It all started after tractors clearing land for the construction of a new dorm at the Maseno school near Kisumu encountered pit latrines. During the building process faeces started leaking into a nearby stream.
“There was uproar from the local community,” Mwasaru recalls. “It was the only source of fresh water, and nobody wants faeces in their water.”
At the time, the school was using firewood in the kitchen. Forests around the school were being eroded by the school’s growing demand for timber, and smoke was damaging the lungs and eyes of the cooks.
Mwasaru came up with a plan to solve the problem by using human waste to power the gas stoves — all whilst keeping up with homework and exams.
“There were some people who thought it would not work — the attitude was very negative,” says Mwasaru, who is now 17. “We came up with workshops in the school and in the community to convince people, and the response became more positive.”
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But Kenya and Rwanda aren’t the only African countries finding uses for human waste.
In Nigeria, three teenagers came up with a power generator that produces enough electricity for six hours. The whole thing is powered with pee.
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