Water Matters

The latest on our work and those supporting it



For this community health volunteer, fighting COVID-19 is personal


Friday, December 18th, 2020by Shannon Esrich

“If you love your life, it is better to follow what the health officials advise: to protect ourselves by wearing a mask, keeping distance, not shaking hands, and avoiding crowded places.” This is Celestine Adora’s message, a mother and a resident of Muraka, Kenya, where she works as the local Community Health Volunteer. Used to […]

 

A university student waits out the upheaval of the pandemic at home with patience, clean water


Friday, December 11th, 2020by Shannon Esrich

“With the restrictions removed, the first thing I would like to do, personally, is I would like to go back to school and complete my studies,” said Kamins Muteshi. Kamins is a 24-year-old university student currently living in Bukhunyilu, Western Kenya, where he relies on Solomon Wangula Spring for water. Like so many others his age across […]

 

Through Their Eyes: COVID-19 Chronicles with Justin Mbila


Thursday, December 10th, 2020by Tom Murphy

Our team recently visited Kithumba to conduct COVID-19 prevention training and monitor their water point. Shortly after, we returned to check in on the community, offer a COVID-19 refresher training, and ask how the pandemic affects their lives. During this most recent visit, Justin Mbila shared her story of how the coronavirus impacts her life […]

 

Through Their Eyes: COVID-19 Chronicles with Leonard Nguluma Maloloi


Thursday, December 3rd, 2020by Tom Murphy

Our team recently visited Kanthuni in Southeast Kenya to conduct COVID-19 prevention training and monitor their water point system: a sand dam and nearby shallow well. Shortly after, we returned to check in on the community, offer a COVID-19 refresher training, and ask how the pandemic affects their lives. During this most recent visit, Leonard […]

 

A message (and dance) of thanks


Thursday, November 26th, 2020by Shannon Esrich

This Thanksgiving season, there is so much that may be different from other years. Who we are with, where we are staying, and what we eat may all be unique. But what remains is a time to share our appreciation, gratitude, and joy in whatever way we can. We at The Water Project welcome you […]

 

In Kenya, springing to action as schools partially reopen


Friday, November 20th, 2020by Shannon Esrich

When Kenya closed schools nationwide in March 2020 to help curb the spread of the novel coronavirus, we worked carefully to ensure all school rain tanks and latrines already underway reached completion despite the closure. To achieve this, we relied on a combination of mutual trust and communication with the schools and students’ families to […]

 

Getting from 367 million children without school toilets to 0


Thursday, November 19th, 2020by Tom Murphy

One out of every four people in the world still does not have access to basic sanitation services. These roughly 2 billion people do not have a safe place to go to the bathroom, according to a new report from the World Health Organization (WHO) and the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) released to mark World […]

 

Through Their Eyes: COVID-19 Chronicles with Jane Musui


Friday, November 13th, 2020by Tom Murphy

Our team recently visited Kithoni Community in Southeast Kenya to conduct a COVID-19 prevention training and monitor their water point. Shortly after, we returned to check in on the community, offer a COVID-19 refresher training, and ask how the pandemic is affecting their lives. During this most recent visit, Jane Musui shared her story of […]

 

Grit, trust, and collaboration: Restoring clean water to a community amid drought and a pandemic


Thursday, November 5th, 2020by Shannon Esrich

In Kenya, 2019 was one of the driest years on record – following the global trend of climate change driving severe weather patterns to the extreme. As a result, we observed increased regional fluctuations in the water table throughout Western Kenya. Asman Sumba Spring in Eshiakhulo, Kenya was one of the water points most impacted […]

 

COVID-19 is sparing countries with poor hygiene, but waterborne diseases are not


Friday, October 30th, 2020by Tom Murphy

It turns out that lower levels of hygiene, sanitation, and water quality indicate a lower risk of dying from COVID-19. That is what a group of researchers found when trying to understand why some countries are doing better than others during the pandemic. That does not mean improved sanitation, hygiene, and water access are still […]