1 In 6 People Without Clean Water

As I walked through the halls of Georgia State University today on my way to class, I paid close attention to the countless soda machines and water fountains. I couldn’t help but hear this statistic running through my mind…

That’s 1 billion+ people.

Like most Americans, I have the privilege and luxury of accessing clean water whenever and wherever I want. I can buy bottled water, drink from a local water fountain, or choose from a variety of beverages altogether. It’s convenient. Yet, the thought of 1,000,000,000+ people not having access to clean water at all just freaks me out.

As with most social causes, this water crisis didn’t hit me until last week when I heard directly from Scott Harrison, the founder of Charity: Water. As I sat amongst 14,000 leaders at the Catalyst Conference here in Atlanta, GA, Scott was called up on stage to give a talk about his organization. What he shared during those 30 minutes left me uncomfortable. He shared personal accounts and raw stories of death, disease, and misery that millions of people face every day… just because of a lack of clean water.

Stories like…

In the US alone, Americans drink an average of 200 bottles of water per person each year.

Americans drink 13.15 billion gallons of carbonated drinks every year.

In Africa alone, women and children walk over 48 billion hours a year, carrying dirty water – sometimes mud – back to their homes and villages to cook, clean, and drink. Women use their dresses to filter as much dirt as possible from the water. Yet, the water remains highly contaminated.

Scott Harrison witnessed one boy drinking unclean water who kept vomiting every time he swallowed it. After taking a sample of the water back to a lab, Scott was told by a scientist that the water was so contaminated and filled with bacteria that it was literally alive.

After coming back to America, Scott witnessed his friends buying $16 margaritas. It was during these moments that he realized that he had to do something. And he did.

Every week, nearly 38,000 children under the age of 5 die from unsafe drinking water and horrible hygiene conditions.

80% of registered diseases are related to unsafe water.

50% of the world’s schools don’t have clean water or working toilets.

Currently, 3.6 million people die each year because they don’t have clean water to drink.

These numbers seem overwhelming, as they always do. But they become even more personal and real when a number is put to a face and a face is put to a name and a name is put to a story.

You and I have the opportunity – the responsibility – to do something. And we can!

To find out how you can get involved and BE the difference, visit Charity: Water and Blog Action Day 2010.