World Water Day 2012

Activities by and with members of the WASH network

WASH-Netzwerk & Viva con Agua | Berlin

“Lass-laufen…” 

On occasion of the World Water Day 2012, the German WASH network organised a symbolic walk for drinking water. The slogan was “Lass-laufen…” – a word play on the verb “laufen” which translates as “walking” but can also be used with reference to water as “running”: The slogan thus translates as “Let’s walk” or “Let it run…”. About 100 activists took up the invitation and marched through Berlin with canisters and other containers, bowls and flasks. The march was organised by Viva con Agua Berlin and many others joined them:  Arche Nova, the German Toilet Organization, Ingeneers without borders as well as WASH-United.

World wide, 800 million people still lack access to clean drinking water. About three times as many people live without basic sanitary supplies! Many have to travel 5km or more to reach something that is self-evident to us: clean water! 5 km – This is the distance we walked together, in solidarity with these people and demonstrating that this situation is unacceptable!

We started the walk with a WASH network photo session qt 11.30 infront of the Bundetag in Berlin. Together with member of the Bundestag Gudrun Kopp we filled the first jars and canisters with water from the Spree.

To the press release

Watch the video!

To the pictures

 


11.30 am: photo session

on the banks of the Spree infront of the Marie-Elisabeth-Lüders-Haus (acess by foot via the Marshallbrücke / Luisenstraße)

photo background: Spree, Bundestag

Present:

  • Gudrun Kopp (member of the German Bundestag and undersecretary of state in the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development)
  • Dr. Uschi Eid (member of the German Bundestag and chairwoman of the Advisory Board on Water and Sanitation to the UN Secretary General, UNSGAB)
  • Thilo Panzerbieter (spokesman of the German WASH network)
  • Marcel Siewert (spokesman of Viva con Agua Berlin)

15.00 pm: „Lass laufen“ Protest

Friedrichsstraße by the Bundestag (directly on the Spree)

Present:

  • Mr Frank Heinrich (member of the Bundestag, reporter on “water” for the Commission Human Rights and Humanitarian Aid in the Bundestag)

The activity is part of the campaign The World Walks for Water and Sanitation, which saw more than  300.000 people in over 75 countries participate.

Join us on our walk for water! Bring yourself, your team, family and friends to support our demonstration “Lass laufen…” for a world without thirst. All you have to bring is a container of your choice.

Find the event on Facebook

 

Press contacts

WASH-Netzwerk
Johannes Rück
Phone 0177 3 29 40 40
johannes.rueck [at] washnet.de
www.washnet.de

Viva con Agua Berlin
Agnieszka Zyluk
Phone 0171 366 00 58
a.zyluk [at] vivaconagua.org

Arche Nova | Dresden