Episcopal Relief and Development commemorates World Water Day 2008, on Saturday, March 22. The theme of this year’s celebration is “Sanitation Matters!”
Clean water is a basic necessity for human life, yet 2.6 billion people around the world suffer from daily water shortages and struggle to access safe drinking water. In developing countries, more than 4,000 children die each day from preventable, water-borne diseases such as diarrhea, hepatitis and typhoid. Accessing clean water –as easy as turning a tap for residents of the western world– is a challenging and time-consuming endeavor for nearly a third of the world’s population, an activity that keeps children out of school and families shackled by poverty.
As access to clean water is a basic human right, Episcopal Relief and Development is especially committed to ensuring that communities have safe water sources and functional sanitation systems. By implementing innovative programs around the world that address basic needs, Episcopal Relief and Development works in partnerships with communities, members of the worldwide Church and ecumenical agencies to build wells, water systems and latrines, educate communities on hygiene and sanitation and reforest watershed lands to protect natural water sources.
“Clean water is a cornerstone of life. Where it is contaminated by pollution or poor sanitation, it can contribute to illness and even death,” says Abagail Nelson, Vice President for Programs at Episcopal Relief and Development. “Our programs are designed to empower communities to protect and manage it so that all benefit.”
Maria and Juan, parents of five children in the village of Bijagua in Nicaragua, used to retrieve their household water from a contaminated stream that was a ten-minute walk from their home. The children were constantly sick with diarrhea and the daughter who was tasked with collecting the water spent several hours a day ensuring that the family had enough for cooking, bathing, drinking and washing, causing her to fall behind in her school work.
In Nicaragua, Episcopal Relief and Development partners with El Porvenir, an organization that helps communities to create clean water and sanitation systems and implement reforestation projects to safeguard natural water sources. With Episcopal Relief and Development’s support, families in Bijagua received materials to build and maintain a clean water system and were given education and training on maintaining the system and protecting children from water-borne diseases. “Our daughter is excelling in school now that she doesn’t have to carry buckets of water!” said Maria. “And the children don’t have diarrhea anymore.”
To help create clean water sources and sanitation systems for the people who need them most, please make a contribution to Episcopal Relief and Development’s “Clean Water Fund”, online at http://www.er-d.org/ , or call 1-800-334-7626, ext. 5129. Gifts can be mailed to: Episcopal Relief and Development “Clean Water Fund”, P.O. Box 7058, Merrifield, VA 22116-7058.
Episcopal Relief and Development is the international relief and development agency of the Episcopal Church of the United States. As an independent 501(c) (3) organization, Episcopal Relief and Development takes its mandate from Jesus’ words found in Matthew 25. Its programs work towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals. Together with the worldwide Church and ecumenical partners, Episcopal Relief and Development strengthens communities today to meet tomorrow’s challenges. We rebuild after disasters and empower people by offering lasting solutions that fight poverty, hunger and disease, including HIV/AIDS and malaria.
