You are currently browsing the category archive for the ‘Hygiene Education’ category.
- Start of the ride …
With the success of Water Centric’s first ever bike-a-thon last year, enthusiasm was high among the organizers and participants. The bike-a-thon 2011 did more than live up to the expectations!
On a beautiful Saturday morning on July 30, just under 100 enthusiastic participants arrived at the Great Brook Farm in Carlisle, MA geared up to ride, walk or volunteer for Water Centric. The scenic 54 mile “Apple Pi” route, was not for the faint of heart, as it wound its way up and down through the towns of Carlisle, Concord, Littleton and Harvard, MA. The shorter 18 mile ride was closer to the venue and a walk along the beautiful park trails was yet another option.
After a light breakfast of fruit, donuts and munchkins provided by Dunkin Donuts and coffee from Starbucks, the bicyclists headed out on their ride. Rest-
- Registration and Breakfast
stops had been arranged for them to freshen up, stretch and fuel up with water and fruits, some of which was donated by Verrill Farms. The Carlson Orchards in Harvard, MA, one of the designated rest stops, was a gem of a spot with several trees, picnic tables and a cool breeze thoroughly enjoyed by the bicyclists and volunteers alike.
- And then they’re off…
All bicyclists and walkers accomplished their respective challenges and arrived in high spirits at the barn of Great Brook Farm where a barbecue cookout awaited them. Pulled pork and pulled chicken from Redbones, salads from Bertucci’s and veggie burgers were just some of the items on the lunch menu. A raffle of items from ATA cycles, Bikeway Source , Belmont Wheelworks and Dunkin Donuts added to the day’s fun and activities. During lunch, the event further spread awareness about the lack of clean water and sanitation in the developing world by projecting a video about Water Centric’s activities addressing the situation.
- Some of our smiling volunteers
We are grateful to all of you for your participation in supporting this important cause and we hope that you will continue to support us in our endeavors. We look forward to seeing you at our next annual Bike-a-thon!
Water Centric is coming close to completing work in its initial ten schools, steadily delivering water, sanitation, and hygiene education to more and more school children in need. To take a look at our latest accomplishments…
Spectacular summer weather including perfect temperatures welcomed the nearly 100 people who arrived at Great Brook Farm in Carlisle, MA on July 31 to participate in Water Centric’s first ever bike-a-thon.
Bicyclists arrived with every level of experience and conditioning. The beautiful 52 mile “Apple Pi” ride was the route that 32 of the experienced cyclists rode through the scenic country roads of Carlisle, Concord, Littleton, and Harvard, MA. Others opted for the shorter 18 mile ride, while still others enjoyed walking the beautiful park trails. One young woman who had never ridden a bike on the road before, actually rode the entire 18 mile ride – to cheers by all!
The activities culminated with a barbecue lunch at noon. Pulled pork and pulled chicken from Redbones, pasta salad from Bertucci’s, apples, cookies, and drinks from Whole Foods, and hot and iced coffee from Starbucks, were just some of the options at the cookout, which was then topped off with a raffle of items donated by Bikeway Source, Pietzo, Peet’s Coffee, Shaw’s, Verrill Farm, and Citizen’s Bank.We would also like to thank Cambridge Trust bank whose donation supplied us with snacks for the rest stops.
It was a great time and we wish to thank everyone who rode, hiked, volunteered, sponsored, and supported this important cause! Also, please send along your photos from the day’s activities. We would like to include them in our First Annual Bike-A-Thon Album!
Pedal for a great cause by joining Water Centric’s first annual bike-a-thon on July 31, 2010 at beautiful Great Brook Farm in Carlisle, MA! There will be a 50 mile ride, leaving at 8am; and a 15-20 mile ride, leaving at 10am. Plus, Great Brook Farm has 1,000 acres of walking, hiking, and biking trails, if you prefer. There are also farm animals, homemade ice cream, ancient historic Native American and settler sites, and lots of beautiful countryside.
We’re also pleased to announce that Red Bones Barbeque of Somerville will be providing delicious pulled pork as part of the after bike/hike cookout at noon, and Whole Foods will be providing Goody Bags for all.
To get more information and to register please click here: http://www.watercentric.org/bike-a-thon.html
Please spread the word about Water Centric’s bike-a-thon among your family, friends, and colleagues and help support this great cause! All proceeds will go directly to Water Centric’s ten-school project, which supplies clean water, toilets, and hygiene education to needy schools in the developing world, and helps young children get the right start!
Save the Date for a Great Time and A Great Cause!
