Roses, 5 gallon buckets, and Ethiopia

What do roses and five gallon buckets have in common in Ethiopia? Water. Last month, I attended an event where the speaker showcased a compelling story about water use in Ethiopia. In an example highlighting the intersection of water and jobs, he told a story from his visit near Debre Zeit about women who walk for miles to fill a 5 gallon bucket with unfiltered river water. Just a few miles down, the same water was being used to water greenhouses filled with roses belonging to large, multinational corporations. In a matter of days, these rose farms export, auction these roses in the Netherlands at one of the largest rose auction houses, then ship the roses across the world to their final destinations.

While the juxtaposition of one well-resourced and the neighbor in need is not new, this example and pictures made me think about the importance of water access. Although water for drinking is a forgettable portion of global water use, clean drinking water has huge public health and quality of life benefits. One of my favorite charities of 2008 has been on a campaign to bring clean drinking water to the 1.1 billion people in the world without it.

Feature: charity:water
A few months ago, I bought the most expensive bottle of water of my life - $20 for a 0.5 L. But in return, I was given the promise that the funds would go to provide one person with clean drinking water for 20 years. Not too bad when you put it that way. I fell in love with charity:water through photographs - a toddler holding up a glass of dirt-brown water, a woman with hands cupped filtering leaches out of the water, a hospital with muddy water from a faucet, a well being built, crystal clean water and smiling children. More here. charity:water works with local organizations to build the infrastructure needed for clean water access.

How did they start? Scott Harrison, a New York event planner and consultant, took time off to be a photojournalist on a Mercy Ship and returning heartbroken, founded an organization with their first initiative for water access, charity:water. That was three years ago. Last September, charity:water hosted a multi-million dollar campaign to build 333 wells in Ethiopia. I contributed enthusiastically. Consider hearing about their stories in Bangladesh, Congo, Ethiopia, Haiti, Hondorus, India, Kenya, Liberia, Milawi, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, or others.

Links:
[1] "Is your water footprint bigger than your carbon footprint?" giveandtell.
[2] charity:water. http://www.charitywater.org

Disclaimer: The information presented here is based on the author's research and experience, and in no way reflects the official opinion of charity:water or charity global, inc.