Wednesday World Changers: Washing Your Hands- changing world

Guest blogger: Tony Feliciano  (pictured left), a member of Gen Y with a passion for the world

The peculiar thing about washing hands with soap is that, though your hands may be clean of debris and dirt, the chemicals in soap that absorb into your skin and wash away down the drain aren’t so “clean.” Sodium Lauryl Sulfonate, for example, is not biodegradable and can kill living organisms. Other materials, like fragrances and solubulizers included in soap formulations can pose health hazards. So, while you may be washing your hands and feeling clean on the outside, both the global environment and your internal health may be battling synthetic invaders. To determine potential health and environmental hazards a specific soap may have, visit http://www.ewg.org/skindeep/ for a rating.

I set up Clean World Clean Hands (CWCH) to do three things:

1. produce soap that is biodegradable and safe for your skin 
2. bringing these soaps to third world countries, to areas, for example without proper water filtration, so that people's water sources and environment are not impacted negatively
3. through workshops, donations, and volunteer work give back to the community 

We aim to clean your hands - and the world’s hands.

Let me start with the soap. CWCH aims to produce a soap that is  "invisible". Our product has virtually no impact on the environment or your health and is sustainable, thereby making it "invisible". By using vegetable based glycerin, natural essential oils etc, our soap completely dissociates in water leaving no trace synthetic materials. 

The CWCH mission, therefore, is to create an invisible product that sparks visible change. More specifically, we create all natural biodegradable soap and as a cooperative we encourage invisible product design as well as distribute soap to those in need. 

CWCH cooperative is in its startup stage and any inquires should contact myself (tony@cleanworldcleanhands.com) Donations to support the work are appreciated and an incentives ladder exists for monetary donations. Check out: www.cleanworldcleanhands.com

World Changers: handwashing Day 15th October

UNICEF (United Nations Fund for Children’s Activities) declared 15th October Global Handwashing Day.

The purpose of Global Handwashing day is to raise awareness & promoting hand washing to school children and their parents. This might sound like an odd issue but every twenty seconds a child dies from a disease that could have been prevented.

On 15th October, teachers, NFPs, government officials, ambassadors and members of private sector people will raise awareness of hand washing with soap as a  powerful health intervention

There are some Fundamental facts:

1. Washing hands only with water is not enough!
2. Hand washing with soap can prevent children dying from diseases across the developing world
3. The important time for hand washing with soap is after usage of the toilet and before having food.
4. Hand washing with soap is the single and most productive health interventions-  Hand washing decreases the risk of not only diarrhea but also some severe symptoms such as cholera and dysentery by 48 to 59 %.

What can you do?

Tell People its World Handwashing Day 

Post on your Facebook, tweet etc

WASH YOUR HANDS

Teach your kids to wash their hands

I am amazed when I go into a public lavatory, how many people dont wash their hands? Or is it just a male thing?