The open source washing machine project aims to rethink the way we wash clothes around the world, in accordance with economical, sociological, cultural and environemental aspects. Most of the people in this planet, mostly women, wash clothes by hand in harsh conditions related to poverty, lack of sanitation, water or energy.

The OSWash project seeks to develop different technologies for different climates and societal contexts. For instance, one country might have plentiful fresh water but less sunlight, whereas another environment might put water recycling at the top of the list of needs. Part of the problem is that many solutions that are cheap by our standards (for instance, using a Freeduino-based controller) still make the system too expensive for areas that could truly use a DIY washing machine. [via openMaterials]