Drink in World Water Day with The Big Issue Shop

World Water Day is rushing towards us – and there’s no better way to tap into the importance of water than with The Big Issue Shop.

Taking place on March 22 every year, the UN’s celebration day has the theme of ‘Nature for Water’ this year, encouraging the nature-based solutions to the liquid challenges facing the world in the 21^st century.

I realised I could save cash, hit my fitness goals, and take care of the planet – all by selling bottles to provide clean water

Around the globe, 2.1 billion people live without safe drinking water at their home – a devastating drain on health, education and livelihoods.

The UN has long-rallied to ensure support pours in to tackle the problem through their Sustainable Development Goal of ensuring that no one is without access to safe water by 2030.

But it will be swimming upstream to hit that target – by 2050, the world’s population will have grown by an estimated two billion people and global water demand could be up to 30 percent higher than today.

So that’s why the UN is hoping to turn a trickle of ideas into a flood when it comes to boosting ecosystems and combatting the environmental damage that drives water-related crises around the world.

GiveMeTap has got the bottle to take on the challenge. In fact, its stainless steel reusable water bottles, available in The Big Issue Shop, fund five years of clean water for someone across Africa with every sale. There is even the added bonus of free water refills from a network of shops across the UK after founder Edwin Broni-Mensah was inspired by his heavier gym workload.

“Getting a six-pack was all I could think about,” he says. “It was my dream and I went after it like a seagull on a chip. As well as working out more and increasing my daily calorie intake, my water consumption also went up. But when it came to finding places where I could get free tap water, I was stumped.

“After being refused refills by countless cafes and restaurants, I remembered my dad’s stories of growing up in Ghana with little or no access to clean water.

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“And that’s where my dream took a different direction. I realised I could save cash, hit my fitness goals, and take care of the planet – all by selling bottles to provide clean water to communities in Africa.”

GiveMeTap bottles available in pink, red and silver are available in The Big Issue Shop here.