RESEARCH 1 – USED DAIPERS (BABY NAPPIES) TO TRANSFORM THE ENVIRONMENT AND IMPROVE LIVELIHOOD SECURITY.

  • The choice of “wealth-building” was borne out of the fact that poverty is a serious barrier to the sustainable development campaign and there is the need to draw the attention of the public to the high economic potentials in the environmental improvement and Sustainable Development.
  • To convince the majority of people on this, and to serve as a useful and practical case study/ experiment with-in our environment, the RCE Minna initiated a small research on a very important aspect that, to our understanding, addresses the cross-cutting edge of ESD. The research is on the use of used baby nappies/diapers for agricultural / horticultural purposes. The use of water crystals in agriculture is not new, and is well documented. The recycling of used (cheap!) diapers for especially tree-planting and potted plants is practically unheard of here.
  • To us, any ESD project should not only address the environmental protection and conservation aspect but also raise the interest of the public in environmental issues by highlighting what is in it for the (and their children!). This project (research) which is under the flagship of the RCE candidate Minna is to show how used nappies (or diapers) can serve this purpose, helping save our environment and the people economically. The idea of this research is to utilize the water-absorbing crystals/powder found in diapers as water absorbents that can sustain plants and reduce water wastage. These water absorbent crystals are also called water crystals, super absorbent polymer, diaper polymer or polyacrylate). From preliminary work we conducted, we have seen that the efficiency of the nappies in retaining water for plant is very significant. This we think can go a long way in solving the ‘unsuccessful’ annual rituals of tree planting campaigns that never survive the next dry season due to water shortage. With this method you need less water for the plant.

WHAT IS THE BENEFIT OF THIS PROJECT

  • From the available records and our preliminary searches, used diapers, are a serious waste management problem due to their water retention capability. They can hardly get incinerated thus creating a serious problem in landfills and waste incinerators. By using the used diapers in the manner we are proposing, it can solve the environmental effect of the diapers in a very positive way. The environment benefits of using the water crystals found in the diapers, if well publicized can help the government in both its environmental sanitation campaigns and poverty alleviation of the public. Water crystals are not harmful to the soil or plants, while any organic waste in used diapers is very biodegradable and actually good for the plants.

RESEARCH 2 – NEW DESIGN FOR LOCAL CANOES

This is a project of Regional Centre of Expertise, RCE Minna, This introduces a new and simple design for local canoe in Nigeria and beyond, it is inspired by designs used in other part of the world that have proven to be safer and easier to adopt and adapt to our local rural context.

The Canoe is simple and safer, Cheap to make easy to modify.

  • The aim of this project by RCE Minna, is to reduce the risks associated to canoe transportation. It therefore also claims to save lives and properties lost mainly due to the poor safety design of our local canoes. This documentary therefore focuses on proposing a better alternative.
  • There is an increase in fear and concern for security and safety that affect economic and socio and political activity that involves crossing of water. With the introduction of life jackets, it was believed that some of the risks will be largely reduced. however their high cost, unavailability, cultural infringement and poor use have all hindered effectiveness of this life jacket.
  • Watch the Video below for more.