WASH simply explained • for small and large soulfriends

In our online shop there are soulbottles with a mouse, elephant and duck - hurray! The mouse stands for interesting and simply explained factual stories. We are particularly well-versed in factual stories on the subject of drinking water and WASH. In this blog article we therefore explain what this is all about in mouse style.

Mouse, elephant and duck have been explaining to us for decades how the world works. For example, how Salt comes into the seas , where water appears everywhere or how glass is recycled They are open, curious and charming, so they are a fantastic fit for us. From now on, our online shop will have soulbottles from the mouse and her crew to make sustainable behavior easy for young and old. And since donations from you go to WASH'n'soul via us, mouse fans are giving people all over the world access to drinking water - a clean solution! But wait, what is actually...

WASH?

The abbreviation WASH stands for Water , sanitation , Hygiene and to explain why it is so important, we have to start a little earlier: In Germany, most people can simply turn on the tap: to drink a glass of water, to shower and to wash their hands. But you also need water for cooking, to flush the toilet, to do laundry or to clean. So having a water connection at home is really very practical.

water

But that is not the case everywhere: many people do not have a direct water connection at home. They have to fetch the water they need every day for drinking, cooking and washing from a well or spring and carry it home. The wells and springs are often far away and people have to travel a long way to get the water back home.

In addition to the long and tiring journeys, there is a second problem, namely the cleanliness of the water. In Germany, the water that we flush down the drain is cleaned and the next time we turn on the tap, it bubbles out of the tap clean again. This is extremely important, because if you drink contaminated water,

sanitation and hygiene

Wells and springs should ideally be as close to people's houses as possible and the water must be clean. This is where toilets come into play: without running water, there is no flushing system for the toilet. This can lead to too many bacteria getting into the water sources and making people sick. In addition to the flushing system, there is something else missing: a sink for washing hands. This is because the bacteria can also get into the body via the hands.

water: a human right

So people need clean Water for drinking, Sanitary facilities, that is another word for toilets, and the possibility to wash, so H ygiene, in order to live a healthy life – together this makes WASH. This is so fundamentally important that it is even considered a human right. So everyone in the world deserves access to water. But more than 771 million people do not have access to clean drinking water. That is roughly the same as multiplying the number of people in Germany by nine.

soulbottles and Viva con Agua

There are WASH projects to give everyone the opportunity to exercise their human right. The sale of soulbottles, for example, supports WASH'n'soul. This is a project by soulbottles, BORDA and Viva con Agua de Sankt Pauli. Viva con Agua is an association that helps people to build a safe water supply. For example, they build wells, toilets and sinks together with local people. But they also explain how to wash your hands properly and why clean water is so important.

WASH in Nepal

In 2018 our soulie Laura Viva con Agua on a project trip to Nepal She experienced first-hand the impact of our donations and was able to see what WASH projects look like. For example, she decorated the newly built toilet block with handprints with children from a school. It was a lot of fun and the children learned afterwards how to wash their hands thoroughly. With soap, for at least 30 seconds and you also have to scrub thoroughly between your fingers.

WASH'n'soul in Zambia

To date, we have been able to provide around 80,000 people in Nepal with access to clean drinking water. The projects work in such a way that after a certain period of time, the local people no longer need help from Viva con Agua. That is why we have now started a new project in Zambia.

Help us to make drinking water available to everyone! Be it through the soulbottles with the mouse and her crew , a direct donation to WASH'n'soul or by explaining to friends and family how important WASH is – every drop counts.