Michael L. Parks

Today is the United Nations World Water Day 2011. World Water Day began in in 1993 and is observed every year on March 22 to promote awareness of the need for fresh water.

884 million people in the world do not have access to safe drinking water. What does that mean?

Spending time hiking and backpacking, I know that you should never drink from a stream or lake without boiling, filtering, or treating the water. Even the purest looking mountain stream can contain some nasty little pests, like Giardia or Cryptosporidium. These water sources have been impacted very little by humans, yet they can cause serious stomach and intestinal illness. If left untreated, they can lead to death.

However, the world’s poor do not have access even to water this clean. The source of their drinking water is also where their sewage, dead animals, and harmful pollutants are dumped. These waters can contain many different harmful pests, and boiling alone will not get rid of every harmful thing in the water.

One of the nastiest parasites people have to deal with is the Guinea Worm. People ingest the worm by drinking untreated water. The male and female then mate inside the hosts body. The pregnant female burrows through the infected person’s intestine and into the body, eventually working it’s way into the leg. The worm then burrows it’s way through the skin of the leg or foot, causing an intense burning sensation.

What does a person do when it feels like their foot is on fire? Naturally they put it in water. Once the female hits the water, she releases the larvae into the water, where the cycle is repeated.

Illness from contaminated drinking water often leads to death. When it doesn’t lead to death, it keeps people in poverty. The intense pain keeps those infected from being able to work or go to school.

In addition most people have to walk several miles just to get to a water source. When a person spends several hours of their day hauling water home, it does not leave a lot of time for making a living. Imagine what it would be like if you spent just four hours every day just getting water.

Fortunately there are several organizations making a difference, providing safe, clean drinking water to those without. Below is a list of a few of these organizations. Please check them out and consider donating to one.

Wishing Well is a nonprofit located in Oklahoma City, OK that is dedicated to providing clean water to these communities without access to clean water. Communities around the US have partnered with us to raise funds for wells and raise awareness about the water crisis.

charity: water is a non-profit organization bringing clean and safe drinking water to people in developing nations. 100% of public donations directly fund water projects.

Water.org is a U.S.-based nonprofit organization committed to providing safe drinking water and sanitation to people in developing countries. We envision a day when everyone can have safe water.

One Day’s Wages (ODW) is a new grassroots movement of people, stories, and actions to alleviate extreme global poverty. ODW promotes awareness, invites simple giving, and supports sustainable relief through partnerships, especially with smaller organizations in developing regions.

You may know WorldVision from their ads urging you to sponsor a poverty-stricken child. However, WorldVision does many works, like disaster relief, AIDS care and education, fighting human trafficking, and, of course, providing clean drinking water.

I encourage you to spend some time in prayer for the 884 million people around the world who do not have safe drinking water. Please consider what you can do to help.

UPDATE:

I wanted to add one more organization to the list. Three Avocados is a new player to the water game. Three Avocados is actually a new coffee company (If you know me, you know how much I love coffee!) which donates 100% of its proceeds to providing clean water in Uganda.