Did you know, that out of the roughly 7.7 billion people that are alive on this Earth today, approximately 663 million of them don’t have access to clean drinking water?
663 MILLION.
Just to give you an idea of how big of a number that is: According to the United States Census Bureau, in 2018, the population of the United States was 327.2 million. Which means, even if we doubled the current population of the US, we still wouldn’t be accommodating the strikingly immense number of human beings that don’t have access to clean water on this planet.
Pretty crazy, right?
Granted, while the exact number of those impacted may fluctuate every day, it’s been estimated that 1 in 10 people on this Earth are drinking visibly dirty, brown water, that is teeming with bacteria and diseases such as cholera, dysentery, typhoid fever, and schistosomiasis – otherwise known as snail fever.
And as if that isn’t horrifying enough… The women and children living in these communities will often walk for up to 4 hours EVERY.DAY, preventing themselves from being able to work or attend school, just to get a bucketful of this disgusting water to bring home to their families.
Water that is responsible for the deaths of more people each year than all forms of violence, including war, with approximately 43% of those deaths occurring in children under just 5 years of age.
Now, I’m going to keep this short and sweet, because I want you to watch the captivating video I’ve provided for you in the link below.
But before you watch it, I want you to think about it for a second: how much having easy access to clean water impacts your every-day life.
Think about your morning routine. Do you enjoy hot tea? Do you exercise, and then chug water afterwards to quench your thirst? Do you brush your teeth? Shower? Go to the bathroom?
What about when you get to work? How does your employer use water to keep their business bustling every day? Perhaps, even keeping you employed.
Photo by Jordan Rowland on Unsplash
I am sure most of us don’t even think about it (or at least not very often): how easily accessible the most basic human need is for the vast majority of us. And yet, for 1 in 10 people on Earth, much of their entire day, every day, revolves around (usually a woman or child) schlepping that 40-pound jug of revoltingly unsanitary water back home.
Thankfully, there is a non-profit organization out there, called charity: water, who’s mission is to do their very best to make sure that within this lifetime, it will be possible for each living person in the world to have access to clean drinking water.
So far, in the past 12 years, charity: water has collaborated with 37 partners in 26 countries, and has provided funding for 38,113 water projects, which, upon completion, will supply clean water to a total of over 9.6 million people around the world!
And they do it all by taking 100% of the donations they receive from us and putting it straight into the field. That’s right, every last cent of donations goes straight towards providing clean water to those in need. So even if you use a credit card to donate money, the processing fees that unfortunately go along with that and take away from your donation, will be replenished by the pools of money provided by very generous folks willing to pay for all of charity: water’s operating costs.
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Alright, I’m gonna stop writing… At least for now (there’s more written below the video). But if you’ve read down to here, I would really like for you to watch the video I’ve provided the link to below. Trust me, I have watched the entire thing at least three times now. It is very moving, informative, inspiring, and most importantly, sincere. I have a ton of respect for this non-profit, and it all started when this video popped up on my Facebook newsfeed, catching my attention. The rest, well, is history.
**If you don’t have the time right now to sit and watch, or at least listen, to the 20-minute video, but you’re already feeling inspired to help (and are ABLE to help), scroll down a bit and click where it says “Donate to charity: water”. It will bring you to charity: water’s donation page, where you will have the option of donating once, or subscribing to a monthly donation of your choosing.
Just know that the amount you decide to give (if you give), is completely up to you, so don’t think that any donation is too small. I can promise you that charity: water will be grateful regardless of the amount.**
Did you enjoy the video?! Do you feel inspired to donate? If not, that’s totally fine! But if so, please feel free to click the link I have provided for you below. You may choose to give once, or subscribe to a monthly donation of any amount you are willing (and able) to give.
After watching the 20-minute video I posted for you, above, I was galvanized into action. This was the type of charity I had been searching for. The type of charity that is not only moving mountains to help those in need, but is also honest and transparent about everything that they are and everything that they do… Even when it comes to admitting to the mistakes they have made.
I was so inspired by the story of charity: water, that I immediately became a monthly donor, providing clean water for up to 4 people a year with my donations. Which may not seem like much, cuz I only give $10 a month… But there are thousands of other people out there who are also currently giving that amount, or even way more than that amount a month; so when you start to multiply the numbers, you begin to realize how much of a difference even just one small donation can make to impact the life of a person. And always remember, that sometimes, impacting just one life can cause a ripple effect that can change the world for the better.
My motivation didn’t stop there though. I even considered leaving my stable job as a biochemist in the Boston area, potentially giving up my dreams of future long-term travel, and moving to New York City to become a copywriter for the charity. I literally applied for the job! Knowing that I didn’t have much relevant experience to include in my résumé, I spent hours working really hard, trying to craft a cover letter that I had hoped would stand out. But I guess, in the end, I didn’t vibe with them enough, cuz I didn’t get it, but that is okay. I know I’ll have other opportunities in the future to make my contributions to this life-saving charity.
“Thirst” by Scott Harrison
In the year of 2018, the founder of charity: water, Scott Harrison, published a book called “Thirst”. It’s all about his awe-inspiring life: the hardships he and his family faced while he was growing up, how he got into nightclub promoting, and how he eventually left that prodigal life to found charity: water.
I asked my parents to gift me this book for Christmas this past year. So I finally read it and finished it a few weeks ago while I have been recovering from knee surgery. To call Harrison’s life “remarkable” is a vast understatement. I didn’t want to put the book down!! It’s almost thrilling in a way, the life he has led that’s gotten him to where he is now.
You can tell that he put his heart and soul into this book… Totally laid it all out for everyone: his triumphs and successes, but also his extreme faults, flaws, and failures. And it’s extremely well written in my opinion.
If after all this, you’re interested in reading the story of how charity: water came to be, I highly recommend reading this book. It gives you a lot of insight into how the non-profit world operates, and just how driven you have to be in order to be successful in it. I can’t express enough how inspired I felt while reading it… Totally made me want to quit my job and start my own charity, lol. But it would be a TON of work for sure!
I’ve included a link for you, below, if you’d like to purchase the book. Please know, that while it is an affiliate link, which means that I will earn a small commission from Amazon with your purchase, the book will be yours at no extra cost to you! Any commissions I earn help to reduce the cost of running this site, so purchasing via this link is a much appreciated way to show your support to me! In addition, Scott Harrison has promised that all author proceeds from this book will go directly towards providing clean water for those in need. So you can feel good about the fact, that even just by purchasing this book, you are helping to save lives!
Click the book, below, to purchase!
Before I heard about charity: water, I knew that there were people in the world without access to clean water. I knew water was probably dirty in some areas of the planet, but I definitely never thought about it as much as I do now, and I definitely never knew the extent of the water crisis. How many people die every year because of it… Or even that it was a problem that could be “easily” (not so easily, but relatively easily) fixed!
So I hope, if anything, that this post has opened your eyes the way learning about charity: water has opened mine. Unfortunately, a lot of what the world needs is money so that problems like these can dissipate. I wish I could make millions so that I could give away millions, but we have to remember that even small donations, when multiplied by thousands, can make a difference.
Whatever you do, no matter how small, MATTERS!
As always, thank you for reading.
And if you watched the video, donated, and/or bought “Thirst”, ALL of the extra thank yous to you! <3 🙂
-Brianna-Marie
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