Think Before You Drink That Glass of Water

According to UNICEF.org:

"The world water crisis is one of the largest public health issues of our time. Nearly 1.1 billion people (roughly 20% of the world’s population) lack access to safe drinking water. The lack of clean, safe drinking water is estimated to kill almost 4,500 children per day. In fact, out of the 2.2 million unsafe drinking water deaths in 2004, 90% were children under the age of five. Water is essential to the treatment of diseases, something especially critical for children.

This problem isn’t confined to a particular region of the world. A third of the Earth’s population lives in “water stressed” countries and that number is expected to rise dramatically over the next two decades. The crisis is worst in developing countries, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia.

The world water crisis is created by a confluence of factors including climate and geography, lack of water systems and infrastructure, and inadequate sanitation, something that 2.6 billion people (40% of the world’s population) lack access to. Some of these countries have additional problems, including high levels of arsenic and fluoride in drinking water.
Many women and young girls in rural areas in Sub-Saharan African and other parts of the world must trek as much as six miles everyday to retrieve water for their families. Due to this manual labor, such women and children are prevented from pursuing an education, maintaining their households or earning additional income.

Thus, the lack of clean water, coupled with the lack of basic sanitation and a dearth of hygiene education, is one of the largest obstacles to progress and development in these regions and across the world. The UN has prioritized water access among its Millennium Development Goals because it contributes to such widespread suffering, including increased poverty, high child mortality rates, depressed education levels, and political instability. Without question, the world water crisis condemns billions of people to a perpetual struggle to survive at the subsistence level, thus inspiring millions to engage and alleviate this problem. Join us. Get involved today.

As if I need to say it again, but if you're reading this you are one of the LUCKY ones. So what are you going to do for those who aren't?

A Day to Celebrate & Help

Today is officially recognized (yes, by even the U.S.) as International Women's Day. Dating back to 1908 when 15,000 women marched through NYC fighting for shorter work hours, better pay and voting rights March 8th has evolved to include activism, celebration and a chance to honor and respect women around the world for the struggles they endure and ultimately conquer.

In several countries (Armenia, Russia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bulgaria, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Macedonia, Moldova, Mongolia, Tajikistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan and Vietnam) IWD has become an official holiday, much like Mother's Day, where women are given flowers or small gifts in a show of appreciation by their children, husbands, boyfriends, etc.

Events are planned all around the world including rallies, fundraisers, lunches, lecture and discussion groups, all demanding better pay, more opportunities, health care, a safe place to raise a family, etc. - not unlike the women marchers from 1908; so while much progress has been made in the last 100 years there is still so much more that needs to be done.

While I will be going about my daily routine today I am going to take a minute to make some kind of donation in honor of all the beautiful women in my life. I am one of the lucky ones. I have a wonderful, safe home in which to care for my family; I have good health insurance to assist us when we are ill; My husband and I are both employed with jobs that do not cause us physical harm or require us to work obscene hours and provide us with enough money to afford food, shelter, clothing, toys for the kids, etc.; While our country is involved in a war the war is being fought in Iraq and I do not fear for the safety of myself or my children when I step outside my front door.

But the women of Iraq do have that fear; the women of Darfur are still struggling daily to protect themselves and their families from the genocide being perpetrated in Sudan; Mothers in Africa are dying by the thousands from the AIDS virus and leaving behind millions of orphans who must raise themselves and their younger brothers and sisters; a mother and her daughter were in court yesterday fighting a citation regarding "illegal housing" within town limits (a town just miles from where I live) that posed a health hazard both for the family and the public - the family of four lives in a 15-passenger van - in not one, but now two separate towns. And what would be less of a public health threat? Having them sleep on a park bench or in a cardboard box in an alley when the temperatures have been dropping to the single digits for the last week? That would be more suitable and less of a health code violation?

My point is that we cannot be complacent and assume that because so many of us have computers and heat and food and clothing and all kinds of toys and gadgets that the rest of the world is just as fortunate. What is in fact true is that if you're reading this - you're in the minority when it comes to your lifestyle. Poverty, extreme poverty even, is an epidemic and we must not forget those, most of them women and children, who are struggling everyday just to survive.

So here is a list of some of my favorite organizations. Make a donation. Get involved. Find something locally. But do something. Do it in the name of your mother, your sister, your aunt, your girlfriends, your daughter and do it for all those women who don't have the opportunity to help themselves unless they are given the means. If we all do just a little bit we will create a world as of yet unimagined.

• One.org - an organization that is fighting extreme poverty through legislation and direct action.
• Women for Women International - my favorite right now where you sponsor a woman who goes through a year long program to help her get herself and her family back on their feet after suffering the atrocities of war. (My sister in Kosovo is about to graduate from the program which she has said has helped her immensely since her husband is still unable to find work. She lives in a house with just two rooms, but has told me through letter writing that I am welcome their any time. Yeah. Take that in for a moment. And it cost me only a few dollars to help change someone's entire life.)
• Global Sistergoods - an online marketplace where fair trade items are available from around the world made by women who are paid a fair wage for their creations.
• Care.org - an international humanitarian organization working to eliminate extreme poverty with a special focus given to poor women.
• The Greater Good Network - another online marketplace where you can purchase fair trade goods with a portion of the proceeds going to charities to fight breast cancer and hunger, save the rainforests and abused animals and promote child health and literacy - you choose where you want your money to go.

That's just a small list of organizations I have had good luck with. If you don't see what you're looking for above, find your own outlet. But do something. Don't wait another day.

P.S. March is also Women's History Month so you'll be hearing about that in upcoming posts as well. It's time to rise up, ladies!!!

Today When You Sit at Your Thanksgiving Table

As we celebrate Thanksgiving Day here in the U.S., the folks over at Oxfam are requesting that those of us who have a feast to sit down to today take a minute to think about those who do not.

Oxfam has a campaign called "The Hunger Banquet" which is a program often run by colleges or high schools in their cafeterias, but can be used today in your own home to illustrate the expanse of world hunger. Here's what you do: (this scenario is based on a meal for 20 - Hopefully you can do the math and adjust to how many people you will have at your table today.)

"If 20 people sit down at your table, representing the world's population, three would get a gourmet meal, five would get rice and beans, and 12 would receive a small portion of rice . . . as you eat your meal, unlike the real world, you see what's on everyone else's plate."

My suggestion would be to put the appropriate amount of food on each person's plate and then explain what you are representing. And if you don't want to do a physical representation, at least bring attention to this scenario which will not only make people more aware, but make us all more thankful for all that we have this holiday.

I wish you all a happy and safe Thanksgiving with family and friends. And while it's easy to get caught up in all the fanfare, take a moment to acknowledge the millions of people who will eat very little food today and especially those who will go to sleep tonight without having any. Think about how you might make next year different for them.