#jack sim

Clean India Could Fail

Clean India Could Fail Modi’s toilet campaign could go down the drain, as stigma and entrenched norms threatens Clean India drive. Above: WTO’s Jack Sim during World Toilet Day, delivering his address and urges the need to vastly improve sanitation and perception of its use in India. Image Credit: World Toilet Organisation | Singapore. A pay per use toilet as seen in Malleswaram, India. In many…

Toilets 'R' Him: Jack Sim Wants A Potty In Every Pad

Jack Sim's career is in the toilet — literally.

The 57-year-old Singaporean made his fortune in the construction industry when he was in his 40s. And he wanted to make a meaningful contribution to the world.

Sim tried his hand at saving historic buildings and answering phone calls from people in distress, but neither felt right. "I was looking for something that was neglected and able to serve large number of people," he says.

That's when he came across a quote from Singapore's then-prime minister in a news article. "He said we should measure our graciousness according to the cleanliness of our public toilets," Sim says.

Sim had long bemoaned the sad condition of public toilets in his native country: "At first I was just trying to solve Singapore's dirty toilet issue, and then I realized that in the world, there are a lot of people who don't even have toilets."

So in 2001, he founded the WTO — the World Toilet Organization, that is. It's a nonprofit coalition of leaders from more than 40 countries who try to come up with innovative solutions to tackle the world's sanitation and water problems.

To commemorate World Toilet Day, what better way than to sit down with the man who now proudly claims the name Mr. Toilet — and who did in fact sit on a toilet (in a cold and windy field) for our photo.

The interview has been edited for length and clarity.

How do you get people to talk about toilets?

When we make people laugh, they listen. Although the subject is very embarrassing, it's become very palatable. The only prerequisite was that I could make people laugh and I could laugh at myself. When they laugh at me, it's fine. Once I got myself psychologically adjusted to that, then everything works.

The toilet is like sex. Long ago it was very difficult to talk about sex, and then Hugh Hefner came along with Playboy magazine and legitimized sex. Now people are singing about making love in songs and all that. So I think eventually we'll be able to sing about going to the toilet in a very natural and enjoyable way. I think we have to gentrify this taboo subject by first moving from taboo to funny to sexy and then to normal.

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Can’t You Hear Can’t You Hear the Thunder

At the Rotary International Convention in Sydney, I was lucky to attend a lively discussion about shit. Because Jack Sim says, “When we’re children, our parents tell us not to talk about shit.”

Jack Sim is known around the world as Mr. Toilet, founder of the World Toilet Organization. His mission is simple: give every person on earth a pot to shit in.

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I’m grateful to been in such situations many times this year - the chance meeting with some of your “dream dinner party guests”? I had the pleasure to run into Mr Jack Sim, an Ashoka fellow and the TIME magazine HERO (Environment), 2008. Just one word to describe his ideologies - Inspirational. Here are a few rather unconventional ones I’d absolutely love to share:

1)    Folks replicating my ideas? Sure, I LOVE TO SEE THAT! It’s such a compliment.

Bigger picture – great Impact cannot be achieved unless everyone comes together to create a difference. It is excellent that more individuals are inspired by his ideas; he cannot change the world alone! Everyone, together can. I strongly agree that more number of people with the common belief and an underlying passion to achieve the same need to come together.

2)    On Typhoon Haiyan – close to 6000 people died in this event and monetary support in the billions was sent in a very short time span - we are grateful for their efforts. But many more children and adults die due to poor sanitation every day, where is the money?

Bigger Picture – I couldn’t agree more. Why is it that we wait for a calamity to strike to make us compassionate individuals and fight to support the cause? Why can’t we collaborate such efforts for issues like sanitation and clean water consistently; saving many more lives.

3)    On having to work with corrupt politicians- It doesn’t matter if the politician is corrupt, do not associate to the corrupt side of the politician. Yes, he might be doing something to gain votes, but sanitation is still a good thought for the public. As long as you as an individual can make a difference to lives.

Bigger Picture – remember the impact you want to achieve and try shifting the focus to the ‘good’ in people. Everything else that follows is just the “noise” your mind could do without!

4)    On doing what you love - Doing a business is hard, doing a social business is even harder - mainly because people start questioning you and your real intent! But, more importantly, remember what you really want in your heart and then no matter what anyone else says, let it not affect your drive.

Bigger Picture – Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish. Know your conscience is clear, know what you want to achieve through your initiatives and strive to do more! There’s a lot to do in this world, many to help!

Addressing the Global Sanitation Challenge through Impact Investment