May 23, 2013

Sanitation innovator named 2013 Stockholm Water Prize Laureate

Dr. Peter Morgan has been named the 2013 Stockholm Water Prize Laureate for his work to protect the health and lives of millions of people through improved sanitation and water technologies.

H.M. King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden will present the prize to Dr. Morgan at a Royal Award Ceremony during the 2013 World Water Week in Stockholm on September 5.

Over the past four decades, Dr. Morgan has invented and advanced low-cost practical solutions to provide access to safe sanitation and clean water that are being used by millions of people worldwide.

“Many currently existing solutions to provide clean water and sanitation are unaffordable, impractical and out of reach for the world’s poorest people,” said the Stockholm Water Prize Committee in its citation. “As a result of Dr. Morgan’s pioneering work to develop practical water and sanitation technologies for those most in need, countless communities now enjoy safer water, a cleaner environment and quality of life.”

More than 780 million people live without access to safe water and 2.5 billion people lack access to adequate sanitation. Diseases caused by unsafe water, sanitation, and hygiene kill more than 5,000 people each day.

Upon receiving the news, Dr. Morgan said: “Great strides have been made to bring safe water and sanitation to people around the world, yet countless millions are currently still denied access. This prestigious award encourages me to carry on to play my part to improve the conservation and supply of this most precious resource – water – and provide more people with access to clean sanitation.”

A world class inventor and problem solver
Dr. Morgan has invented a wide range of simple, smart and low-cost water and sanitation technologies. Several of his most prominent innovations, including the Bush Pump and the Blair Ventilated Improved Pit (VIP) Latrine, have been adapted as the national standard by the government of Zimbabwe. Over 500,000 Blair VIP latrines have been built and serve 3 million people in Zimbabwe alone, and many more have been built worldwide. Dr. Morgan also created the ‘Upgraded Family Well’, which now help half a million people improve the quality of water obtained from traditional wells.

Dr. Morgan has an unwavering commitment to creating solutions that local communities can build and sustain themselves. For each of his technologies he also developed a wide range of training and educational materials that enable local practitioners to install, maintain and improve them. The Blair VIP latrines, for example, are designed so that they can be upgraded as the need or opportunity arises. The ‘Bush Pump’ was specifically designed so that local ‘pump minders’ can provide maintenance using tools that they can carry on their bicycles.

Dr. Morgan is also renowned as the leading creator and proponent of ecological sanitation solutions, which enable the safe reuse of human waste to enhance soil quality and crop production. His ‘eco-san’ toilets are now in use in countries across the globe, centred on converting a sanitary problem into a productive resource.

About Dr. Peter Morgan
Dr. Morgan currently serves as Director of Aquamor, a not-for-profit company working in the rural water supply and sanitation sector in Zimbabwe. He has previously served as Director of the Blair Research Laboratory and as Advisor to the Ministry of Health in Zimbabwe. Throughout his career, Dr. Morgan has shared his designs and innovations freely and ensured that they can be implemented and improved by the local communities where they are used.

A prolific and highly respected scientist, Dr. Morgan is the author of over 100 published articles and previously served as President of the Zimbabwe Scientific Organization and editor of Zimbabwe Science News. He frequently acts as an advisor and consultant on rural water supply and sanitation programmes in countries throughout Africa, such as Botswana, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Tanzania, South Africa, Sudan, Uganda, and Zambia. Dr. Morgan has been the recipient of multiple awards and distinctions, including the International Inventors Award, The AMCOW AfricaSan Award for Technical Innovation in Sanitation, and the Rural Water Supply Network Award for Lifetime Services to Rural Water Supply.

Born in 1943 in Wellingborough, United Kingdom, Dr. Morgan is a naturalized citizen of Zimbabwe. He holds a PhD in Marine Biology from the University of Hull.

About the Stockholm Water Prize
The Stockholm Water Prize is a global award founded in 1991 and presented annually by the Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI) to an individual, organisation or institution for outstanding water-related achievements. The Stockholm Water Prize Laureate receives USD 150,000 and a crystal sculpture specially designed and created by Orrefors. H.M. King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden is patron of the prize.

Initially founded by the Stockholm Water Foundation to encourage research and development of the world’s water environment, the Stockholm Water Prize is additionally supported by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, International Water Association, Water Environment Federation and the City of Stockholm. The Founders of the Stockholm Water Prize are companies united in their strong conviction to push sustainability in the water sector. They are: Bacardi, Borealis & Borouge, DuPont, ERV, Fujitsu, Grundfos, HP, Kemira, KPMG Sweden, Ragn-Sells, Scandic, Scandinavian Airlines (SAS), Siemens AG, SJ (Swedish Railways), Snecma/Safran, Uponor, Xylem and Ålandsbanken.