It’s Blog Action Day 2010! This year the focus is on our global water crisis and we are so excited that all around the world today bloggers will bring attention to the Global Water Crisis much like the Voss Foundation has been doing since our inception in 2008!

Did you know that a child dies every 20 seconds from a water-related disease? This statistic is astronomical, shocking and heartbreaking -- but also preventable.  Access to clean water is not just an environmental issue. It’s a human rights issue. Water is a global concern, and it affects all of us.

Obviously the makers of one of the world’s purest waters realized it was their responsibility to bring attention to the lack of availability of clean drinking water in third world countries.  In 2008, the then-CEO of Voss of Norway ASA founded the Voss Foundation after a trip to Africa where he saw firsthand the magnitude of the global water crisis.  And so the pivotal work of the Voss Foundation began.

Can one person really make a change? Our founders thought so. Jewel and Sir Richard Branson thought so, when their charities, Project Clean Water and Virgin Unite, invited the Voss Foundation to join their Give A Drop partnership as the key project management partner.

The Voss Foundation has also attracted hundreds of women whose conscience motivates them to help women around the world in their struggle for a better life. Under the leadership of the Voss Foundation, this group of women became “Women Helping Women” and committed themselves to improve the lives of mothers and children in Sub-Saharan Africa. Contributions go to help women and girls in a chosen village to achieve improved health and hygiene for themselves and their families.  Women Helping Women, which started as a grassroots operation in 2009, has grown into the most successful initiative for the Voss Foundation to date.

Want to join us? 

On November 3, 2010 Voss Foundation will hold our annual Women Helping Women Luncheon in New York City to solely benefit the water system for one Sub-Saharan village. The generosity of our sponsors will allow 100% of all ticket sales to go directly to the water project. With the help of our founders, supporters and other partners, the Voss Foundation will continue to bring clean water to the rural communities in Sub-Saharan Africa that need it most.

If you’re in the New York City area and would like to attend the luncheon or join us by making a contribution to Women Helping Women of any size, visit our Women Helping Women website.

Donors can also donate to support the Voss Foundation’s vital work in other projects in Kenya, Mali, Ethiopia, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo on our website here.

Spread the Word!

Voss Foundation is now using social media to get the word out about aiding the global water crisis, partners across the world and what you can do now to make a difference. Follow us on Twitter @vossfoundation or join our Facebook page (www.facebook.com/vossfoundation)

Tell Us!

What are you doing to bring awareness to the global water crisis – above and beyond your own community? If you would like to get involved contact us via email at info@thevossfoundation.org

*Images courtesy of Blog Action Day 2010