In areas like Khayelitsha, Cape Town, where proper sanitation is a luxury, many families share a single makeshift toilet, leading to health risks like waterborne diseases. Dr. Shima Holder, a chemical engineer from Barbados, has helped develop a groundbreaking solution, which addresses this and other issues.
SaniHive is an innovative approach to sanitation, built on a modular, honeycomb-inspired design that maximizes space in crowded urban areas. What sets it apart is that it does not rely on traditional sewage systems or electricity. Instead, it processes waste onsite by converting urine into fertilizer and faeces into compost, all without using water. This makes it perfect for water-scarce areas, reducing the risk of contamination and disease.
Beyond solving a critical sanitation problem, SaniHive also has an economic impact. By creating valuable byproducts like phosphorus-rich fertilizer, it offers local communities an opportunity to recycle waste and generate income.
“The uniqueness in our solution is that the toilet hub is not connected to a conventional sewage network, needs no electricity, and can be scaled up or customised according to the community’s needs and natural design,” Shima explained.
“Furthermore, profits can be made from waste recycling, as this system separates the urine and faeces within the toilet while using no water. We also hope that this innovation would empower the communities by creating employment, as local people can transport the waste to mini-treatment plants where high-end products could be created. Phosphorous recovery from urine for fertiliser is one example of this.”
Dr. Holder was the only Barbadian selected and the sole female on her team, which was aptly named Savvy Sanitation Solutions. Their innovation was developed and presented at the 2018 UNLEASH global innovation lab in Singapore held from 30 May to 6 June 2018. It went on to win the Gold Award related to SDG 6 – clean water and sanitation, and the Global Scalability Potential award.
What makes SaniHive particularly impactful is its ability to transform the way we think about sanitation in underserved areas. It is not just a temporary fix, but a sustainable solution that empowers communities, creates jobs, and improves public health. For Dr. Holder, it is all about making a lasting difference where it is needed most.
“A lot of the times as engineers, we feel like we know what the problem is and we create a technology to solve the problem,” the former Lodge School student said. “But we don’t really know unless we go into the community and understand what the community needs … We took at least two days to write the problem statement because every time we thought we had a good [one], the experts were drilling us, asking us if we were sure that was what the user needs.”
The chemical engineer credits mentors Dr. Emma Smith and Dr. Srinivasa Popuri for their assistance along her educational journey. She pursued a master’s in Civil and Environmental Engineering (specialisation in Water and Environmental Engineering) in England, and was awarded a PhD in Water and Environmental Engineering at Da-Yeh University in Taiwan.
“I was lucky to have had really good lecturers at The UWI … They always pushed me to do more. I never thought of doing a masters, but Dr. Smith told me she did her masters in England and encouraged me to do so as well. After that was done, Dr. Popuri reached out to me about doing a PhD in Taiwan,” Shima stated.
“The connections I made with lecturers at The UWI [led me to this point] because I never imagined myself doing a masters or PhD, and definitely those things led me to where I am today [and to my] working in Sweden. My only plan was to go to UWI and try my best …”
Dr. Holder hopes to continue her mission to create solutions that make a lasting impact.
