Help! The World needs Water!

I went to Blogher with the expectations of meeting some great people, getting free stuff, seeing NYC, and hopefully gaining some new readers. What I didn't expect was to walk away so inspired!

I found inspiration everywhere I looked; from bloggers that were overcoming adversity, to women making a difference in their community. The power of the human voice has never been so clear to me as it is now that I attended Blogher '10. Though we are but a small voice in the world, we have the power to make a large difference!

Now, I need your voice to help me make a difference! I have signed up to participate in the Clean Water Blogivation campaign. If my blog receives the most votes, I will win an opportunity to join Dr. Greg Allgood on a clean water expedition to Africa and a $15,000 donation to my favorite charity tackling water issues. Of course, I would like to win, but more important than me winning, is the difference you can make just by voting. For every vote you give me, Proctor & Gamble will provide someone clean water for a day!

Some years ago, I read about a straw that was invented with a built in filter that could be used to aide in providing clean water around the world. I remember telling some of my friends about this, and thinking how I wish I could help with this in some way. This straw was such a good idea, but it is too costly to manufacture and ship to make enough of an impact.

At Blogher, I stopped to talk to someone at P&G and found out that they have found a less costly way to purify water by a simple mixture into a bucket of water. This small packet of powder can make a huge difference in the efforts to provide the world with clean drinking water, and I want to help.

 Many of us focus on how bad water bottles are for our environment, and how we should use reusable containers with tap water. But, can you imagine not having either option? Can you imagine having to walk miles to get water with your baby in your arms and your other child in tow, only to get to the water source and not be able to drink of it?! Do you think you'd be able to stop yourself, let alone your child, from drinking the murky parasite infested water after the long hot walk in the sun?!

• Every 20 seconds, a child in a developing country dies from a water related illness.
• Almost 1 billion people lack safe drinking water
• More than 1.4 billion children under age 5 die each year because of diarrheal diseases

While these children, young children, all around the world are dieing from lack of water, we are arguing over what container to put our water in!

It's time for a change! Please help me to make a difference. Use the power of your voice. Tell P&G that you support their efforts by voting for me, and look for specially marked coupons to use to save you money and provide someone else clean water for a day.

You can vote once per day until August 27, 2010. Remember each vote provides clean water for a day. Let your voice be heard!

♪ We're one but we're not the same, we get to carry each other, carry each other, one♪  (U2)