Vestergaard Frandsen, PackH2O honored for developing products to help address global water crisis

Jun 15 2013

The Children's Environmental Literacy Foundation (CELF) Wednesday honored two organizations who have developed ground-breaking products to help address the global water crisis at its 10^th anniversary gala held at the Tribeca Rooftop. More than 180 people attended the gala and celebrated CELF's decade of commitment to preparing current and future generations to be active and responsible citizens of a sustainable world.

The two honorees, Vestergaard Frandsen and PackH2O, have developed unique solutions that provide people in water-stressed areas access to water that is clean and safe.

• Vestergaard Frandsen (VF) has designed the LifeStraw water filter that makes water safe for drinking by removing the bacteria, parasites and viruses from dirty water.  LifeStraw is a point-of-use solution which provides instant access to safe, clean drinking water. LifeStraw has been named by Forbes magazine as one of "The Ten Things that Will Change the World."  CELF partnered with VF to develop and publish "Teaching the LifeStraw®: An Educator's Guide to Water Issues Around the World," grade-specific lessons that introduce students to political, environmental, cultural and economic issues that impact access to fresh water in other parts of the world and what they can do to protect this vital and precious resource.
• PackH2O is a socially conscious company that provides an innovative solution to water transportation in developing areas across the globe. The PackH2O water-backpack is a scientifically-tested alternative to buckets and jerry cans used to get water from source to home. The backpack features a removable liner that, after use, is easily sanitized with exposure to sunlight. With a spout for dispensing water and a puncture-resistant outer shell, PackH2O is a safe and effective way to store clean water. The water backpack holds about 5 gallons (20L) of water – the average amount of water used daily by families in developing economies.  PackH2O was honored with a Popular Science magazine "2012 Best of What's New Award" in the Green category.

"Every 20 seconds, a child dies from a water borne illness and nearly one billion people in the world do not have access to water that is clean and safe," said Katie Ginsberg, Founder and CEO of CELF. "But with the commitment of pioneering organizations such as Vestergaard Frandsen and PackH2O we are starting to address this crisis. It is truly and honor for CELF to recognize these two tremendous organizations."

In the past 10 years, CELF has worked with a number of organizations to advance sustainability education as an important part of a school's curricula. Since 2005, CELF has trained over 7,500 teachers and reached over 700,000 students in Education for Sustainability (EfS) through CELF's Annual Summer Institute, resulting in hundreds of teacher-created K-12 curriculum aligned with environmental literacy standards and EfS standards. In 2012 CELF was awarded membership to the Clinton Global Initiative and in partnership with the NYC Department of Education, CELF launched a three-year project that provides EfS professional development for 30 NYC public schools, establishing a cohort of model "sustainable schools" with curricula and resources for grades K through 12. CELF was also hired by multiple public school systems in the metropolitan area as lead consultant for integration of environmental literacy within existing standards-based curricula.