Community Water in the Amazon

MIT undergraduate students Froylan Sifuentes and Kendra Johnson have started a partnership with Santa Ana, a small indigenous community in the Amazon region of Ecuador. This community is one of several beneficiaries in a national potable water project in Ecuador and the community faces many challenges in their water system - technical, administrative, and social.

Through the MIT Public Service Center's fellowship program, Kendra and Froylan's have worked to increase the capacity of the community to sustain their water system, working closely with the community water board and operators to teach them the technical, administrative, and hygiene education skills they need to keep this relatively sophisticated system (river water intake, slow sand filter, chlorinator, pump, elevated water tower, and distribution system) delivering clean water to these families.

The water board and operators have shown tremendous progress, but there is still more to be done now that the system is actually working and their administrative and technical abilities will be put to the test.