Introducing our guide to Ecological Sanitation with reuse in camps and settlements

In a world grappling with climate crises, mass displacement, and dwindling resources, how we manage human waste in camps and settlements has never been more critical. This new guide from Re-Alliance Ecological Sanitation With Reuse in Camps & Settlements, offers a transformative approach that promotes sanitation as a tool for regeneration.

What Makes This Guide Different?

Too often, the full reuse benefits of ecological sanitation (EcoSan) are not realised in humanitarian settings because of the perceived 'intensive management' it requires. We argue that we can no longer afford to waste the powerful resources generated: compost, urine fertiliser, and cooking fuel.

It makes a compelling case for reuse—safe, dignified, and community-driven reuse. There are practical steps for planning for reuse, showing how this can be planned for from the start of a sanitation project.

In times of crisis, we must not discard what can be used to restore. Human waste, properly treated, can replenish soils, grow crops, regenerate forests, and reduce dependency on external inputs like fuel and fertiliser.

Practical, Proven, and People-Centered

The guide is rich with case studies of proven practical technologies—like Arborloos, Fossa Alternas, Urine Diversion Dry Toilets, and Biogas Systems—each evaluated for use in camps and settlements.

It distills the criteria for a regenerative response into three simple guiding principles:

• Keep it simple – design low-tech, passive systems that can be maintained locally.

• Keep it going – build systems that last, even with reduced external funding.

• Keep it growing – use outputs to grow food, fuel, trees, and ecosystem services.

  
  
  

  

  
  
  

A Tool for Regeneration

This isn’t just about waste. It’s about reversing the degradation often seen in overburdened landscapes. It’s about turning camps into catalysts for ecological repair, where sanitation is linked with reforestation, agriculture, and soil health.

By rethinking waste as a resource, and sanitation as an opportunity, this guide invites a reimagining of humanitarian response. It aligns with Nature-based Solutions (NbS) and shows that with the right approach, sanitation can do more than prevent disease—it can build hope, resilience, and ecosystems.

Read the guide here

Ecological Sanitation With Reuse In Camps and Settlements (1).pdf (Document (A4)) (3).pdf

Download PDF • 17.75MB

We would love to know your thoughts on this guide. Do email us via our contact page if you have any questions, suggestions or examples of ecological sanitation with reuse to take forward the conversation.