Turn Clean Water ON for 80,000 lives in developing communities

- Give one person clean water for life with $25 donation at WE.org/wateron -
- Click here to access the Electronic Press Kit complete with bios, photos and backgrounders -
- Join the #CleanWaterON conversation on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook -

TORONTO, March 20, 2019 /CNW/ - Over 840 million people around the world lack access to clean water, forcing women and children to collectively spend more than 200 million hours fetching water every day. Ahead of World Water Day, WE, a family of organizations that make doing good, doable, launches its second annual clean water campaign uniting young people, families and communities across North America and the UK with a new goal to deliver clean water to 80,000 people in developing communities in Africa, Asia and South-America. Access to clean water is one of the most fundamental and fastest ways to help lift a community out of poverty and a $25 donation at WE.org/wateron can unlock clean water for one person for life. Change-makers can also take action by fundraising or hosting their own water walk through WE Walk For Water on May 10, 2019 alongside tens of thousands of others.

"Last year, over 200,000 youth from across Canada, the U.S. and the UK collectively delivered clean water for life to 40,000 people through the inaugural WE Walk For Water campaign," said Craig Kielburger, co-founder of WE. "With over 40 per cent of the world's population still affected by water scarcity, we hope to double our impact this year by turning clean water on for 80,000 people. I can't wait to see the wave of impact these young change-makers will have again this year."

Joining the WE movement of young people and families turning clean water on is Actor/Producer, Giacomo Gianniotti, who recently came back from Kenya where he witnessed WE's water projects and saw first-hand how access to clean water creates a ripple effect of impact across an entire community. "During my visit to Kenya's Maassai Mara, I had the chance to spend time with local community members and hear from them how clean, accessible drinking water drastically improves their day-to-day lives," said Giacomo Gianniotti. "The visit really motivated and inspired me to bring the stories I heard back home and empower anyone who can to donate, fundraise or walk to bring clean water to a community without it."

A champion for water as a basic human right for the past eight years, WE ambassador, author and influencer, Spencer West has driven awareness and fundraised for the global water crisis. By leading a 300 km walk across the province of Alberta as well as climbing and summiting to the top of Mount Kilimanjaro on his hands and wheel chair, Spencer has helped change lives across Kenya. "I'm proud to say these initiatives helped deliver clean water to over 26,500 people, but that wasn't our initial plan," said Spencer West. "Our climb up Mount Kilimanjaro had originally set out to fundraise for education, to open doors to classrooms for young girls across Kenya, but when we heard about the country's life-threatening drought, we shifted our fundraising from education to water. After seeing the impact of our fundraising first hand, we realized access to clean water truly transforms a community, not only helping girls attend school, but also improving people's health and stabilizing food security."

WE's partnership with developing communities to turn clean water on

What started in 1995 as a mission to fight child labour has evolved to address its root cause – extreme poverty, including addressing access to clean water. To date, WE has provided one million people with access to clean water through WE Villages, WE's holistic and sustainable development model built on five pillars of impact: Education, Water, Health, Food and Opportunity. For a family in a developing community, access to clean water can mean the life-changing difference between a young girl getting an education instead of spending her day collecting water from contaminated water sources. Clean water empowers communities to break free from the cycle of poverty because it reduces illness, opens doors to education for young girls and increases sustainable farming for families.

Empowering young people to take action on the global water crisis

Domestically, young people can take action on the global water crisis through WE Schools, a free service-learning program that brings pressing social issues into the classroom. Dedicated to the issue of clean water, WE School's action campaign, WE Walk for Water provides educational resources that empower educators and students with the tools to explore the importance of access to clean water and create an action plan for how they can make an impact on the issue.

Getting involved and where to start

Whether at school, at home or in the workplace, anyone can get involved by donating, fundraising or walking. Visit WE.org/wateron to get started and explore supporting materials that include:

Tool kits on how to take action here
Real stories of change from individuals in WE's partner communities here
Fast facts about the global water issue here

Stay connected on the latest updates by following #CleanWaterON and @WEmovement.

About WE
WE is a family of organizations that make doing good, doable. WE is made up of WE Charity, empowering domestic and international change, ME to WE, a social enterprise that creates socially conscious products and experiences to help support the charity, and WE Day, filling stadiums around the world with the greatest celebration of social good.

WE Charity was founded in 1995 by then 12-year-old Craig Kielburger with a mission to fight child labour. WE has since grown and evolved to address the root cause of child labour—extreme poverty. In the past 24 years, WE's programmes have empowered over one million people with clean water, built 1,500 schools and schoolrooms overseas, and empowered more than 200,000 children with access to education.

SOURCE WE Charity

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