World Water Day: Conrad Hilton Foundation Pledges $50 Million To Clean Water Initiatives

In honor of World Water Day, the Conrad Hilton Foundation announced a $50 million commitment to clean water initiatives in Sub-Saharan Africa, Mexico and India.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), inadequate access to safe water kills 3,900 children every day who fall prey to waterborne illness.

Lack of sanitation creates this unsafe situation in communities around the world because waste contaminates water sources, spreading cholera, malaria and diarrhoea, which can be deadly for impoverished people.

The Hilton Foundation's $50 million pledge will be divided up into grants awarded to nonprofit organizations to fund projects, such water and sanitation infrastructure, as well as spreading information to at-risk communities.

According to the press release, several grant recipients have already been announced.

WaterAid America and World Vision will receive funding to construct safe water sources in Burkina Faso, Ghana, Mali and Niger. Both organizations will also work to educate communities about hygiene and sanitation practices that reduce the risk of spreading disease.

Water.org, the nonprofit co-founded by actor Matt Damon, won a grant to develop a "comprehensive communication and advocacy program."

Meanwhile, the Foundation Center will be responsible for building a website that will provide information to spread awareness about the global clean water crisis and give users resources to donate to support water projects.

To learn more about World Water Day and how you take action, check out HuffPost Impact's list of 8 ways to get involved.

Comments

[London Reader]

02:39 PM on 03/27/2011

Water or Coca Cola? some interesting facts while thinking about World Water Day. Another can of Coke or fresh from the tap?

http://thewritefuture.typepad.com/the-write-future/2011/03/my-kids-love-coca-cola-most-likely-because-i-never-give-it-to-them-as-i-dont-think-kids-under-10-should-drink-it-if-they-ar.html

[RichardWalden]

01:35 PM on 03/24/2011

Great idea...especially in places like Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger where development funding is hard to come by.