The Beat the Dry challenge is your chance to do something about poverty. By drinking only water for 2 weeks, you can raise funds to bring clean, safe water to people who need it. This June, you can help NTA to beat the dry and raise funds to build water tanks, wells and toilets to the people of eastern Indonesia.

Water is a vital part of any community in the world. In poverty-stricken regions, a lack of water can perpetuate the poverty cycle. More than 1 in 10 people across the world have no access to clean drinking water (http://unstats.un.org). In eastern Indonesia, seasonal weather patterns mean that there is little or no rainfall for up to 7-8 months of the year. Often, this results in family members having to spend hours of their days walking to the closest water supply to carry back enough water for themselves and their family. This takes hours away from time otherwise spent earning an income, or for children, attending school. Add to this the related problem of sanitation - lack of toilets leads to illness and disease, and in small children or the elderly even death.

The NTA's 15,000 litre ferro-cement water tanks provide a viable backup source of water for many families and communities throughout Nusa Tenggara Timur (NTT), the eastern province of Indonesia in which NTA works. This allows for water to be collected during the wet season, off the roof of nearby buildings, thereby smoothing consumption over the periods where rainfall becomes scarce. For a family of 4-5 people, a water tank can provide water for up to 5 months out of every year, significantly improving the quality of their lives and allowing more time to be spent on other income-producing activities. The toilets that NTA builds prevent existing water sources from being contaminated and help improve hygiene, and therefor help prevent life-threatening illnesses.

Make a difference now! Get your friends and family to sponsor you for 2 weeks. The money you raise brings water wells, tanks and toilets to eastern Indonesia, and makes a huge difference for hundreds of farmers and their families.

It's not too late to sign up!