Jen
provided clean safe water to one rural African community!
Jen raised $900!
This paid for:
48 water filters for Naivasha locals
Venue hire for a clean water education session in Naivasha
Transportation to Naivasha for Beth and her team of volunteers
Jen's Motivation
It’s so easy to take for granted how much we use water as part of our daily lives; showering, washing clothes, cleaning, gardening and most importantly….drinking!
For most people, having a drink of water is the first thing we do in the morning and one of the last things we have before bed, so imagine how frustrating it would be if our water was dirty and could potentially make us sick! Beth has created a filter system that will clean the local water in Kenya so that it’s safe to drink, but I need your help to make this happen!
Jen's Feedback
Each of the 48 water filters Jen raised the funds for provides clean water for one family. The filters are handmade using locally available resources by Beth and her team.
Beth made a video to show Jen how they do it!
Beth's Story
Beth, a 25 year old from Kenya, knows the effects of dirty water all too well: as a young woman she became very sick after drinking contaminated water. Beth is now determined to improve access to clean water in Kenya.
Beth received a government sponsorship to study community development at university and conducted research in eastern Kenya on water borne diseases. The city where Beth had moved to for university was next to a river, which the residents pumped drinking water from. The locals were used to it, but the brown water irritated Beth. She wanted to buy a water filter, but the cheapest she could find was $50. So she did some research and realised she could make one for herself. Beth had no money, but she did have a used peanut butter jar, which she used to hold charcoal dust. This charcoal can filter soil particles, cleansing the water.
During her fourth year, Beth started a project that provides poor communities in Kenya with affordable filters. Her lecturer didn’t like the project and failed Beth. But by this stage, people had started to hear about Beth's filters and they started approaching her to provide filters to their communities. So instead of giving up, Beth decided she wanted to grow her model and bring clean water to more communities.
"I made 300 water filters. At first I was embarrassed, they don’t look good, they’re handmade. But the beneficiaries loved them. Then people from other areas were sending me messages that I should come to their place"
- Beth
Beth can make her homemade filters for a fraction of the price that commercial water filters sell for. She also has a team of skilled volunteers who visit local villages, educating people on the importance of clean water. She uses any donations that she receives to buy water filters which she distributes at these community water education sessions.
Locals in Naivasha in the Rift Valley area of Kenya have contacted Beth to provide water education and filters to their community. The Rift Valley is one of the most impoverished areas in Kenya and Beth is determined to support them.