The Sanitation Learning Hub (previously known as the CLTS Knowledge Hub - new website coming soon) is pleased to announce that we have funding available to support a small number of early career practitioners and/or researchers to attend and present at the 42nd WEDC International Conference 7th-10th September 2020 at Loughborough University, UK. The funding will cover all costs related to conference registration, travel, accommodation and food.

The theme of this year’s conference is “Equitable and Sustainable WASH Services: Celebrating our learning from failure and success”. Those selected will be expected to write a paper and present it at the conference, attend the Sanitation Learning Hub’s Sharing and Learning Workshop on Sunday 6th September, help support the Hub’s exhibition stall throughout the week and write a blog about your experiences and reflections from the conference.

Focus/themes
Papers should focus on innovations, experience, ideas and learning contributing to further thinking about achieving equitable and sustainable WASH programmes at scale, sharing successes and failures of approaches and field experiences including lessons learnt, or introducing new knowledge or innovations. We are most interested on papers that focus on:

• How sanitation programmes have developed strategies to ensure equity and inclusion (particularly at scale).
• How strong and successful sub-national government leadership can result in area-wide ODF coverage which leaves no one behind.How to reach the hardest to reach/people and communities in challenging contexts.
• Building learning and adaptation into sanitation and hygiene programmes.
• Learning from failure in WASH.
• Community perspectives on climate change - how to harness local knowledge to develop climate resilient sanitation technologies and communities.
• How to create resilient WASH systems in fragile or post-emergency contexts.

Criteria for applicants:

• Applicant must be an early career WASH professional, with up to five years’ experience in the sector.
• Full papers must be submitted to WEDC using the WEDC template by 27th March 2020 and pass through their review process. A limited amount of support from the Hub will be given for this.
• Be available to travel to the UK 5th-10th September.
• Those from low- and middle-income countries are encouraged to apply.

If you are interested in applying, please send the following by 12th March 2020 to n.vernon@ids.ac.uk

• One sentence describing the topic of your paper (1 sentence)
• What is this paper based on (research, implementing experience etc) giving details of the country, organisation, time span etc that this paper will be referring to (100 words)
• What is the argument/most important point you wish to make with your paper (100 words)
• Why do you believe your paper is relevant and important in the current WASH context, and how it connects to the WEDC themes (100 words)
• Detailed outline/draft of the paper (approx. 2000 words). Bear in mind that the full paper length should be 2-6 pages.

Successful applicants will be provisionally accepted for funding support by the Sanitation Learning Hub but would still need to submit a final paper using the WEDC template by the 27th March 2020 and have the paper accepted by WEDC. Take a look at WEDC’s paper submission process and Call for Papers for more information. The Sanitation Learning Hub staff can support this process with editorial input.

If you have any queries regarding this process, please contact Naomi Vernon (n.vernon@ids.ac.uk).

Many good wishes
The Sanitation Learning Hub team