Feliz Cumpleaños, Foro de Susana.

Congratulations to all who are responsible for launching and operating this community of communication, which is helping us to formulate, refine and disseminate sustainable sanitation.

One of the things that I most like is that each thread is stored and viewed separately (which was not the case in the also beloved Ecosanres Yahoogroup that served us for so long before), together with the new bits being sent to all interested parties.

It may be good to remind everyone how to sign up for just the bits they want.

I would like to make a suggestion to the members: Please try to give more feedback on the postings (especially in terms of that silent majority out there). For this, it may be good to have more buttons to click, in addition to "like", such as:
"please give us more information",
"I would like to replicate this",
"This is hard to believe",
"This is a great idea with enormous potential",
etc.

One last couple of questions:
After how much time does the forum log us out?
Why does it not tell us that we are logged out?

Best wishes and long live the forum,
Chris Canaday

SuSana Forum: Happy Birthday.

Best wishes for the wonderful work done by the forum team: Rahul Ingle, Christian Rieck, Trevor Surridge, Tina Eisele, Carola Israel, Conrad Thombansen; and of course, the evergreen, Elisabeth.

Since Trevor wants suggestions for the future course, here are just three – modest suggestions:

1. The name, SuSanA, is not quite attractive and is not easy in speaking. For example, we have names like: AIT, UNEP, UNICEF, WHO, etc. They are easy to mention, when you refer them. I suggest that the forum team may kindly think of a more high-sounding, easy-speaking name, for SuSanA.

2. Quite often, fresh graduates ask me for help in the design of sanitation systems (sewage treatment for rural, peri-urban and urban areas; the sewage conveyance system; and the onsite house-connected systems like septic tanks and soak pits). I refer this forum to them. However, their feedback is not encouraging. A typical reply is: I can’t find the desired information.

I wonder, if it could be possible to place guidance manuals in the SuSanA library. And the forum may also start a service like: “Ask an Expert,” where an expert answers questions.

3. Since, we don’t have visual contact with the members, the forum may hold once-a-year seminar or a workshop, at the SusanA headquarters, where interested members can come and take part in the event. This will require funding; the forum secretariat may contact donor agencies, like ADB, the World Bank, CIDA, DFID, etc for funding.

All the best for the future,

F H Mughal