More and more, we're all realising the impact of water on our planet. We see it in so many ways – in drought we see its lack, in floods we see its destructive capacity, and in health we see how essential it is for us all.

 To help us 'get' that, Prof. Arjen Hoekstra at UNESCO-IHE and scientists at the University of Twente in the Netherlands developed the concept of the 'water footprint' (you can see more at www.waterfootprint.org).

Using the science, you find some staggering things. For example:

• The production of one kilogram of beef requires 16 thousand litres of water.

• To produce one cup of coffee we need 140 litres of water.

• The water footprint of China is about 700 cubic meters per year per capita. Only about 7% of the Chinese water footprint falls outside China.

• Japan with a footprint of 1150 cubic meter per year per capita, has about 65% of its total water footprint outside the borders of the country.

• The USA water footprint is 2500 cubic meter per year per capita.

Staggering isn't it? And it leads us nicely into a great story about WellWishers – one of our wonderful Worthy Causes here in B1G1. Established in Australia by Ross and Marianne, they build as minimum of 30 full-scale wells each year in Tigray, Ethiopia

What's equally wonderful about Well Wishers is the way their projects span the full range of transaction-based giving in B1G1. For less than1 cent, you can make sure that a child gets access to water. And it goes all the way up to $6000 for a full-scale well.

As Ross and Marianne put it, 'a gift of water is a gift of life'. So if you know businesses (for example, cafés) who could be part of B1G1 by saying 'every time you buy just one cup of coffee, a child gets access to water', let them know about B1G1. It's a great way of leveraging your own giving by getting others involved. The reality is that together we can make a difference – through our everyday activities.

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