Product Management · WASH · SDG 6

Building the world's most used open WASH platform

Petri Autio has led product development for mWater and Solstice since 2018, shaping the data infrastructure that governments, NGOs, and utilities rely on to deliver clean water and sanitation worldwide.

400K+
Platform Users
180+
Countries
8+ Years
Product Leadership
265+
Major Features Shipped
About

Product thinking meets global development

Petri Autio is the product leader behind mWater and Solstice. mWater is the world's most widely used open data management platform for water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH). Solstice is its sector-agnostic sibling, extending the same technology to health, education, agriculture, and other domains in low-resource settings. Since 2018, Petri has shipped 265+ major features across both platforms, serving governments, multilateral organizations, and community-based utilities on every continent.

His work combines technical product management with hands-on understanding of what it takes to deliver services in low-resource, low-connectivity environments. The features he ships address real constraints: offline functionality in rural Malawi, multi-language surveys for Ethiopian government programs, geospatial analysis for Ugandan water utilities, AI-powered translations, and encryption at rest for government security requirements.

These platforms underpin national WASH monitoring systems, large-scale donor programs, and frontline service delivery. His product decisions, from the Water Supply Planning Tool to workflows automation to 25+ portal languages, affect how millions of people access clean water and sanitation.

🌎

Global-Scale Platform

Led product for a platform used in 180+ countries with 400,000+ users, from community health workers to national ministers.

📊

SDG 6 Alignment

Product work directly supports UN Sustainable Development Goal 6: ensuring availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all.

⚙

Full-Stack Product Vision

End-to-end ownership spanning mobile data collection, GIS mapping, dashboard analytics, survey design, water system management, and AI integration.

🚀

AI Leadership

Authored and executing a multi-phase AI roadmap for the WASH sector, from AI-powered translation (shipped) to predictive planning and agentic AI.

Platform Leadership

Eight years, 265+ features: building sector infrastructure

As product lead for mWater and Solstice from 2018 to present, Petri has directed design, development, and rollout across every major area of the platform, from survey engines and GIS to AI translation and workflows.

mWater is used by organizations ranging from village-level water committees to national governments running WASH monitoring information systems. Solstice extends the same platform to sectors beyond WASH. Petri's product leadership has focused on making sophisticated data tools accessible to users with minimal technical training, working offline, in 25+ languages, at scales from a single community to an entire country's water infrastructure.

The platform encompasses mobile data collection, survey design, interactive mapping, dashboards, asset management, water supply planning, data analysis, workflows, and AI-powered capabilities, all within a single integrated system available free to users. 265+ shipped features from 2018 through 2026.

mWater platform
Free, open platform for WASH data management

Solstice platform
Sector-agnostic variant for health, education, agriculture
📋

Data Collection & Surveys

Transformed the survey engine from basic data collection to a sophisticated, multi-language, offline-capable system with AI translation, ranked questions, signatures, and workflows.

  • AI-powered survey translations 2025
  • Signature question type for field verification 2025
  • Workflows engine for automated multi-step processes 2025
  • Survey Design Imports and ranked questions 2022
  • Cascading question lists and reference questions 2019–2024
  • Deployment wizard, bulk image download, response recovery 2019–2025
  • Video embedding in survey instructions 2024
  • Survey response navigation, draft naming, and summary emails 2024–2025
  • Full expression language for validations 2018
📈

Dashboards & Visualization

Built a full business-intelligence layer with AI translation, customizable styling, XLSX export, and pre-caching. Non-technical WASH professionals can create and share professional analytics.

  • AI-powered dashboard translation 2024
  • Dashboard and console pre-caching for faster loads 2024
  • XLSX export retaining color formatting 2025
  • Renewed PDF export with orientation, margins, and sizing controls 2025
  • Fully customizable dashboard styles in Layouts 2024
  • Color conditions and frozen headers in table widgets 2022
  • Multi-source pivots from multi-choice questions 2023–2024
  • Visualization library migrated from c3.js to Billboard 2022
  • Universal search across all consoles, dashboards, maps, datagrids 2024
🌍

Maps & GIS

Developed geospatial capabilities including vector maps, radius tools, map translations, and point labels for infrastructure planning and spatial analysis at national scale.

  • Map translations for multilingual deployment 2026
  • Nearby Data (reworked spatial joins) for easier proximity analysis 2026
  • Radius and ruler tool for distance measurement 2025
  • Point data labels on maps 2025
  • New vector-based maps: faster, rotatable, tiltable 2022
  • Custom hoverovers with unlimited fields 2023–2025
  • Map quickfilters and hideable sidebars 2023
  • Population density layers for Africa, India, and dozens of countries 2019–2024
  • Updated boundaries for Angola, Ghana, Zimbabwe, Nepal, Uganda, Malawi 2018–2025
💧

Water Systems & Asset Management

Built a complete asset management and water system platform covering water point tracking, pipe networks, coverage mapping, and the Water Supply Planning Tool.