Network with new people, reconnect with friends and benefit a great cause!
NETSAP-Boston is holding a happy hour and fundraiser to benefit Water Centric schools at Pazzo Resturant and Bar on Newbury Street in Boston, on June 24, from 7:00 pm to 10:00 pm.
Part of the proceeds will go directly to Water Centric’s ten-school project in Delhi, India, which is delivering clean water, sanitation, and hygiene education to the 10,000 school children there. For more information on Water Centric, click on the following link: http://www.watercentric.org/
For more information on the happy hour venue, click on the following link: http://www.pazzoboston.com/
For more information on NETSAP-Boston, click on the following link: http://www.netsapboston.org/
We at Water Centric are always looking for compelling ways to inform our audience about the impending sanitation crisis, with 2.6 billion people lacking toilet facilities, in order to get them engaged and ready to take action! May we recommend a great read for the summer …
Rose George’s book, “The Big Necessity,” does a great job of describing the global sanitation crisis. We highly recommend it and think you will not soon forget her first hand account. Ms. George wrote an article on this subject for The Washington Post and here is a brief excerpt:
“The Planet is soiled with sewage, on land and sea. Our waste is the biggest marine pollutant there is, according to the United Nations Environment Program. In the developing world, ninety percent of sewage is discharged untreated into oceans and rivers, where its high nutrient content can suffocate the life out of seas, contributing to dead zones (405 worldwide and counting).”
“There are dead zones on land, too. Human waste contaminates environments all over the world, rich and poor. Imagine getting up at 4 a.m. in darkness, trekking to a nearby bush or field, and going to the bathroom out in the open. Imagine then being hit by a farmer who doesn’t like you toileting in his field, or being raped by someone taking advantage of the dark, which you need to preserve your modesty. The quarter of the world’s population without access to sanitation – not even a bucket nor a box – don’t have to imagine this. It’s their daily reality.”
To read this complete article, please click:
http://newsweek.washingtonpost.com/postglobal/needtoknow/2009/04/the_politics_of_toilets.html
We have been making steady progress at Water Centric with just over 2 years under our belt! Here is a look at what we have accomplished in the past few months…
Don’t forget to right click to print and carry!
Hey Boston area residents -
This May Day, Saturday, May 1, 2010, eat at Uno Chicago Grill in Harvard Square, Cambridge, Massachusetts, and you will provide direct aid to over 1000 school girls who need clean water, sanitation, and hygiene education in their slum school in Delhi, India.
Here’s how it works:
- Print out the tickets above and give them to your friends/family/anyone.
- On May 1st, when anyone eats lunch, dinner, drinks @ bar,or does take-out and presents the ticket (during bill payment), WaterCentric will be given up to 20% of the sale amount.
Uno’s is at 22 JFK Street in Harvard Square in Cambridge.
Water Centric’s goal is to raise $6000 to improve the lives of over 1000 schoolgirls studying in a municipal school in Sri Niwas Puri area by renovating and building functional toilets and water stations in their school plus training the teachers and kids to participate in maintaining these new facilities via active student-run hygiene education clubs.
Enjoy your pizza – a tasty way to raise dough.
A thousand little girls will thank you!
Diwali, also known as “Festival of Lights,” is a time of celebration and thanksgiving in India, for victory of good over evil. This year, in honor of Diwali, on November 5 2010, Water Centric is hosting a six-month Twitter Diwali campaign – “Twiwali” - so that people can express their gratitude for the essentials of clean water and sanitation - while helping others to have the same - by making a simple donation and creating awareness through social sites like Twitter. What follows is one Water Centric volunteer’s account of why he is grateful for toilets. We encourage you to submit your stories on why you are grateful for toilets to our blog as well
A surreal bathroom experience!
By Bhaskar Koukuntla
On a cold November evening, my wife and I decided to celebrate our wedding anniversary by having dinner with a few of our family friends at the Mantra restaurant in downtown Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
Mantra is very close to our respective work places and is conveniently nestled on a side street between the Theatre district and Downtown Crossing. We had heard a lot about this place as the only restaurant in Boston serving Indo-French cuisine, and that it is located in a building that was previously a bank constructed in the 1800’s. Their décor is unique and in fact their bar is a former “Teller’s cage.” Details of the décor include marble walls and floors, silk drapery, and exotic mirrors with beautiful lighting.
