Little Style Magazine | KIDS.FASHION.TRENDS MAY/JUN 2016 | Page 289

Every $1 invested in water and sanitation generates on average an $8 return in the form of saved time, increased productivity, and reduced health costs. The long-term benefits of access to clean water would be felt by all of us in the form of decreases in economic aid, increased productivity, lower infant mortality, decreased population burden, increased educational opportunity, and decreased “time poverty”—not to mention the ethical payoff of giving life to those who most need it. You’re not alone if you had never fully contemplated how lack of water keeps people in poverty. The world is only beginning to take a close look at the root causes of extreme poverty. Almost two in three people lacking access to clean water survive on less than $2 a day. One in three lives on less than $1 a day.9 Their world and their challenges are foreign to us. Dripping taps in rich countries lose more water than is available to the poorest billion people on earth.10 It’s no surprise we’ve never put ourselves in their shoes and fully under- stood how water scarcity perpetuates this cruel cycle of poverty. The good news is that there is more than enough water in the world for domestic purposes, agriculture, and industry. And the payoff for its more equitable distribution is great. Gary Evans from LWI (The Water Project’s partner organization) puts it this way, “We’re in a world where there are 900 million people barely treading water, and the water’s too low for them to reach the ladder. They don’t need a boat. They don’t need a helicopter to rescue them. They just need a little boost so they can reach the ladder. Then they can climb out on their own. Clean water provides that boost.” And if you want to reach out and give that boost, then you’re in the right place. The Water Project is a 501(c)(3) organization that’s bringing relief to communities around the world who suffer needlessly from a lack of access to clean water. The organization currently funding water wells, rain catchment systems, latrines, community mobilization, and sanitation and hygiene training in Africa and India. The Water Project’s work is a cooperative, grass-roots effort between its supporters, donors, partners in the field, and the communities it serves. They follow-up with local communities, helping to ensure long-term success. Then, through innovative web tools, it shows everyone the outcome, every time! The Water Project teams with implementing partners in the field to dig wells or construct other systems to provide clean, safe water to thirsty communities. When a community, church, or school receives a new water project, women no longer spend hours searching for a source of water. Children, especially girls, return to school. Water-borne illnesses are reduced. Hope is restored. Let’s join the organization today, Even a small donation can make a big difference! Let’s help those who are really in need of clean water & sanitation, help them to relieve from various diseases & to help children to go to school! Good living is their right too! We support this organization & we would like to invite you to support them too! See you there: www.thewaterproject.org 289