We're building a well — A Year With My Camera

(We’re actually building a “piped system tap stand” but that doesn’t scan.)

Last year A Year With My Camera set out to raise £7,500 to bring safe water to a community that doesn’t have it. Just before Christmas we met that target and last week I heard about the actual project we will be building.

Every penny donated goes directly to our named project. We are working with charity: water who have other backers to fund their administration, leaving all money raised by supporters free to go straight to the field.

We will be funding a tap stand for a community of about 400 people in SNNPR, Ethiopia. It takes up to 6 months for the partners on the ground to do their research and preparation. Once the construction begins we will receive another update.

charity: water says, “Gravity-fed and mechanized piped systems transport water from high up in the mountains down to communities below. The water source for these systems is a naturally occurring spring that is covered and protected.

From this protected intake point, water is piped down into a network of pipes that distribute it to multiple tap stands. These community tap stands are located no more than 15 minutes away from each of the households they serve, decreasing the time many families spend collecting water from distant sources.”

White saviour complex

The white saviour complex has been in the news lately. I chose to work with charity: water because they use local partners to build and maintain their water projects, following consultation with the community. They do not parachute in, dig a well and then leave. They ensure their projects are wanted, and sustainable - able to be maintained by the community. A list of their local partners can be seen here.

Thank you

Thank you to everyone who donated, many more than once.