Upon arriving at the restaurant, I paid a visit to the Men’s Room. It was stunningly beautiful with elegant mirrors, very clean and exotic sinks, and elegant glass stalls. The doors to the individual stalls were made of what looked like translucent glass and looked beautiful. Once I stepped in, I was shocked that I could see the outside! My friend was at the sink washing his hands and he suddenly turned around, looked towards my stall and pointed his finger towards me and started laughing. I was shocked!!! I felt embarrassed and wondered how the restaurant could have not thought about this. I suddenly felt very vulnerable and awkward for such lack of privacy.
When I emerged, pretending that I had not noticed anything, my friend explained that you cannot look in from the outside, however the user can see out from inside the stall. This was trick décor with no compromise to privacy at all!! But just the illusion that my privacy was compromised had made me sick to my stomach.
Putting this surreal bathroom experience in perspective, millions of underprivileged families and kids around the world do not have access to the most basic sanitation facilities. They sit outdoors every day exposed to prying eyes and the elements! Water Centric is currently working towards constructing functional toilets for a school for 1433 girls in India. With a small contribution from all of us who are privileged and take such necessities for granted, we can make a change in the lives of all these kids! So this Diwali, spread some light by making a contribution at www.watercentric.org/Twiwali.html
Come join in the conversation, get involved, and this Diwali help us to bring about change that really matters in the lives of 1433 school-children.
Visit Water Centric’s Twiwali Campaign
Today’s blog post is a perspective from one of our volunteers working on launching the Water Centric’s Diwali/Twiwali campaign. We encourage you to support the campaign and also consider submitting your stories and experiences related to the lack of clean water and/or functional toilets to our blog.
By Saurabh Saksena
It was a sunny afternoon in Yichang, China when we International Leadership Laureate Scholars ate a traditional Chinese meal that soon had an effect on our stomachs. As the bus started its journey through the rich, green scenery of Yichang, a few of us felt the urge to use the rest room. After consulting with the tour guide and the bus driver, we were told that the next rest room was a half hour away.
Just then, an American girl shouted, “It is urgent!” The bus stopped, people rushed to the green pastures, and relieved themselves. Luckily people had toilet rolls and drinking water. That was my first tryst without a functional toilet. Embarrassing! And as a boy, I thought, what about the girls?
How many of us have ever been thankful that we can actually access functional toilets when we need to? It is funny that something which is a necessity in the western world is still a privilege in the eastern world. While toilets are still a luxury in many parts of rural India, even more unsettling is the fact that 17% of city residents in India, or nearly 55 million people, do not have functional toilets. Fewer than 10% of Indian cities have a proper sewage system. And most of us are also found wanting in the hygiene education department.
Friends, it is all linked: lack of functional toilets, proper sewage system, and hygiene. And we cannot blame the government for anything and everything. We have to shoulder some responsibility.
How many of us in the developing world allow our maids and servants to use our toilets if they have an urgent need? The common answer is: “They will leave it dirty.” OK. So is it that difficult to teach them some basic hygiene?
Think a moment about those poor school kids who are seen sitting under the open sky to attend to nature’s call. Surprised? Go to an area near a municipal school locality in Delhi and chances are you will see a similar story. When I saw that, my first reaction was: can’t these school kids use the toilets in schools? It turns out that many of these municipal schools do not have functional toilets.
Kids have to use the school’s backyard if need be or hold it till they reach home. And girls not only have to face the agony and indignity of leering men, they also have to take time off from school during their menstrual cycles.
Fortunately, we have people and organizations who are addressing the issue of sanitation in India. And luckily I, through my Harvard program, have found one such organization – Water Centric - that is helping to bring functional toilets, clean drinking water facilities, and hygiene education to a number of municipal schools in Delhi with a vision of expanding similar efforts in other parts of the country as well.
Recently, Water Centric has selected a municipal school in the Sri Niwas Puri area to help 1433 school girls by renovating and building functional toilets and water stations in their school plus training the teachers and kids to participate in maintaining these new facilities via active student-run hygiene education clubs.
I, with a few other Harvard colleagues, have joined this noble cause. We have launched a campaign Twiwali to raise funds for this school by Diwali this year. I urge you all to visit the campaign link and help us. It is not only about donating dollars, though that will most certainly help (Water Centric is a registered non-profit in US)! For my friends living in India, follow us on Twitter and Facebook, join our newsletter email list, and most importantly spread awareness of this cause by word of mouth.
Diwali is still six months away but we all know time flies and we may miss the opportunity to bring change in these girls’ lives. So act now.
This Diwali let us all spread some light and give the gift of health, and a little privacy, to these 1433 girls. Let us show them that we care!
Vande Mataram.
Comments