fundraiser · clean water

100 miles through the rainforest for clean water

In June, our director Forrest McSweeney will walk 100 miles through Guyana’s rainforest to raise money for water tanks and gutter systems for the people of Wakapoa Village.

Your per-mile donation funds 8 water tanks and 15 gutter systems for families running out of clean water.

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the problem

climate change is shrinking Wakapoa’s water supply

In the indigenous community of Wakapoa, Guyana, people rely entirely on rainwater for drinking. During the rainy season, they collect water off their roofs with gutters and funnel it into large, 500-gallon tanks that sit on concrete pads.

However, over the last decade, as the climate changes more rapidly, the seasons in Wakapoa have become less and less predictable. The rainy season brings more rain, while the dry season grows longer and drier than before.

Now, many people run out of water toward the end of the dry season and don’t know when their tanks will be refilled.

the goal

tanks and gutters in place before August

water tanks

Install eight 500-gallon water tanks for people in Wakapoa who don’t have one. Each tank will be built on a concrete pad to allow for gravity-fed usage and longevity.

gutter systems

Purchase and install 15 gutter systems on people’s houses to help catch more water during the rare showers of the dry season.

Timeline: Our goal is to complete all of this before the beginning of August, equipping people with the resources they need to have more clean water through the dry months.

how it works

100 miles walked, one small donation per mile

In June, our director Forrest McSweeney will be walking 100 miles through the rainforest in Guyana to raise money to help the people of Wakapoa Village get access to clean water. We are asking for a small per-mile donation to help us hit our goal.

100

miles on foot through Guyana’s jungle and dirt roads

june

Month the walk takes place

$/mile

Your small per-mile donation fuels every step

the walk

The journey follows a centuries-old path connecting indigenous villages, then continues along the Bartica-Potaro Road to the village of Rockstone.

where it begins

The rural village where the Uplift Project has been giving grants for the past year. Wakapoa sits at one end of a centuries-old walking path, a rarely used alternative to traveling by boat.

deep into the bush

Impossible to follow and overgrown except by the most seasoned indigenous trackers, this path cuts through 20 miles of deep jungle separating Wakapoa from Akawini and Kabakaburi along a roughly worn pathway.

The former chief of Wakapoa will join Forrest as a guide, showing him the ins and outs of camping in the bush and traversing long distances in the rainforest.
The jungle path finishes at Karawab, where Forrest will meet with the chief to discuss a proposal for the Uplift Project to begin giving grants there as well.

the long road out

From Karawab, Forrest will travel by boat to Bartica, where the walk continues onto the Bartica-Potaro Road — a red dirt road connecting Bartica to the interior of Guyana. Passing no villages and only a couple of rural farms, this 80-mile stretch brings the walk to a close at the village of Rockstone.

give today

100 miles for clean water

Your per-mile donation funds the tanks and gutter systems that give Wakapoa families clean water through the driest months of the year.

donate