I THIRST

Each day water related, diseases kill 3,900 of the world’s children.

Across the world, 1.1 billion people have no access to clean drinking water. More than 2.5 billion people lack basic sanitation (卫生设备).

The combination proves deadly. Each year, diseases related to inadequate water and sanitation kill between 2 and 5 million people and cause an estimated 80 percent of all sicknesses in the developing world. Safe drinking water is a precondition for health and the fight against child death rate, inequality between men and women, and poverty.

a)The average distance that women in Africa and Asia walk to collect water is 6 kilometers.

b)Only 58 percent of children in sub-Saharan Africa are drinking safe water, and only 37 percent of children in South Asia have access to even a basic toilet.

c)Each year in India alone, 73 million working days are lost to water-borne diseases.

1) Write Congress

Current U.S. foreign aid for drinking water and sanitation budgets only one dollar per year per American citizen. Few members of Congress have ever received a letter for voters about clean drinking water abroad.

2) Sponsor a project with a faith—based organization

Many U.S. religious groups already sponsor water and sanitation projects, working with partner organizations abroad. Simply put a single project by a U.S. organization can make safe water a reality for thousands of people.

3) Support nonprofit water organizations

Numerous U.S.---based nonprofits work skillfully abroad in community---led projects related to drinking water and sanitation. Like the sample of non-profits noted as follows, some organizations are large, other small-scale, some operate worldwide, others are devoted to certain areas in Africa, Asia, or Latin America. Support them generously.

It is lunchtime. At a long table inside a restaurant, some young people sit together over lunch. There is less conversation than you might expect from a typical group of friends: a boy seems to talk only to himself, and a girl looks anxious.

These young people met through a program organized by the nonprofit Actionplay, where young people with autism work together to write and stage a musical. Each Sunday, they work and have lunch together. “You meet other people just like you,” says Lexi Spindel. “That was the first time my daughter had a friend,” says Lexi’s father. “That never happened before Actionplay.”

For decades, scientists have supposed people with autism don’t have or need friends. A new research is forcing a rethink of those long-held beliefs. Autistic people report they want friends. One significant barrier to friendships is common people’s opinion that autistic people are not interested in connecting with them. Appearing uninterested, however, is not always the same as being uninterested. An autistic child looking uninterested in games may in fact be overcome by the noise. And behaviors like clapping hands repeatedly are a way to manage their anxiety and uncertainty, not a sign of their low social interest.

For some autistic people, friendships develop through experimental programs. In a program Lerner developed, participants play a game called Gibberish. where teenagers must interpret each other’s intentions without using real language. The point is not to get it right. but to attend to what the other person is doing in a way that creates opportunities to connect.

Lerner’s ideas were inspired by a moment 16 years ago after he established a small camp for children with autism called Spotlight. On the second day an l1-year-old boy ran up and pulled his clothes. “Lerner, Lerner, where did you find these kids?”

“All over the place,” Lerner answered. “Everyone wants to come to camp, just like you.”

“This is the first normal group of kids I have never met.” the boy said.

A gap year is a year between leaving school and starting university. The excitement of taking a gap year is that you can design it so that you get the most out of it. Whether you want to explore new parts of the world, to learn a new skill, to volunteer or to earn money abroad, Oyster has plenty of gap year programs for you to choose from. An Oyster gap year is surely to be exciting, adventurous and very rewarding.

This is a unique experience with horses found nowhere else. A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for those crazy about horses. Receive a high level of teaching from our very experienced team, who will set you up with a professional, paid job in the Australian horse industry.

Help clean up our oceans and learn to dive on a beautiful beach in Barcelona. Spend your days searching for plastic waste and old fishing nets, analyse your ‘catch’, and then wave goodbye as it makes its way off for recycling.

Supporting a much-admired protection charity in Sri Lanka, you will be working from home to help it continue its essential protection efforts. Travel virtually(虚拟地) to the faraway wilderness, help with wildlife protection, and develop your skills with the most flexibility.

A shocking 33% of food that is produced worldwide each year goes to waste. This project aims to deal with food waste by collecting unused food from supermarkets and restaurants—and giving it away to some of the poorest people within Lisbon