Super Toilet marks World Toilet Day

November 23, 2010

WaterAid joined kids' comedian Charlie Williams in Seattle for World Toilet Day 2010. David Winder, CEO of WaterAid in America, reports:

This past Saturday, I enjoyed a sunny afternoon with Super Toilet, star of WaterAid's animation The Adventures of Super Toilet, at the King County Library System outside of Seattle, Washington to celebrate World Toilet Day 2010.

Not only were the local children and their parents treated to an afternoon filled with laughter, sound effects, art projects and a toilet puppet show courtesy of Super Toilet's creator Charlie Williams, but we were also reminded of the sobering fact that 2.6 billion people worldwide do not have access to a toilet.

I have two young daughters – I can’t even imagine that it would be possible for them to not have access to a bathroom at school. A mom at the World Toilet Day event

It never ceases to amaze me that each day, approximately 4,000 children under five years old in the developing world die from causes associated with poor sanitation and unsafe water and yet, so much is preventable.

As someone who has spent my life in international development, I often forget that it is a surprise for many to learn that countless schools around the world do not have adequate bathrooms.

One concerned mom said, “I have two young daughters – I can’t even imagine that it would be possible for them to not have access to a bathroom at school. We have to do more, to take a stand and make life better for the children in these villages.”

I’m optimistic that the next generation can make a difference. The smiling children I met in Washington are absolutely critical to the future of sanitation in the developing world.

I hope they will take with them the message that toilets can make a tremendous difference in the lives of children everywhere.

>> Find out about WaterAid's lifesaving sanitation programs in the world's poorest countries