Water for life for $25

Maybe you’ve seen actor Matt Damon’s funny video about him going on a toilet strike (no “caca”, no “pee-pee”) until the world gets clean water. Well, the actor is doing more than joking; he’s actually one of the co-founders of www.water.org, an organization working to help provide access to safe water and sanitation to developing countries in need. Some of site’s eye-opening statistics include:

• 780 million people on the planet don’t have access to clean water.

• 3.4 million people die from water-related diseases annually.

• 99 percent of those deaths occur in the developing countries.

• By 2025, the proportion of the world’s population living in water-stressed areas will increase by two-thirds.

One of the most straightforward and relatively easy solutions available at water.org for helping get safe drinking water to those in need is for visitors to start their own fundraisers via the site’s crowdfunding tool. It works much like popular fundraising sites, Kickstarter and Indiegogo. After schooling yourself on the issues, write up a pitch for your personalized fundraising campaign, start your fundraiser, then invite your friends, family, co-workers, classmates and other people in your social network to donate. Each $25 raised translates into providing water for life to one person.