Friday, March 23, 2012

Help others on World Water Day March 22

The 31 Days to Make a Difference campaign launches on World Water Day (March 22, 2012) and runs through Earth Day (April 22, 2012). By simply texting DROP to 89544 on their U.S mobile phone people can automatically donate $5 to the Give A Drop campaign which funds building wells and clean water access points in Africa.

In Africa, rural women walk at least 10 miles a day to get water, and young girls often have to drop out of school to help their mothers carry water.

There are more than 300 million people in Sub-Saharan Africa who lack access to clean water. Since 2008, the Voss Foundation has helped construct 36 water access points in five countries, changing the lives of more than 100,000 people in Kenya, Mali, Ethiopia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Liberia.

The UN estimates that women in Africa regularly carry, on average, 20kg or 44 pounds of water on their head. Many girls suffer developmental deformities from carrying heavy loads at a very young age.

Give A Drop is a partnership between Project Clean Water (founded by Jewel in 1997), the Voss Foundation and Virgin Unite that was created to address the worldwide water problem and bring solutions to areas with no access to clean water.

There are several ways to donate. By simply texting DROP to 89544 on their U.S mobile phone people can automatically donate $5 to the Give A Drop campaign. Or people can scan the 31 Days QR Code which is directed to the Voss Foundation mobile site, making it easy for people to donate any amount on their smartphone anywhere in the world. Contributions can also be made online at http://www.thevossfoundation.org.

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