Pioneering Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene Research

At WASH Research, we are dedicated to advancing knowledge in the critical fields of water, sanitation, and hygiene. Our team of experts conducts comprehensive academic studies that address global challenges in these sectors. We strive to innovate solutions that enhance health, improve quality of life, and promote sustainable development. Our commitment to rigorous research and collaboration drives us to make a meaningful impact in communities worldwide.

Meet Our Team

Our dedicated researchers excel in advancing knowledge in Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene.

Hannah Leigh BSc, MA


My research focuses on water violence and the hidden harms that shape people’s relationships with water. Rather than just treating physical violence as an isolated event, I examine how it can be understood as a visible symptom of wider problems, including unequal access, fragile infrastructure and governance failures.
Using Nepal as a case study, my PhD explores how lived experiences, social structures and water governance interact, and how less visible forms of violence can build over time. My work combines violence theory with empirical research to examine how water violence is experienced, normalised and contested.

Alpha Koroma BSc, MA, PhD

PhD in urban informality and wellbeing from Loughborough University (Water-WISER CDT). My research examined the lived realities of informal waste pickers in Freetown, Sierra Leone, focusing on how they navigate hazardous work, stigma, faith, social relations and efforts to sustain/construct wellbeing within the city’s informal waste system.
I'm now building on this, developing my interest in urban studies and waste management more broadly and looking to extend it comparatively across West Africa. I'm open to conversations on research collaborations, consultancy opportunities and roles in development/humanitarian programming.