Nike is collaborating with the Waves For Water charity initiative to help bring clean water to Haiti. Via its Hurley International subsidiary, Nike is backing the Gamechanger Bucket – a container, which provides access to both clean water and sport.
Waves For Water was founded by recently retired professional surfer Jon Rose and is committed to delivering water buckets filled with sporting goods and water filtration equipment to help tackle the shortage of clean water and to prevent new epidemic outbursts among the displaced community following last year’s earthquake.
Since the 2010 earthquake, Haiti is classified as having the worst quality water ranking of the 147 countries ranked by the United Nations. Due to the disaster and the general poor clean water supply in the country (Haiti doesn’t have public water system), last October saw a tragic outbreak of cholera.
This Gamechanger Bucket kit, containing a football (soccer ball), a water filter and tarp & rope for catching rain, is designed to help tackle the problem and prevent new epidemic outbursts. The aim is that each kit has the potential to provide clean water for 100 people for at least 5 years and stop the spread of cholera and other water-borne diseases.
As well as working to eradicate Cholera and other water-borne diseases, the long-term effects on the beneficiaries are providing health (clean water) and happiness (soccer) for themselves, their family and their community.
“In Haiti soccer is a step through the doorway of their shattered existence, to a new place where the weight of the world isn’t on their shoulders,” says Jon Rose, Founder, Waves for Water. “We feel that the bare essentials for survival were health and happiness, ie water & sport.”
The charity is seeking to raise $75,000 via the globalgiving.orgsite. Web users can donate through the link below.
Comment:
Hurley International may be one of Nike’s lesser known offshoots, but with the backing of its parent brand it can play a major role through name recognition and distribution networks. Rose is a long-time Hurley sponsored surfer, and by standing behind their athlete despite his recent retirement the two can use their power to reach for more than just profit.
The fact that Rose’s father himself has a track record of developing water filtration kits for the developing world further boosts the credibility of this CSR initiative.
Links:
www.wavesforwater.org/2010/09/jons-haiti-update-sep-10/
www.globalgiving.org/projects/gamechanger-bucket/
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