International (MNN) ― Each year, more than 10 million people die from diseases related to unsafe drinking water.
In more developed areas, diseases like cholera, typhoid, and dysentery have nearly been eliminated because of health awareness and advanced water and sewage treatment practices.
But in South Africa, Central America, and rural areas in the Caribbean, disease-carrying organisms in the water are still killing millions. International Aid worked to find a solution in an eight-pound wonder called the "Hydraid BioSand Water Filter."
Because it's made of plastic, it's easily portable. It's less expensive than other models, and it's durable. Once in place, the filter can provide 75 gallons of potable water per day for up to ten people.
It's a project that makes people want to help. That's why International Aid is launching the "Clear Cause Campaign"--a project which pairs fundraising (the local sale of cases of bottled water) with a safe water cause and ministry potential.
Take, for example, a church in Indiana that has been working in India for eight years. International Aid's Kurt Reppart says they've identified clean water as an issue. "They want to provide 150 filters in two of those communities. They're going to take this water ,and they're going to sell 150 cases. And by doing that, they'll support the filters that they want to install in that village."
Each $45 case represents one BioSand water filter. International Aid also shares the profits. Let's go back to the team from Indiana. The team also wants to be on-hand to install the filters in these seven villages with whom they've built relationship.
They can use the profits they earned from the "Clear Cause Campaign" to help pay for the trip, explains Reppart. "Once they've sold the water, the profits shared with the Hydraid project will help the team go on the mission trip to India. They'll come to our site here, and their team will be trained by our experts so that they can install them properly. Then they'll meet the container in India and use it as a tool for reaching out to the community and for reaching out in evangelism."
The ministry team believes that Christians must respond actively to the Biblical commands requiring followers of Christ to offer "the least of these" a cup of water and with it, the message of hope. "The benefit is clear," says Reppart. "By enjoying the water that you purchase, you're also providing it for someone else. It's a perfect way to love your neighbor as yourself."
