Charity: Water

I like to stay really hydrated all of the time.  I think I learned this habit from my high school running days in which I would be at risk of passing out if I didn't drink water habitually.  I am lucky to be from America where I never really run into the issue of having to drink dirty drinking water.  My husband and I even have a Brita faucet filter that allows us to have filtered drinking any water any time we like.  We both take advantage of this every day.
Charity: Water is a really awesome nonprofit organization that aims to bring clean drinking water to those in developing nations without access to it.  The organization sends all donations it earns to fund these water projects.  The organization proves this by providing pictures and GPS coordinates on its web site to show you the progress on these projects.

www.charitywater.org

One might think that it can't be that difficult to find clean drinking water in the world.  Studies show that about 1 in 9 of us  will not have access to clean water.  These individuals are drinking water that is likely to make them sick and is contaminated.  The web site states that diseases and contamination from this unsafe water kills more people that war and violence do.  Children are at the highest risk for death because their bodies are unable to fight the symptoms that come from water that has been contaminated (diarrhea, dysentary, etc.)  About 30,000 people die every week from unsafe drinking water.  About 9 out of 10 of these deaths are young children under the age of 5.  Many of these diseases are preventable if there could be access to clean water, hygiene and water supply.
I'll be honest with you--I knew there was an issue with water being unsafe in developing countries.  However, 30,000 deaths a week!?  I am astonished to hear this statistic.  This is incredibly sad and I hope you are with me and hope to put a stop to this problem.  This many children should not be dying before they reach age six because of contaminated water.  Water is essential to life--we can help make this better.
The website also has some more staggering statistics that I encourage you to educate yourself on.  Did you know that in Africa alone, people spend 40 billion hours walking for water.  Clean water means safety for these women and children.  It also means more time being able to help with the family.  Clean water means more than just being able to keep hydrated--it means life for these people.

www.charitywater.org

Check out Charity: Water and help them reach their goal of funding 100 wells for the holidays.  You can donate to the cause.  One other way to get involved is to give up your birthday--allow others to donate to this cause rather than accepting gifts.  Also, you can sponsor a fundraiser and find a speaker to come and speak at your event.  There are numerous ways to get involved.  Instead of worrying about Black Friday deals, it might be a great way to spend your leftover money.

www.charitywater.org