I am Bella, a 9th grader at Francis W. Parker School. In the Fall of 2015, I started a Club at my school called The Clean Water Club which is partnered with Surge. The purpose is to raise awareness and educate students about access to clean water and the sanitation crisis in our world.
Water is life. It connects us to every thing on the planet. When I realized that there are millions of people living without the most basic need, I set out to find a way to help. While researching potential partner organizations, I found Surge. It is based in Chicago and the United Arab Emirates. It is staffed entirely by volunteers and support from people like you and me.
I started the club by presenting a proposal to be approved by a faculty sponsor and the head of the upper school at Parker. The proposal included the purpose, a description and the title of the club. This was the technical part of how I started my club, but the most important part is participants. There are many ways to share news about a new club, such as flyers, posters, campaign videos, emails, and social media. I chose to send out emails to everyone in the upper school to alert them that The Clean Water Club will be launching its first meeting and everyone in our high school is welcome.
I was excited that students showed up to the club meetings and were genuinely invested in learning more about global water and sanitation issues. We have club meetings every other Tuesday during universal lunch break and participate in stimulating activities to learn more about water and sanitation as well as our own (physical and virtual) water footprint.
Past Activities include:
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Having discussions about water by reading facts taped to fun edible treats
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Making and creating kits of essentials (toothpaste, toothbrushes, soap, etc)
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Watching different videos about water and sanitation
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Learning about our water footprint by using a water footprint chart to calculate our water consumption for one single day
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Making collages by cutting out pictures from magazines to express the importance of clean, safe water in our lives
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Hosting guest speakers on World Water Day, such as the Founding Executive Director of Surge
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Connect and engage with younger kids at my school
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Bring current event articles to each meeting
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Continue to raise awareness and integrate sound water practices at school by educating the Parker community at large
