water women #bloodsisters
Today, May 28, is menstrual hygiene day. I bet you weren't expecting me to say that, huh? #bloodsistersIn celebration of the day, let's trend a hashtag and make some waves in the world. Who are the water women? Well, that's us. You and me. #waterwomen
Y'all who know me know that I LOVE Water For People. It's one of my favorite charities, though admittedly, because I know they're legit and I don't have to do any more research on them. Call me lazy.
water jugs, chiang mai, thailand
One of the reasons I love them is for their acknowledgement of the impact of water on women's lives throughout the world. Here are some stats from their site so that you get an idea of the time dedication required to get something that many of us take for granted.
Women and children spend 125 million hours each day collecting water.
Women and girls often spend up to 6 hours each day collecting water.
Involving women can make water projects 6 to 7 times more effective.
Women and girls living without a toilet spend 266 million hours each day finding a place to go.
PSA: if you'd like to donate to WFP, click here. And they've got a super cool "impact calculator" here which shows how much your contribution may be matched/increased by other companies/groups.
The struggles facing clean water in low-GDP countries are intimately linked with sanitation. And what's more, we've got problems right here in the U.S. (Yes, I'm finally back in the U.S. after all those travels! Check my insta for pics!)
the tourism industry is so intriguing to me. the concept of paying for the “experience” yet the fact of paying takes away the authenticity. is #stuffwhitepeoplelike still a trending hashtag?
Imagine having a period without a place to use the happy room. Or being in sweltering hot Texas, where clean drinking water is easily available, but not without having the means or relying on someone else for it.
Lately, some friends (okay, mostly Tay, shout out to her) have been collecting water & personal hygiene products & other supplies for homeless ladies (and men) in Austin. This is how I want to continue forward (working off the theme of rebuilding & being grateful). I want to use my interest in water & sanitation to support women.Women walk miles and miles for water. Women don't necessarily have privacy and safety of toilets. Toilets and water are easily accessible to me, and I want it to be easily accessible to them. This is how I help.
How do you help?
Did you know that your local shelters generally have "wish lists" of supplies needed? Next time you throw a birthday party or a friend get-together, why not make it a benefit party? (As I type that, I think, that's so austin! what an age we live in!!)6 Easy Steps (because I like lists):
Call up a shelter of choice
Ask what is on their wishlist
Post supplies needed to your facebook event page
Have your kick-ass party & collect supplies from guests
Deliver supplies to the shelter
Dance the whole way back home
Recently, this blog post came out by a dude from CH2M about his experience helping out with WFP in Peru. It's not the...best... writing ever. But hey, we're engineers. We think in calculations and problem solving, not poetry.
It should not really be surprising, because women traditionally have been responsible for obtaining water for their families. Their daily pursuit, which can often require covering long distances carrying a heavy load, is a barrier to them getting an education and jobs. At least two members of the local water committee must be women, and all the women in the community take a very active role in constructing the systems – one woman showed us the measuring stick they used to gauge trench depth; if they weren’t deep enough, they told the men to go back and dig deeper!"
http://waterforpeopleblog.tumblr.com/post/102017569778/guest-post-ch2m-hill-employee-sees-his-impact
Working: On my instagram and blogging during my 4.5 week travels through southeast Asia. Check out my insta, twitter, facebook, tumblr, or whatever you follow to see what I've been up to!
Listening: The Bone Clocks by David Mitchell. This one was hard to get in to because you're supposed to not like the characters in the beginning (and it comes off as messy YA drama at first). The book has a neat arc to it where most of it is centered around a main character's development and only a small amount is actually fantasy. The different people are all realistic and unique; they are all characters that have a part in the main character's life and how different people move in and out of her life. Some of them have incredibly interesting perspectives and really made me think about situational growth/maturing. I think I gave the story 4 stars on my audible.
Reading: Lab Girl by Hope Jahren. From my goodreads review:
Liked seeing a book written by a successful lady in science. I identified with the researcher/student but not with a lot of other topics she talked about. Her humor is just a bit darker than mine and her relationships/social experiences are completely different.It was an absolutely interesting read and fairly quick. It inspires me to want to work harder but makes me even more hopeless in my quest for meaningful relationships and a fulfilling purpose in life. Her writing style is unique and quirky. You learn a bit more about plants in a poetic way.The first half was quite depressing, esp. for the state of mind I am in right now. Giving it three stars, mostly because based on the reviews I had read of it, I wanted it to be more than it was. This is a unique story about her life, not an inspirational story.