Sixty percent of the global population handwashes their clothing in rivers, streams, and buckets. While living and volunteering in a remote village in India, Nav Sawhney witnessed firsthand the immense burden this chore placed on women like his neighbor Divya. Determined to find a solution, Nav returned to the UK, founded The Washing Machine Project (TWMP), and created the manual "Divya" washing machine. However, TWMP faced challenges scaling its impact to reach more people who desperately needed it.
Meanwhile, in the United States, the Whirlpool Foundation had developed a similar off-grid manual washing machine, recognizing that this same laborious task deepens social inequities and stunts personal advancement. With the vast resources of Whirlpool engineers, the Foundation was well-equipped to produce these machines yet struggled to find an effective distribution method.
The subsequent, serendipitous collaboration between TWMP and the Whirlpool Foundation is yielding incredible impact at scale. We invited Nav Sawhney, Founder of TWMP, and Deb O'Connor, Managing Director of the Whirlpool Foundation, to speak about the origin of their "one plus one equals three" relationship, their human-centric approach to Whirlpool employee engagement, and the significant “unlock” their work together will have on women and girls worldwide, including Nav’s friend Divya and her family.
Listen for insights on:
- The “Washing Divide” and its impact on inhibiting economic growth and social inequality
- Introducing employees to a social issue and inviting them to be part of the solution
- Balancing empathy and action when working directly with beneficiaries
Resources + Links:
- Deb O’Connor’s LinkedIn
- Nav Sawhney’s LinkedIn
- Sustainable Brands: How Whirlpool, Washing Machine Project Are Bridging ‘the Global Washing Divide’
- Meet the Divya Washing Machine
- (00:00) - Welcome to Purpose 360
- (00:13) - Whirlpool
- (02:02) - Meet Deb and Nav
- (04:51) - Washing Machine Project
- (05:48) - First Reaction
- (08:11) - Global Washing Divide
- (09:29) - Design
- (11:44) - The Name
- (15:44) - Kolams
- (16:46) - Insights to These Relationships
- (17:51) - Employee Involvement
- (19:00) - Committment
- (20:20) - Reception
- (22:34) - Number of Machines
- (23:42) - Purpose in an AI-Driven World
- (25:03) - Final Thoughts
- (26:49) - Wrap Up
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