July 21, 2020 – Planet Water Foundation, a leading non-profit organization that addresses global water poverty by providing clean water access and hygiene education programs, and Electrolux, a global leader in household appliances, are launching a partnership to assist schools with COVID-19 recovery in communities located in Indonesia and the Philippines beginning July 8.
Under the new partnership, a target of 10,000 people will benefit from Planet Water’s integrated solution for safe, healthy schools that will be located in six communities across Indonesia and the Philippines, with funding provided by Electrolux in 2020. As a result, access to clean, safe drinking water, hand washing facilities, and hygiene education will be provided to community schools to enable their COVID-19 recovery process. Additionally, 10 families in Cambodia will receive Planet Water’s AquaHome systems that include water filtration and solar electricity with LED lighting. Electrolux’s involvement will give their employees the opportunity to volunteer in AquaTower system installations and participate with students and teachers during Planet Water’s Water-Health and Hygiene Education Program. This will ultimately improve the health and wellbeing of children through interactive teaching modules that include how to prevent the spread of germs by properly washing hands.
According to the UN, nearly one billion people worldwide do not have access to potable water, and 40-percent of people worldwide do not have a basic handwashing facility with soap and water at home. Planet Water Foundation addresses these issues with its community-based AquaTower water filtration system that removes viruses, bacteria, protozoa and other contaminants, and meets the daily drinking water requirement of up to 1,800 people. Systems include six water access points and three liquid soap dispensers to make handwashing convenient and more frequently practiced.
“Electrolux has made a significant commitment to aiding us in global water poverty mitigation and in the COVID-19 recovery process for community schools,” said Mark Steele, Founder and CEO of Planet Water Foundation. “Our goal is to alleviate water poverty in the world’s most impoverished communities through sustainable, clean water solutions and education programs on water-health and hygiene. Partnering with Electrolux helps us take steps toward this goal with maximum impact.”
“We are thankful for the opportunity that Planet Water Foundation has offered us to demonstrate our purpose to Shape Living for the Better. It is in these critical times that companies need to act more on their purpose and core values. Our partnership has allowed us to access under-privileged communities that don’t have the basic needs of clean & safe water. Knowing the impact of our mutual support and seeing the overwhelming emotions on children and parents’ faces, as we conclude each installation, is just priceless. And that’s a motive for us to continue in our journey to support more communities within our region,” said Adam Cich, Executive Vice President and Head of Electrolux APAC & MEA.
