If you can guzzle down a glass of water straight from the tap or from your favorite water bottle brand without worry, consider yourself fortunate. It’s easy to take the convenience of accessing safe water for granted, but the sobering reality is that more than 2.2 billion people around the world still don’t have access to clean or safe drinking water, according to the World Health Organization.
That’s why World Water Day, celebrated every year on March 22nd, is so important to help raise awareness of the urgent need to provide clean water to everyone.
Our partners at Procter & Gamble (P&G) take the global water crisis to heart, and they’ve been working to provide access to clean drinking water to those in need for nearly two decades.
Back in 2004, scientists at P&G invented a revolutionary purification packet that helps remove dirt, bacteria, and viruses from contaminated water. The technology is simple, cost-effective, and highly effective in reducing waterborne illnesses. (It only takes 30 minutes, a cloth, spoon, and a bucket to make 10 liters of contaminated water drinkable — using just one 4-gram water-purifying packet.)
For Estaña, a mother and teacher in Cedros, Honduras, access to clean water was once a daily struggle. She witnessed firsthand how contaminated water made her family and community sick, often forcing children — like her own daughter, Fernanda — to miss school. The only available water source was a distant, unsafe well, leaving the entire community at risk. But thanks to P&G’s partnership with World Vision, the Purifier of Water packets are transforming lives. Now, Estaña’s family and other students have access to clean drinking water, helping keep kids healthier and in the classroom where they belong.
This life-changing innovation would never reach the people who need it most without the relentless efforts of P&G’s charity partners — organizations like CARE, ChildFund International, Americares, Save the Children, and World Vision. These dedicated teams have been on the ground, making sure the water-purification packets get into the hands of families and communities who lack access to clean water, turning a simple solution into a powerful force for change.
The Purifier of Water packets provide critical support in times of need, serving as a bridge solution while communities work toward implementing long-term solutions. “Our ultimate goal is to create healthier communities and in turn, better educational and economic opportunities for children and families,” says Claudine Zukowski, director of the Children’s Safe Drinking Water program at P&G.
P&G’s Children’s Safe Drinking Water program has provided more than 24 billion liters of clean water to children and families around the world, thanks in part to delivering the P&G Purifier of Water packets, but also by partnering with over 150 organizations worldwide. P&G is on track, according to Zukowski, to deliver 25 billion liters of clean drinking water by the end of this year.
“When mothers and children aren’t getting sick, having to walk long distances for water, and worried about having water to drink on a daily basis, they can focus on building a better future,” says Zukowski. “It’s something most of us rarely think about, but once the burden of not having a reliable, daily source of clean water is removed, it opens a new world of hope and opportunities.”
To get involved and to learn more about P&G/’s Children’s Safe Drinking Water program, please click here.
Video credit: Upworthy.
