos have always existed and will likely continue to exist, but that shouldn’t stop us from providing sanitation services. Once we understand where the taboos come from, we can think carefully about strategies to work around them. Addressing sanitation effectively means acknowledging these sensitivities, not ignoring them, while still ensuring that people have access to safe and dignified sanitation.
What’s one widespread myth or misconception about sanitation you’d love to change?
One of the biggest misconceptions, especially among people outside the sanitation sector, is that sanitation is an easy problem to solve. There’s a belief that you can simply throw money at it, or introduce the right technology, and the issue will be resolved.
In reality, sanitation is far more complex. If it were that straightforward, we would have solved it long ago. The fact that millions, if not billions, of people still lack access to safe sanitation shows that the challenge goes well beyond funding or technology alone. It involves social, institutional and behavioural dimensions that need to be addressed alongside technical solutions.
What would it take to get more people – especially young professionals – excited about sanitation work?
The first thing is how we frame the problem. Water and sanitation are often presented in very negative terms, focusing on scarcity, risk and what people don’t have. That kind of framing isn’t very attractive, especially to young people. Instead, we could highlight what is working, the positive changes already happening, and the huge opportunity to build on those successes to create real impact. Most young professionals are drawn to spaces that feel hopeful and forward-looking, not constantly framed around crisis.
The second issue is incentives. Sanitation can’t always compete with so-called “shiny” sectors like IT in terms of salaries, but incentives aren’t only about money. Young people are also motivated by the freedom to be creative, to experiment, and to work on problems in innovative ways. Too often, the sector doesn’t create enough space for that kind of flexibility and innovation.
Innovation itself is another challenge. Because sanitation is a public service and a common good, it can be difficult for young professionals to try out new ideas or entrepreneurial approaches, especially compared to digital or online sectors. This can make sanitation seem less attractive as a career choice.
Finally, education and professionalisation matter. Many engineering curricula still don’t adequately cover sanitation systems, even though graduates may learn how to design other types of infrastructure. When these gaps combine with the perception that “anyone” can work in sanitation, it undermines the sector’s professionalism. Strengthening training, career pathways and visible role models, particularly within NGOs and public institutions, would help young people see sanitation as a serious, impactful and rewarding profession.
Looking ahead: What’s your hope for the sanitation sector in the next 10 years?
My hope is that governments begin to see sanitation more clearly as an upstream investment in public health. Poor sanitation leads directly to disease, yet too often we respond by investing downstream, in e.g. hospitals and treatment, rather than addressing the root causes. If governments invested more strategically in water and sanitation as precursors to good public health, we would see fewer people getting sick, stronger economies, and overall improvements in development.
I would like to see government strategies shift towards providing sanitation services that are safe for both people and the environment, and that genuinely reduce public health risks. Of course, this is not easy. There are many moving parts, and financing is always a major challenge. That said, households and governments already provide most of the funding for water and sanitation, so the issue is not only about lack of money, but also about how we prioritise and allocate resources. There is also potential to unlock additional sources of financing if the sector is positioned more effectively.
Finally, I hope to see stronger links between sanitation and other sectors. Sanitation cannot be addressed in isolation, it is closely connected to areas like urban planning, institutional capacity and service provision. Strengthening these interconnections will be essential if the sector is to make meaningful progress over the next decade.
Last, but not least: Can you describe your dream toilet or sanitation system?
My dream sanitation system would be one that aligns much more closely with nature. At its core, the purpose of any sanitation system is simple: to keep waste away from people, treat it so it doesn’t cause disease, and eventually either dispose of it safely or recover useful nutrients. Ideally, this would happen in a way that works with natural systems rather than against them.
In that vision, treatment and resource recovery would happen as close as possible to where the waste is produced. A large part of the cost and complexity of sanitation comes from transporting waste over long distances for treatment and recovery. If we can shorten those distances, through decentralised treatment, on-site solutions, or small-scale recovery systems, we can reduce costs and improve efficiency. There are already promising innovations that aim to treat waste locally or recover resources in simpler, more direct ways.
Of course, there are limits to how far we can go in this direction. Urbanisation presents real constraints, as dense cities produce waste in volumes and concentrations that natural systems alone can’t absorb. Just as we wouldn’t expect the environment to cope with the waste from thousands of animals in one place, we can’t rely entirely on natural absorption in cities. But overall, the closer sanitation systems can move toward working with nature, while still recognising these limits, the better I believe.
