The next sanitation breakthrough: Making reinvented toilets more affordable

Nearly half the world's population lacks access to safe sanitation. Read how we're developing solutions to meet community needs and build climate resilience.
The “A Better Way to Go: Toilets and the Future of Sanitation” exhibition at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation Discovery Center in Seattle, Washington, on April 28, 2024.
Toilets featured in the exhibition, A Better Way to Go: Toilets and the Future of Sanitation at the Gates Foundation Discovery Center in Seattle, Washington. ©Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation/Martina Machackova

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The exhibition “A Better Way to Go: Toilets and the Future of Sanitation” at the Gates Foundation Discovery Center in Seattle, Washington.

Take the Toilet Quiz

Can you get six out of six on the Toilet Quiz? Most people miss at least one!
Better Toilets, Better Students

How do better toilets lead to better attendance?

Enviro Loo, a toilet technology and water sanitation project in South Africa supported by the Gates Foundation, is helping to improve the lives of students.
A reinvented toilet: The waterless, solar-powered Eco-San Toilet, designed at Caltech, is pilot tested at an elementary school in Jiangsu Province, China. 

Advancing sanitation: 10 years of reinventing the toilet for the future

We already have the breakthrough technologies needed to provide safe and affordable sanitation services to the billions of people who are at risk of waste-borne diseases. Building markets and attracting businesses to this emerging sector are the next big challenges.
By Doulaye Kone Interim Director, Water, Sanitation & Hygiene, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation