- link Copy Url - [ Share on twitter ](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=Leaders Attend Sustainability Forum Focused on Tools for Lasting Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene Services https://www.3blmedia.com/markdownify/node/48334?absolute=1&via=3blnews "link to 3 B L Media's Twitter") - [ Share on linkedin ](https://www.linkedin.com/shareArticle?mini=true&url=https://www.3blmedia.com/markdownify/node/48334?absolute=1 "link to 3 B L Media's Linkedin") - [ Share on facebook ](https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https://www.3blmedia.com/markdownify/node/48334?absolute=1 "link to 3 B L Media's Facebook") - [ email Share via email ](mailto:?subject=Leaders Attend Sustainability Forum Focused on Tools for Lasting Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene Services&body=ESG News from Global Environment & Technology Foundation (GETF) https://www.3blmedia.com/markdownify/node/48334?absolute=1 "Share via email") [Environment](/CSR-News/environment-0) # Leaders Attend Sustainability Forum Focused on Tools for Lasting Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene Services ##### Forum with over 150 Attendees from nearly 30 Countries Convened Around Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) Sustainability Jul 9, 2014 11:30 AM ET Campaign: [Global Water Challenge](/news/campaign/global-water-challenge) ![](https://3blaws.s3.amazonaws.com/styles/carousel_2x/s3/images/Sustainablewash.png) AMSTERDAM, THE NETHERLANDS, July 9, 2014 /3BL Media/ – Last week, representatives from local and national governments, multilateral organizations such as the World Bank’s Water and Sanitation Program and UNICEF, corporations, foundations, NGOs, and academia descended on Amsterdam for the fifth **WASH Sustainability Forum**. For two days, participants from around the globe shared knowledge and expertise on national and project level sustainability tools for water, sanitation, and hygiene. Around the world, 748 million people lack access to safe drinking water and the situation is equally grim for sanitation with 2.5 billion people without access to adequate sanitation facilities. Even more challenging is sustaining both the infrastructure and the changes in behavior; both are imperative to long-lasting impact. Unfortunately, as many as 40 percent of water and sanitation infrastructure programs fail prematurely, even more systems fail to deliver a minimum standard of service, and there are few proven approaches to sustaining behavior change. To drive the sector forward, the WASH Sustainability Forum brought together experts to discuss concrete approaches to address these sustainability challenges. Participants from Africa and Asia provided perspective to the reality on the ground in their countries, including the difficulty putting tools into practice and their experience applying sustainability approaches. “This \[Forum\] presents an opportunity for people who are in the field doing water, sanitation, and hygiene programs to showcase what is happening at the field level and find out approaches we can adopt to be able to ensure the systems we are putting in place are sustainable beyond the installation,” stated Charles Yeboah from Safe Water Network, based in Ghana. “The challenge is, how do we bring WASH sustainability tools to local governments?” remarked Dick van Ginhoven, Senior Advisor for Water and Sanitation for the Dutch Agency for Development Aid (DGIS). Representatives from DGIS, the German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ), the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development (DFID), and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) have been working with developing country governments to create commitments for improving WASH in their countries. The outcomes from this Forum have the potential to influence these national government processes including [Sanitation and Water for All](http://sanitationandwaterforall.org/) and the post-2015 [Sustainable Development Goals](http://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/?menu=1300). To learn more about the WASH Sustainability Forum, please visit . \### **About** [**SustainableWASH.org**](http://www.sustainablewash.org)**:** In 2010, over 40 organizations gathered at the first Sustainability Forum to discuss sustainable water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) services at scale. The following year, nearly 100 stakeholders from over 50 organizations came together to develop a common set of sustainability principles, which became the WASH Sustainability Charter. The momentum continued to build with new sustainability initiatives, learning forums, webinars, and presentations at global conferences. Sustainability has become a common topic as organizational practices and programmatic work shift from individual projects to sustainable services. In early 2012, individuals from a consortium of organizations (Aguaconsult, Global Water Challenge, IRC, and WASH Advocates) came together to build on previous work around sustainability and create SustainableWASH.org as a dynamic hub for the sustainability conversation. **Contacts:** Brian Banks Global Water Challenge (703) 379-2713 Elynn Walter WASH Advocates (202) 293-4002 Harold Lockwood Aguaconsult +44(0)1206 823329 Petra Brussee IRC +31 70 304 4043 [![GETF logo](/sites/default/files/Clients/5006102A_GETF_LogoTM_fa_rgb-01.jpg)](/profiles/global-environment-technology-foundation-getf) ### More from Global Environment & Technology Foundation (GETF) ###### [Global Water Challenge and the Starbucks Foundation To Improve Water Access and Boost Community Livelihoods in Tanzania Under New Collaboration](/news/global-water-challenge-and-starbucks-foundation-improve-water-access-and-boost-community) Nov 15, 2023 9:00 AM ET ###### [Global Water Challenge and Cargill Launch Impactful New Projects to Expand Access to Safe Drinking Water in Brazil](/news/global-water-challenge-and-cargill-launch-impactful-new-projects-expand-access-safe-drinking) Aug 23, 2023 9:00 AM ET ###### [New Collaboration and Investment Scales Up Innovation To Improve Vaccine Delivery Systems in Africa](/news/new-collaboration-and-investment-scales-innovation-improve-vaccine-delivery-systems-africa) Jan 20, 2023 11:30 AM ET ###### [Global Water Challenge and Cargill Support New Community Water Partnerships Across the United States](/news/global-water-challenge-and-cargill-support-new-community-water-partnerships-across-united) Dec 7, 2022 9:00 AM ET ###### [Global Water Challenge Recognized by the Hilton Global Foundation for Efforts To Improve Travel Destinations for Future Generations, Positively Impacting the Environment and Their Local Community](/news/global-water-challenge-recognized-hilton-global-foundation-efforts-improve-travel-destinations) Oct 21, 2022 11:00 AM ET ###### [Strengthening Public Health Systems Across Africa by Leveraging the Coca-Cola System](/news/strengthening-public-health-systems-across-africa-leveraging-coca-cola-system) May 23, 2022 9:00 AM ET ###### [Global Water Challenge Announces the Development of WHdx - an Open Data Exchange to Improve Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) in Healthcare Facilities](/news/global-water-challenge-announces-development-whdx-open-data-exchange-improve-water-sanitation) Nov 8, 2021 6:00 PM ET ###### [Global Water Challenge and AMREF Health Africa Launch Women and Girl-Focused Impact Partnership](/news/global-water-challenge-and-amref-health-africa-launch-women-and-girl-focused-impact-partnership) Oct 15, 2021 10:30 AM ET