Directory: Local solutions

What does it solve?

The Aedes mosquito is the primary cause of the Aedes fever in Malaysia. When the mosquito population rises with the rainy season, mosquito fogging is often conducted using diesel as a carrier for the fogging machines, which leads to health risks to machine operators. This poses the need for a safer carrier to replace diesel. What can be more available than used cooking oil that often contaminates the drainage system?

The Aedes Biobased Fuel (ABBF) produced through the FRIM technology utilizes used cooking oil to produce active ingredients that act as carriers for mosquito fogging. This alternative to diesel has been reported to reduce environmental pollution, reduce toxic effects, does not sting the eyes, and does not produce uncomfortable smells. It is an environmentally-friendly alternative to diesel for mosquito fogging activities, especially during high dengue case outbreaks.

What does it solve?

The Orang Asli community face numerous challenges related to energy poverty. To charge mobile phones and light up homes, most had to purchase expensive batteries and/or petrol generators. The burning of such petrol generators would then contribute to air pollution, along with the disposal of batteries with other household trash. Many others were also unable to access adequate electricity and light at night. The All-Lights Village project thus tackles these issues by implementing a renewable energy solar system to combat this energy poverty issue.

Solar panels are installed in the homes of the Orang Asli villages, which may last 25 years or more. The solar batteries used can also be replaced at the end of the lifespan. For each village, a working committee is also established to ensure accountability, ownership, and sustainability of the initiative. Training sessions on the features, usage and maintenance of the solar system have been conducted in each village prior to installation. To date, 99 households have had the solar system installed.

What does it solve?

Malaysia, located on the equator, is subject to bouts of heavy rains amidst its near-constant bright sunshine year-round. The hot weather in Malaysia makes air conditioning an ideal in households, yet in Sarawak, which is littered with rural neighborhoods, access to constant reliable electricity is not a given. So, with plenty of access to rainwater and sunshine, and less reliable access to electricity, an opportunity arose to make use of Earth’s own resources as a way to cool homes.

The project capitalizes on the concept of evaporative cooling. An automated sprinkler system is supported by rainwater collected from Malaysia’s heavy rains, coupled with a solar panel, a temperature sensor, a water pump, and a mobile app to monitor and control the entire system. The product helps cool homes especially in rural areas which have erratic access to electricity. One system also costs only MYR150 (approx. USD 36.16), which is six times cheaper than installing an air-conditioning unit, making it even more attractive to those who may not be able to afford air conditioning in their households.

What does it solve?

Many isolated communities in Malaysia face issues accessing clean drinking water. With pipes from rivers, the water used by these communities are often murky and filled with sediment, yet conventional water filters cannot be installed due to the inadequate water pressure and electricity to run the pump. What more, most of these communities are unable to invest in quality water filter systems, which is another barrier from accessing clean drinking water.

The Efinity EZ Water Filter incorporates a simple innovation that can be fitted to a common soft drink bottle, connected to an air pump and filtering element. The air pump induces air pressure into the bottle to force the water out through the filtering element, which removes the dirt for water to pass through. Connected to a 0.02 micron UF membrane filter, the system is able to produce clean and safe drinking water at 3 liters a minute. Not only that, the product itself is also cheap, easy to maintain, and is suitable for those in rural communities.

What does it solve?

The Asher treats, reduces, destroys, eliminates and disposes of garbage at the place where it is located, which helps stop waste from polluting precious land, forests, rivers and oceans. When an Asher is deployed onto a site, it eliminates the need for garbage to be relocated, transported, and handled. The garbage is reduced to ash onsite, and the ash can then be repurposed for better use such as a soil conditioner or construction filler.

The Asher is a large machine that can be moved and deployed to areas such as at villages, beaches, islands, rivers and illegal abandoned dumpsites. Waste that is discarded into the machine is treated and reduced into ash onsite, which can then be repurposed for other uses. Operating the machine itself requires little skill or specialized technical experiences; it is easily operated, maintained, and handled by the community where it is located.