Here’s an approximation of how much water I’ve used today:

• Eight visits to the toilet (8 flushes and 8 handwashes)
• 5-10 minutes in the shower
• Face washed in basin twice
• Teeth brushed and rinsed twice
• Six cups of tea / coffee (kettle half-filled each time)
• Three visits to office water cooler
• Four times washing up in kitchen sink
• Two loads of laundry in washing machine
• Salad leaves rinsed in water
• Potatoes boiled in water
• Windscreen wash used in car
• Rabbits water bottle refilled
• Damp cloth to wipe down table and kitchen surfaces
• House plants watered

These are activities that most of us in the developed world take for granted. 

Unfortunately, a billion people in the world lack access to clean, safe drinking water (Charity: Water).  Every15 seconds a child dies somewhere in the world due to unsafe water.  In fact, unsafe drinking water kills more people per year than AIDS & cancer combined (Hydraid).

You can find out more at: www.worldwaterday.org/

Also, check out hydraid.org, charitywater.org, and tapproject.org
And watch: bit.ly/hydraidvid

Next week, 180 cities across the world will unite in raising funds for the non-profit charity : water at a series of Twestival events, attended by the Twittering community.

I am delighted to be taking part in The Edinburgh Twestival, which will be held on Thursday 12 February 2009 at 7pm at Hawke and Hunter, 12 Picardy Place, Edinburgh EH1 3JT.

There will be live music, WiFi action, live video streaming across the world and lots of networking.  I am looking forward to meeting the ‘McTwitterati*’.  It will be great to meet people that I consider friends, although we’ll be meeting for the first time at this event.

There will be a raffle and an auction, with lots of fantastic prizes, donated by sponsors and participants alike.  All proceeds will go to charity : water.  I have donated three small prizes to the raffle:

1.      £10 Virgin Vie At Home Voucher   - skincare, cosmetics, jewellery and homeware.

2.      £10 Barefoot Books Voucher – beautiful children’s books.

3.      $25 (£15 approx) Send Out Cards Gift Account – personalised greetings cards for business or pleasure.

Auction prizes include:

·         Twitter profile ‘makeover‘ from Digital Biographer

·         A whole year of Ad space on Third Sector Forums

·         Space on a Second Life island from Virtual-E

·        Personality profiling from People Maps

Please leave a comment here if you are attending one of the Twestivals next week, and leave your Twitter username so that we can tweet about it later!..

Thanks for visiting!

*McTwitterati (coined by @jimwolffman?) – collective term for top Scottish Twitterers