  • Water Supply Planning Tool 2025
  • Improved water system coverage mapping with full-screen editing 2025
  • Asset Management system with map layers and import 2022
  • Asset system overhaul, assets unified as sites 2023
  • Customizable water system navbar (Light Blues) 2024
  • Rebuilt pipe mapping for assets 2023
  • Forest sites and Agricultural sites 2023
  • Site approval workflows and deduplicator 2018–2019
  • 5x faster site search on mobile 2023
🔬

Data Analysis & Expressions

Built a powerful expression engine and analysis framework covering spatial queries, subqueries, calculated data sources, polygon area, and fiscal year functions.

  • Datagrid calculations 2026
  • Calculated Data Sources for scheduled, complex derived datasets 2025
  • Fiscal year/quarter expressions and advanced math functions 2025
  • Subqueries allowing joins between unconnected tables 2024
  • Minimum distance between locations calculation 2024
  • Polygon area calculation expression 2023
  • Row-level permissions for fine-grained data access 2022
  • Spatial joins and Population Within queries 2021
  • GeoJSON and Shapefile export from datagrids 2021
⚡

Platform, Security & Internationalization

Drove security, performance, and internationalization including encryption at rest, 2FA, 25+ portal languages, and Bootstrap 5 migration.

  • Two-Factor Authentication via email 2026
  • Encryption at rest for all cloud data 2024
  • 25+ portal languages including Bangla, Burmese, Khmer, Tetun, Tajik 2024–2025
  • Bootstrap 5 migration with full UI refresh 2022
  • PostgreSQL 14 upgrade 2022
  • Site and tile caching for road and satellite layers 2024
  • Training Center for structured platform learning 2022
  • Major Organizations feature upgrade 2025
  • 4x org loading, 10x deployment capacity, 6x image upload speeds 2018–2020
Product Changelog

A record of continuous platform evolution

Selected highlights from 265+ features shipped between 2018 and 2026 across the mWater Portal, Surveyor mobile app, and platform infrastructure.

2026
Feb 2026
New

Datagrid calculations & universal data source search

Datagrid calculations added. Data source search now looks across all source types. Spatial Join reworked to "Nearby Data" for easier proximity analysis.

Jan 2026
New

Two-Factor Authentication & map translations

Optional 2FA via email for all accounts. Map translations added for multilingual deployments.

2025
Nov 2025
New

Workflows & signature questions

Released workflows engine for automated multi-step processes. Signature question type. View and restore deleted survey responses (90-day window).

Aug 2025
New

Calculated Data Sources & new geospatial expressions

Create complex derived datasets with scheduled processes for dramatically faster performance. New geospatial expression functions.

Jun 2025
New

13 new Portal languages & radius/ruler tool

Bangla, German, Japanese, Kinyarwanda, Sindhi, Urdu, Nepali, Burmese, Italian, Khmer, Luganda, Tetun, and Vietnamese. Mobile map radius and ruler tool for measuring distances.

May 2025
Improved

Water.org upgrades & renewed PDF export

Water.org funded Portal upgrades: survey conditionality, previews, question code generation, charts. Renewed PDF export with full control over orientation, margins, and sizing. Map provider changed to Stadia.

Apr 2025
Improved

Major Organizations upgrade & XLSX export

Major overhaul of the Organizations feature. Tables and pivots now export to XLSX retaining color formatting. Updated Resource Center interface.

Jan 2025
New

AI survey translations & Water Supply Planning Tool

AI-powered survey translation. Water Supply Planning Tool. Updated datagrid infrastructure with multi-select and bulk operations.

2024
Nov 2024
New

AI dashboard translation & video in surveys

Translate dashboards manually or with AI. YouTube video embedding in survey instructions. Portal translated into 6 languages.

Sep 2024
Improved

Customizable dashboard styles & universal search

Full dashboard style customization in Layouts. Search bar now searches across all consoles, dashboards, maps, and datagrids. Map scale added to mobile.

Jun 2024
New

Encryption at rest & dashboard pre-caching

Data encrypted at rest for maximum security. Dashboards and consoles pre-cached for faster loading. Multi-source pivot tables. Filipino language added.

Feb 2024
New

Subqueries & customizable water system pages

Subqueries enable joins between otherwise unconnected tables. Water system managers can customize their navbar, turning the water system page into a utility homepage. Arabic language added.

2023
Oct 2023
Improved

Asset system overhaul & pipe mapping rebuild

Assets unified as sites in the back-end. Asset pages overhauled. Pipe mapping for assets rebuilt from scratch.

Jul 2023
New

Custom map hoverovers & dynamic pivot tables

Custom hoverovers displaying up to three fields. Pivot rows and columns dynamically generated from multi-choice questions.

May 2023
Improved

5x faster site search & map quickfilters

Unified site list search up to 5x faster. Map quickfilters and hideable sidebars. Forest and Agricultural site types.

Feb 2023
New

Asset question type & new navbar

Asset question type for surveys. New navbar with dropdown menus. Luganda language added.

2022
Sep 2022
New

Asset Management & PostgreSQL 14

Full Asset Management system with map layers, import, and hover details. PostgreSQL upgraded to 14. Javanese and Sundanese languages added.

