Water We Thinking?!

This past summer, my little sister spent 3 weeks on a mission trip in Tanzania. Among other beautiful--albeit heartbreaking--stories that she told upon returning, she blurted out: "We don't even realize how lucky we are to have clean water."

My sister's water comment left me stunned. I brush my teeth in the morning, and there is clean water. I make my coffee, and there is clean water.  I take a shower, and there is clean--and hot--water.

I have never worried that this water would stop flowing out of my faucet.  Never fretted over if there would be enough water when I needed to do my laundry. And I've never had to walk farther than my kitchen sink to have water for cooking [meaning mixing water with a box of mac and cheese].

So I started exploring this concept of clean water, and I was dumbfounded. Isn't access to clean water the most basic human right??

(water.org)

Every 20 seconds, a child dies from a water related illness. 2

Girls are often forced to collect water instead of going to school. In fact, women spend 200 million hours a day collecting water. 2

Poor sanitation often causes water supplies to become contaminated with diseases. 2

This contaminated water is responsible for 80 percent of diseases in the developing world. 1

Nearly 1 in 9 people lack access to an improved water source. 2

The leading cause of human sickness and death is water-related illness. 1

Get Involved:

Appreciate what you have and don't waste your resources. 

Try using a reusable water bottle for a week. 

Become an advocate. Use your voice to spread awareness!

Conserve your water usage (a 5 minute American shower uses more water than a day's worth of water usage for an average person in a developing country slum)1

Get an inside look. Follow a community as they attempt to access safe water. 

Make a donation.

Hold a fundraiser at your school or in your community. 

Great Resources:

UNICEF

water.org

Blue Planet Network

What else can you do to help? Feel free to blog suggestions below! 

"Every $1 spent on water and sanitation generates a return of $9 in saved time, increased productivity and reduced health costs in Africa.
-- United Nations Development Program" 1

1. The Facts About the Global Drinking Water Crisis. Blue Planet Network. Web. 18 September 2012. 

2.  Water Facts: Water. Water.org. Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0. Web. 18 September 2012.