ISF recently visited its CSO partners Plan International Indonesia in Kupang and WaterAid Timor-Leste in Dili and Liquica. During these visits, we discussed how the CSO Water for Women projects are working to equitably improve WASH access in their communities, plans for how our research can strengthen the projects’ considerations of climate change impacts, and strategies for communicating future research findings to maximise impact.

In Indonesia, ISF and Plan International Indonesia discussed the ‘WASH and beyond – Transforming Lives in Eastern Indonesia’ project. We discussed the aim and outcomes of the project and how climate change affects these. We also met with local government authorities, researchers, and practitioners working in the space of climate change adaptation or WASH to learn from past experiences and ongoing work in Eastern Indonesia.

Plan Indonesia and ISF project team

Plan Indonesia and ISF project team

In Timor-Leste, ISF and WaterAid Timor-Leste discussed how climate change affects WaterAid’s ‘Beyond Inclusion: realising gender transformational change and sustainable WASH systems’ project and its aims and outcomes. We also made a trip to a rural community in the Liquica district to get a first-hand look at a WaterAid-supported rural water supply project.

The visits resulted in the successful development of a Joint Research Plan and a Communication, Engagement and Pathway to Impact Plan for the Climate Change Response for Inclusive WASH research project. These plans articulate our joint vision and strategies with CSO partners for developing climate change impact assessment information and tools that will support equitable and inclusive WASH outcomes under a changing climate.