May 2022
Improved

Vector maps & Billboard.js migration

New vector-based maps: faster, with rotation and tilt. Visualization library migrated from c3.js to Billboard. Popout chart labels.

Apr 2022
New

Ranked questions & survey design imports

Ranked question type. Survey design imports. Direct cell editing in survey response Detailed View. Matrix auto-visualization.

Jan 2022
Improved

Bootstrap 5 migration & Training Center

Full UI framework upgrade to Bootstrap 5. Row-level table permissions. Training Center for structured learning. Tile-based app homepage.

2021
Jul 2021
New

GeoJSON/Shapefile export & documents

GeoJSON and Shapefile export from datagrids. Documents feature. Text to number expression.

Jan 2021
New

Spatial joins, population queries & collapsible legends

Find locations within specified distances. Estimate populations from GPS coordinates. Trend lines for charts. Collapsible map legends and layer switcher.

2020
Nov 2020
Improved

6x faster image upload & responsive layouts

Dramatic mobile upload improvement. Responsive dashboard layouts for mobile, tablet, desktop. Improved printing and PDF. Multilingual PDF export.

Aug 2020
New

Shapefile import, UTM coordinates & embed HTML

Import shapefiles directly. UTM coordinate support. Generate embeddable HTML for external websites. 10K-row custom tables.

2019
Nov 2019
New

Cascading questions & server migration

Cascading question lists. Server migration to UpCloud with PostgreSQL 11. Updated population density layers and country shapefiles.

May 2019
New

Water systems, pipes & deployment wizard

Dedicated water system pages. Pipe mapping. Site approval workflows. Deployment wizard. Hex/square grid maps. Resource Center. Population density layers for Africa.

2018
2018
New

Foundation year: 34 features shipped

Deduplicator, custom config builder, expression language, linked quickfilters, map lock, threshold lines, pivot table sorting, GDPR compliance, 4x org loading speed, 10x deployment capacity. Languages: Nepalese, Amharic, Kinyarwanda.

WASH & SDG Credentials

Deep sector expertise, not just tech skills

Product leadership in WASH technology demands understanding the sector as deeply as the software. Petri brings both.

SDG 6: Clean Water & Sanitation

mWater's platform directly enables progress toward Sustainable Development Goal 6 by providing the data infrastructure for:

  • National WASH monitoring information systems (MIS) used by governments to track coverage and service levels
  • Post-implementation monitoring (PIM) surveys that verify whether water infrastructure remains functional
  • Water quality data management from laboratory testing to field screening
  • Asset management databases tracking hundreds of thousands of water points at national scale
  • Equity analysis identifying underserved communities and service gaps

Conference Presentations & Workshops

Petri has presented at and built applications for major WASH sector conferences, directly engaging with practitioners, policymakers, and researchers:

  • Colorado WASH Symposium: conference apps (2019, 2020) and presentations
  • UNC Water and Health Conference: conference app (2018) and sessions
  • AfWA (African Water Association): presentations on data-driven WASH
  • Multiple workshops on mWater platform adoption for government WASH programs

Government & Institutional Deployments

Product decisions shaped by deep engagement with national-scale deployments and donor partnerships:

  • Ethiopia CO-WASH program, one of the largest WASH monitoring programs in Africa
  • Malawi national water point database, 120,000+ water points tracked
  • Uganda RUMIS (Rural Water MIS), district-level water service monitoring
  • Water.org partnership, funded Portal upgrades for survey conditionality, previews, and charts (2025)
  • 25+ portal languages supporting deployments from Indonesia to Haiti to Tajikistan
  • Updated admin boundaries for Angola, Ghana, Zimbabwe, Nepal, Uganda, Malawi
  • Encryption at rest and Two-Factor Authentication for government security requirements

AI Strategy & Shipped AI Features

Authored an AI roadmap for the WASH sector and is actively shipping against it:

  • AI-powered survey translation, shipped January 2025
  • AI-powered dashboard translation, shipped November 2024
  • Workflows engine for automated multi-step processes, shipped November 2025
  • Calculated Data Sources for complex derived datasets, shipped August 2025
  • Roadmap extends to predictive planning, water resource modeling, and agentic AI
  • View the interactive AI Roadmap
Other Work

Beyond WASH

Side projects spanning philosophy visualization, game development, and interactive art.

Hegel's Science of Logic visualization

Hegel's Science of Logic in D3.js

Interactive visualization for exploring this highly structured work of philosophy. Featured on Philosophy Matters and OpenCulture.com.

 Spinoza's Ethics force graph

Spinoza's Ethics in D3.js

A directed interactive force-graph mapping the logical connections in Spinoza's Ethics.

 Steampunk radio controller

The Winds of Venus

Steampunk zeppelin game with custom force-feedback controller crafted from a vintage radio. Arduino, servos, LEDs, and Bluetooth.

 Health blog

Health Blog

Documenting experiences with cancer, recovery, and novel treatments.

 Conference apps

More Projects

Conference apps, game jams, Python utilities, data visualizations, and more.