IRHA
We work with passionate people, experts and young talents. We believe that rainwater harvesting has a key role to play in mitigating land degradation, biodiversity loss and the risks associated with extreme weather events. IRHA is an NGO registered by Swiss law, with UN ECOSOC status.
Secretariat
Marc Sylvestre - Executive Director of IRHA
Graduated from a Master in Urban Development (IUG, 2007) and MSc in Water and Environmental Management (WEDC-Loughborough, 2017), Marc has managed numerous development projects in Lebanon, Haiti and Nepal. He participates in the strategic and operational development of the organization (strategy 2018-2020), contributes to the development of projects and seeks funding along with the framing in terms of monitoring-evaluation-impact of the activities implemented.
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Anne Marie Khetib - Head of Admin and Finance
Administrative and financial director of the World Scout Bureau (WSB) for 9 years, she holds the same responsibilities within our NGO and ensures that our organization, recognized by public utility, implements the required procedures, in terms of good governance and financial management (Swiss GAAP FER 21).
> LinkedIn
Rachel Hosein Nisbet - Director of Communications & Advocacy
Rachel's expertise lies in understanding the complex intersection of cultural practices and environmental processes. Scientific field experience in Svalbard, Britain, Venezuela and the Swiss Alps gives Rachel first-hand knowledge of multiple, terrestrial biomes. Research into river narratives that cultivate readers’ practical wisdom shows her this listening attention is essential to foster socio-ecological wellbeing.
Rachel holds two PhDs, in the geosciences and the environmental humanities, respectively. Her Indo-Trinidadian heritage reinforces her commitment to evolving integrated, socio-ecological practices to improve the capabilities of low-income communities.
Florian Bielser - PM Rainwater Harvesting - Agroforestry
Florian Bielser is a twenty-six-year-old MSc student of environmental engineering at the EPFL, Switzerland. He is currently on placement as an IRHA project manager in Fatick region (Senegal).
Blandine Barthod - PM IWRM/ Watershed management
Graduated from a B.A. in International Relations and a Master in Environmental Sciences, Blandine is interested in addressing water related issues. She is currently monitoring the management of the Blue School programmes as well as launching the “rain communities” project in the area of Pokhara (Nepal).
Committee
Han HEIJNEN - President
Jean Bernard Rebord - Treasurer
Clara Ariza - Secretary
Salvano BRICENO - Member
Bob BOULWARE - Member
Margarita Pacheco - Member
2018-2020 IRHA Strategy
The business plan specifies our working model, how we intend to position our organization among others, the added value obtained by collaborating with IRHA and its sustainability.
The financing planning describes the investment needed to realize our strategy.
These documents are available upon request for our donors and partners.> Contact
Monitoring, Evaluation and Impact
The impact of our actions since 2002: + 600'000 children and women benefiting daily from a drinking water resource, + 100 rainwater collection tanks, + 200 school gardens, 54 schools and 9 health centers in 14 countries of intervention.
The 2019 Annual Report (summary) is on the making!
The 2019 Annual Report will present the achievement of IRHA programmes and initiatives towards communities on rainwater harvesting management, climate resilient agriculture, ecosystems management and evidence based advocacy/policy.
An ecosystem of 60+ organizations
Our projects
The Blue Schools
This program aims to educate school children to the management of water, sanitation and good hygiene practices, but also the recovery of waste to make blue schools, incubators of social change "
Rain, Forest and People
Climate change requires us to rethink our management methods and practices. This project aims to build community resilience by combining better management of water resources, trees and soil.
Rain Community
Changes in rainfall patterns in the mid-hillls of Nepal disrupting the subsistence agriculture. The project aims to implement better water resource management at the watershed level to promote water infiltration.
> Read more
Emergency Rain
The "Emergency Rain" project aims to provide access to clean water and restore dignity for those who have nothing, the forgotten from water services, who live on the outskirts of our cities and have to fight every day to access even water for drinking.
Workshops: Water and the City
The objective of this workshop is to bring school children to become aware of their environment, and to be able to implement durable, sustainable solutions in their city.
Workshop: in the rain ink
The aim of this "In the rain ink" project is to transform the representations of rainwater seen as a nuisance, poetically using the urban environment in which we live.