Writing about water shortages and access to clean, potable water can be frustrating, particularly in the wake of the Copenhagen debacle modest achievement. According to WHO, almost one fifth of the world's population live in areas where the water is either scarce or vanishing. One quarter of the global population also live in developing countries that face water shortages due to a lack of infrastructure to fetch water from rivers and aquifers. The lack of political will is palpable.
This is grim news indeed. However in this diary I would like to sing the praises of one man and his valiant efforts to bring clean water to some of those who need it most.
Btw, pic above is from Ezio Burani. It does convey the message.
Meet Scott Harrison, a one time nightclub promoter and party organizer from NYC, whom upon having an epiphany back in 2004, left the glittering world of Manhattan-by-night to found Charity Water, a non-profit organization which funds projects that include the installation and rehabilitation of freshwater systems, as well as the formation and training of local water committees who are empowered to maintain the systems, and promote better sanitation and hygiene for some communities in Ethiopia, Malawi, India and Bangladesh. Check this vid, recorded last month:
How's that for a life change? Click on his name and for $20 a month you can provide water for someone in need for 20 years. I have done it for two reasons: first, it's badly needed, and secondly since it is funded by private donors, foundations and sponsors help pay for the everyday costs of running the organization: their flights to Africa, staff, office, even paperclips and ink toner. Every penny of my (and hopefully yours) donation goes straight to the field to fund direct project costs.
Scott writes:
Five billion of us turn on the tap each day and water gushes out safe and clean. We don't walk miles for it, and it doesn't make us sick. Yet right now, more than 1.1 billion people on earth don’t have access to safe water. Bad water and a lack of basic sanitation causes 80% of all sickness and disease, killing more people every year than all forms of violence, including war. Every day, millions of women and children walk more than three hours to fetch dirty water. Fair? Of course not. So let’s do something about it. Join us. Help us bring clean water and basic sanitation into impoverished communities, transforming the lives of men, women and children just like us. Together, we can make a healthier, safer world. Together, we can save lives. Only $20 can give someone clean water for 20 years. Please help.
His message is consistent with the map above, and the one below.
Most of you haven't thought much about water today. I'll bet you're less than 100 feet away right now from a tap that can dispense free and clean water. But tap water might not be something you drink often. Many of you will have bottled water with you, perhaps on your desk or in your handbag. In fact, if you live in America and are like most, you'll use an average of 150 gallons today without even thinking about it. But what if you were born somewhere else? What if you were born in Liberia, West Africa? What would water mean to you today?
Another way of helping Scott in his endeavor is to join Changents, another non-profit organization which connects people around the world to worthy causes. I have joined recently, it's free and you get to meet some really wonderful folks who strive to make our planet a better place.
BTW, if you are googling Scott Harrison, there are two famous Scott(s) on the map, our guy in this story and the other one is a boxer with a decidedly shady way at looking at life.
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