Changing Times

Lately I have been working out some of the problems that arise with designing a water filtration system. On top of that I have also been faced with being pulled in many different directions. Things are still on schedule for getting done. One of the things I have been trying to work out is how to pay for everything. I want to get a signed contract with the school and church in the Dominican saying that they will buy so much water per month for their use. Once that is in place it will be up to me to find a way to raise the money to see this through.

We are making a lot of progress but the mountain is still ahead of us. The easy part is mostly done. Now we face the battle. I will be making a trip down to the Dominican soon, the dates are still up in the air but it is looking like October for the first trip and then maybe another trip this year as well.

One of the things I am in need of is prayer. I have been seeing lots of up's and down's with this project and there are times I feel it is easier to walk away and do something else than to continue on. Money is also something that is in the back of my mind. It wasn't easy to give up a year of my life right out of college and make zero dollars doing this. I know it was the right decision but the temptation to find a job that would take me away from this is very appealing at times. By the end of the year I hope to have something else to help support what I am doing, something that enables me to continue the water project as well as bring in money to support myself.

Thank you all,
Isaac

Twitter and A Website... Finally

I now have a twitter and website up explaining more about what we are doing and how you can help.

twitter: https://twitter.com/ADropToDrink

website: adroptodrink.org

follow our twitter for updates on whats going on and what we are up to.

Happy 4th of July

America was founded on the main principle that all men were created equal and that they should be free. There was a lot of other reasons our country was founded too but I have always believed that we had values above all else.

It is nice to see that we haven't fully lost sight of why we are here. But there is a major stereotype of Americans in other countries. Some believe we should just give them everything we have because we have so much. Others seem to believe we are all fat and watch NASCAR. The way we give away our money is depressing, we blindly give it away to whatever charity has the best marketing campaign and never see it again.

Charity:Water completely changed the way they handle a charity's money. They show you exactly where your money goes, this model wont work for everyone though. I mean come on, who has a tech millionaire willing to front all your staff costs. Their model of complete transparency is something of envy, one I do hope to mimic once things get rolling more with adroptodrink.org.

I am trying to gear up for a lot of changes. I want to start doing more and getting things done on the ground. To do that I do need equipment that I have been too proud to ask for. I need a definite answer on how we are moving forward from the church down in Friusa and then its full steam ahead on how much we have to raise and how to raise it. I will hopefully know next week. I am waiting on a clear amount before I start asking for money and I want a transparency on how the money is being spent. I personally don't care if I ever make a dime from this, I found a need and want to see it met.

As part of this 4th of July weekend I want to ask each one of you what being an American means to you, and how you can work to change the perception of Americans in other cultures.

Solving The Water Problem - The Up's and The Downs

As many of you know I took the year after my college career to explore bringing clean water to towns in the Dominican Republic. So far I am a mere 2 months into this endeavor and I feel overwhelmed and behind on everything.

There is a lot that goes into designing a system, especially one that is trying to keep cost to a minimum. I am aiming for a payback period of around 6 years for our water system. The design of it doesn't seem to be the biggest issue though. No, the biggest problem I have faced is fear itself. The fear of being good enough to do this. I am not actually inventing anything, I am hardly even improving on anything that has been done before. All I am doing is what is naturally right for the good of everyone, providing clean water.

We have yet to provide clean water to anyone yet, except if you count what is being done in Cien Fuegos. I want to do so much there and help them expand but it is difficult to help when we wait for them to see the need to help them. Progress is being made there with the water cages that are starting to be installed throughout the city. What's next requires being there, helping the people.

So the question is how can we move forward and stop feeling so overwhelmed on everything. There is not one simple answer but many small steps that need to be done, like a check list. I have a reworked process to clean the water that requires a much larger storage tank, which means no more roof tanks. That also means we have to find a place for the larger tank, in a place where space is very limited.

I still have yet to find a solution to pay for everything down there, even with a 6 year pay back period raising money will not be easy. We will require a lot of different equipment to just get started. A new well has to be dug and a study on the ground water in the area needs to be complete before we can actually start cleaning the water.

We are taking baby steps to get where we are going but its progress. I hope next time I will be able to share some great news on what is happening there.

Thank you all for your support,
Isaac

Day 1: Counting The Days Until Everyone Has Water

Day one of many: Today is day one because it is the first day of this project becoming a full time business. I have decided to dedicate at least 40 hours a week to this. Today consisted of working on a logo and wire-framing the website. There is a long road ahead of me on this but it is a road worth taking.

NADTD is a non profit aimed at bringing piped clean water to small and medium sized cities in developing countries.

This is the beginning of a long journey. The website and entire set up should be up and running by the end of the week. Next week starts the contact with the hotels down in Bavaro to start getting them up to speed on what we are doing.

With Water Life Flows

Video By: Dan Walker. Check out his other work sometime by looking him up on facebook. facebook.com/dan.walker.552

Water: Big Cities Big Problems

What are we doing for cities and towns of 10,000 people. Or 20,000 people? Digging wells to give them water to drink isn’t enough. These are growing cities. If we are to help them grow out of poverty we have to do more.

It is not feasible to dig wells and say it is good enough for these people. A town called Mao, in Chad, has roughly 20,000 people. For clean water they have to still walk to a water tower to collect it. Can you imagine living in a town with 20,000 people and having to walk to a water tower just to get water?There are other options. Better solutions for this problem. While the options will not be easy or cheap solutions they provide the best hope to people all over the world.

Piping water into homes, bringing it closer to where they need it so they can focus on education and being productive citizens. That is what is needed. No more having to walk and fill a jug for clean water. No more wells to walk to in the town center. Just clean drinking water where you want it, when you want it.

We must be mindful of the water crisis that we are under. Clean water is a finite source, one that must be carefully measured and watched. Sometimes an aquifer or water source is not large enough to supply a town with water. There are many places like this all over the world. Dams wont always be the best solution. We must find new ways to do this.

Much like L.A. is not self-sustaining with their water supply, neither are most places in the middle of a desert in Africa. We can find a solution, we must find one, but first thing is first and we must start giving these towns the water they need in a clean, safe, cheap, sustainable way.