The Ripple Effect: Change Starts Small
- Kailee Carney
- Feb 14
- 4 min read
By: Kailee Carney
Interviewee: Sulman Muhanguzi
An integral part of bringing change is having the capacity to accept new ideas and act upon them. This is precisely what several villages in Uganda have done when introduced to the idea of adding water stations to their schools – an idea presented by TAP’s Uganda team. A member of this team, Sulman Muhanguzi (Sule), recounted how proud he was of the change he has been able to witness.
“The challenge there actually made me appreciate the water research more”.
Sule is an infectious disease specialist, with a focus on waterborne diseases. Furthermore, he is a biomedical laboratory technologist. Having these skills has allowed Sule to get his start in water quality testing, which eventually led to him meeting Joshua Kurtz (TAP CEO). In early 2022, Josh had brought water samples from a remote Ugandan community to Ndejje University, where Sule had been working as a water technician for the University. Sule ran the water samples Josh had requested and discovered the pH had a shockingly low pH balance of 2.7. This sparked an interest in Sule, and led to him wanting to know more about what was going on in these communities. He became curious about how people were collecting water, and more specifically, he wanted to know more about the water itself.
Soon after, Sule traveled with Josh to a town in southern Uganda to survey the water situation: “The challenge there actually made me appreciate the water-research more”. Sule would later express to Josh that he was developing a love for the path of water quality research. Sule ended up becoming a water researcher, with an emphasis on the water-borne illnesses that thrive in Uganda.
There are diseases such as Typhoid, Bilharzia, and E-coli that spread through contaminated water. But also, there are diseases like Malaria that are carried by mosquitoes that hatch in damp, wet environments. According to Sule, “All these diseases come from the poor usage and handling of this water.” Sule, the Operations and Laboratory Quality Manager at TAP’s Water Research and Development Center (WRDC) in Uganda, has a knack for identifying these diseases in water samples. However, the work done by TAP’s Uganda team isn’t done inside the laboratory alone – the team often goes into communities to train people and schools on water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) to avoid these water-borne illnesses.
“All these diseases come from the poor usage or handling of this water.”
Before working with TAP, Sule wasn’t very familiar with the troubles of water quality, and neither were the children at the partner schools in Uganda that TAP is impacting. Sule notes, “The children didn’t think the water was that important, when they actually had this huge burden of unsafe water.” Not only that, but there were misconceptions concerning the safety of the water in its correlation with the source. For example, people assumed that simply because water was coming from underground, that it was pure and safe. When in reality, this water had its own issues as well – whether it be in regards to pH balance or contamination. There are many ways boreholes can become contaminated over time, which makes water-testing a crucial part of sustaining clean water sources for communities.
“They actually didn’t think the water was that important, when they actually had this huge burden of unsafe water.”
To counter potential contamination and boost hygiene, Sule and the team implemented water purification stations along with handwashing stations known as Tippy-Taps. Sule reflects on the team’s work, “I’m very glad that we are able to go back in the field and share this information with people. And whenever you share it, you see that the community or the congregation is receiving it well. A lot of questions come, and you feel proud to answer them.” The students take what they learn home to make soap, or they take water from the purification stations. It is a ripple effect – acting upon this introductory process and implementing it to cultivate widespread change. Nearby communities hear about the work the team has been doing and the impact it has, and request they do the same for the schools there. “They identify us as the people who give their children safe water. These statements make us proud. They make us feel good. So I get this feeling that where I am is where I should be.”
TAP’s Uganda team has a connection that allows them to impact these communities, because each team member plays a unique but vital role. They work together and rely upon one another's strengths: “We are together.” It took time for the team to become a unified force, as all things do. There were obstacles to overcome to get where the team is today. Much like change, “We do what we can now, because of the capacity and the wish to do so much,” says Sule. You can only move forward one step at a time, one day at a time. Change is gradual, but it is immense and generational.
For Sule, the journey began by testing a water sample that was brought to him, which he identified as peculiar. That moment has now led him down a road, over the past few years, that has put him in a place where he’s now helping to lead the TAP Uganda team in making a difference in communities they are serving. The process began with curiosity, then evolved into a profound journey of discovery and impact. One small moment became a ripple effect of change.
Watch the full interview:
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