Gobi, Ethiopia—Jennifer Gross, from Blue Chip Foundation and musician-philanthropist Julian Lennon, from White Feather Foundation, traveled with charity: water to Gobi, Ethiopia to participate in the opening of a new well in the poverty-stricken community.
The organization funds programs in 24 countries throughout Africa, Asia, Central America and South America to provide rural communities with their first access to clean, safe water. The organization uses 100 percent of all public donations to fund water projects and makes GPS coordinates available to show where every dollar goes. As of now, charity: water has funded 23,377 water projects to provide 7,128,152 people with clean water.
Founder of charity: water Scott Harrison, invited Gross and Lennon to explore the foundation’s operations in Ethiopia. Angela Ahrendts, then-CEO of Burberry and current senior vice president of Apple’s retail division, was also there to open a well she’d funded through a campaign; that was Gross’s inspiration to raise funds for another well shortly after the trip.
“My husband and decided to donate our wedding to charity: water. We raised over $10,000.00,” says Gross. “I have visited the Tigray region four or five times and fall in love with the terrain and the people there every time. On my first trip to Ethiopia, I promised the malaria specialist from the Millennium Villages Project (MVP), so our contribution to charity: water is a terrific extension and fulfillment of that bond.”
The expansion of clean water sources has made a tremendous contribution to Ethiopia’s efforts to fight poverty. Since the country’s emergence from civil war in 1990, charity: water reports that access to water has increased from less than 15 percent to nearly 50 percent—but because Ethiopia is the second-most populous country in Africa, there are still tens of millions of people without access who are forced to use dirty water.
Residents typically have to walk miles to access water in Ethiopia, and in many cases, the water is teeming with parasites and is visibly dirty.
“We visited some communities that didn’t yet have wells,” recalls Gross. “It was obvious to see the difference for the people who had already had a well for a while, versus the ones who didn’t have one yet. We could easily see how terrible the water is. Scott [Harrison] shows pictures in presentations back home how dirty the water is, but it’s possible to think, ‘That’s staged,’ or ‘That can’t be possible.’ Having been there in person, I can confirm that it really was that way on the ground.”
Gross and Lennon were able to see first-hand what charity: water does. The pair witnessed a well being blasted into the ground with dynamite, another being drilled by a substantial rig that caused a 40-foot geyser of water to burst into the air, and held a community meeting with elders and religious heads to discuss the effects of clean water on the village.
Consistent with the objectives of the Blue Chip Foundation and the Sustainable Development Goals, charity: water notes that “access to clean water in Ethiopia reduces water collection time and disease burden, creating transformational change in education, gender equality, and household income. Supporting access to clean water in Ethiopia builds a critical foundation for future development and prosperity.”
“I’m a member of the Well which strictly supports only operations in New York. Normally, I like all of the money I donate to go to special projects in the field. However, I appreciate the complete transparency that Scott and his team create through his funding model. By donating to the Well, I can ensure that every penny that is raised goes straight to the field,” says Gross.
