November 19th is World Toilet Day! Established by the World Toilet Organization and celebrated annually, it seeks to increase awareness of the importance of toilet sanitation and each individual's right to a safe and hygienic sanitary environment.
Believe it or not, lack of sanitation is the world’s biggest cause of infection. Today, one in four people don’t have a toilet. This means people must relieve themselves in open streets, fields, or dangerous back alleys. In India alone, the number of people who practice defecation is double the population of the U.S. Because of situations like this, at least 1.8 million people die from fecally-transmitted diseases every year.
Sanitation History – Why Toilets Matter
Not long ago, New York, London and Paris were centers of infectious disease, facing the same water problems that cities like Mumbair, Lagos, and Rio de Janeiro face today. Life expectancy was low and child death rates were as high then as they are now in much of Sub-Saharan Africa. It was sweeping reforms in water and sanitation that enabled human progress to leap forward.
As stated by a United Nations Human Developm
ent Report, “For most of human history life has conformed to Thomas Hobbes’ description as ‘nasty, brutish, and short.’ Life expectancy at birth for our hunter-gatherer ancestors was about 25 years, and in Europe of the 1820s it was still only 40 years. From the late 19th century this picture started to change dramatically for the fortunate share of humanity living in today’s rich countries. New medicines, improved nutrition, better housing and increased income all contributed. But one of the most powerful forces for change was the separation of water from human excreta.
When it comes to water and sanitation, countries tend to have short memories. Today, people in the cities of Europe and the United States live free from fear of waterborne infectious diseases. At the turn of the 20th century the picture was very different. The vast expansion of wealth that followed industrialization increased incomes, but improvements in more fundamental indicators such a life expectancy, child survival and public health lagged far behind. The reason: cities exposed people to greater opportunities to amass wealth but also to water contaminated with human waste. The mundane reality of un-clean water severed the link between economic growth and human development. It was not until a revolution in water and sanitation restored that link that wealth generation and human welfare started to move in tandem.”
More Toilet Facts
- One-third of all Americans flush the toilet while they are still sitting on it.
- An average person visits the toilet 2,500 times a year, about 6-8 times a day. This adds up to three years of your life.
- 40,000 Americans are injured by toilets each year.
- The first toilet ever seen on television was on “Leave It To Beaver.”
- Car steering wheels carry more than twice as many germs as a toilet seat
- Urine on the toilet seat – although disgusting, it is a nearly sterile liquid.
- In Florida, a 7th grade student recently won a school science fair by proving there was more bacteria in ice machines at fast-food restaurants than in toilet bowl water in the United States.
- Contrary to popular lore, Thomas Crapper didn’t invent the toilet. Seated toilets with drainage systems date back to 2500 B.C. The flush toilet was invented in 1596 by John Harrington.
The solutions are simple and cost-effective. On average, every US dollar invested in water and sanitation provides an economic return of eight US dollars. For only $30, Water.org can bring someone access to a toilet for the rest of their life.
Other (free and easy!) solutions include visiting water.org's World Toilet Day page and signing up to donate the status, avatar, or background on your Twitter or Facebook pages.
Another thing you can do is take part in The Big Squat: To help raise awareness for the 2.5 billion people who don't have access to sanitation, thousands of people are going to squat for one minute.
All over the world, in malls, in offices, on city streets - everywhere you turn, people will be squatting. Participating in the Big Squat is simple. Simply squat for one minute in a highly visible location, and then have a plan to explain to anyone who notices WHY you're all squatting. Visit worldtoiletday.com/squat/ for more information.One Tribe is proud to profile socially and environmentally responsible organizations and events. Additionally, sales of our custom-designed organic t-shirts help create a lasting revenue stream for Water.org.
With our 50/50 promise, HALF the price of a shirt goes directly to
water.org. That money is enough to provide one person access to clean water for life.Get yours today – and don’t forget, these make excellent gifts this holiday season. Learn more here: OneTribe.com
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