Latest News

ONE DROP and its partners organized fun activities with a local flavour as part of World Water Day (WWD).

In Banfora, Burkina Faso, hundreds of men and women took part in the “Procession des porteurs de vérité,” a 6 km walk—the distance African women commonly walk to collect water. While joyful, the march nevertheless carried a powerful message: water is everyone’s responsibility!

To encourage the population to adopt healthy hygiene habits, the Espace culturel Gambidi and the Musée de l’eau encouraged Toussiana residents to form the longest queue to use latrines and hand-washing facilities ever seen in the history of the district. In Banfora, our partners opted for the “Coupe régionale des Cascades de Football,” using the sport as an educational tool to promote good habits to youth there.

In Bhubaneswar, India, acclaimed director Shekhar Kapur launched a remarkable exhibition at the Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences (KISS), which brings together 35 works by renowned Indian artists who are inspired by water issues. In addition, KISS also screened short films produced by young filmmakers who had participated in a film workshop given by ONE DROP last winter.

In El Salvador, the Asociacion de Arte Dramático (AAD) exclusively presented “Tras-Tornado,” its second show on the theme of water. Performed at the National Theatre of San Salvador before a handpicked audience, “Tras-Tornado” was subsequently broadcast on Salvadoran television on March 22.

In Haiti, WWD was marked by the inauguration of the water community centre in Mariani. The day began with a performance of “Ayiti, Pawol lapli ak lakansyèl” (Haiti: Words of Rain and Rainbows), followed by the official opening and implementation of facilities that will provide water to thousands of people every day.

To find out more about the activities organized for WWD 2013, see the news section of ONEDROP.org.

You recently joined ONE DROP USA as a member of the Board. What prompted you to join this organization?
Today one of the most fundamental problems on our globe is that billions of people do not have access to safe water and sanitation. This deepens the impacts of poverty by increasing exposure to preventable diseases and escalating mortality rates. Further, women and girls are not able to have the same educational and economic opportunities because their lives are often dedicated to securing water for their families. I consider it a privilege to be able to be involved with the ONE DROP organization and the projects its dedicated members are doing to improve the quality of life of those in the world who need it most.

As part of your responsibilities at MGM Resorts International, you have undertaken many successful initiatives with regard to usage of resources such as water. Can you tell us more about them?
In Las Vegas, we are incredibly mindful of the scarcity and precious nature of our resources, especially water. We are, after all, in a desert. MGM Resorts International approaches our consumption of water in two ways: through the application of innovative, water-saving technologies and the implementation of conservation procedures and practices within our operations.
In terms of water-saving technologies, we have centred on using state-of-the-art low-flow shower and sink fixtures in our resorts. We utilize these fixtures everywhere from our kitchens to our guest rooms. It may seem that the difference between a 2.5 gallon per minute shower-head and 2.0 gallon per minute shower-head is small, but spread over approximately 11 million annual room-nights, the savings is significant.

Our second approach focuses on best practices within our operations. Think of all the employees you interact with when staying at a resort—from the guest room attendants and horticulturists to the restaurant servers and bartenders. We work on examining all of the daily operations within their respective areas and identifying practices for saving water in a way that does not detract from the superior levels of service our guests expect from a company like MGM Resorts International.

What’s next for MGM Resorts International?
We started our green program at MGM Resorts by laying out a strategic plan and framework for making our properties more sustainable. This strategic plan was executed through various focus areas and the implementation of best practices throughout our operations. Now that this framework is in place, where we are going next is to harness the power of our 62,000 employees to accelerate our efforts to protect the environment. Over the next twelve months, we will be launching an innovative employee communication program that is focused on inspiring our employees to find ways to be greener at home and in their jobs.

Why was it important for MGM Resorts International to be part of One Night for ONE DROP?
Simply said, what better platform could there be for spreading the word about the importance of water than combining the genius of Cirque du Soleil with one of the most renowned venues, the “O” Theatre at Bellagio. MGM Resorts is proud to support the efforts of ONE DROP by hosting this important event, as well as through the contributions it makes throughout the year. We believe that these dollars are directed toward programs that can literally be the vital difference in a person’s life.

To mark World Water Day (WWD), Teatro Taller Tegucigalpa, together with ONE DROP and Oxfam-Québec, organized the “Water Festival.” Transforming Redondel de los Artesanos—a large square with an impressive fountain in the heart of Tegucigalpa—for the occasion, the artist RIFH (Iván Fiallos) set the tone for the festival by imagining an urban area reigned by unbridled creativity.

In the Honduran capital, 35% of families are not connected to municipal water facilities. They have to wait for the trucks that go up and down their neighbourhood streets to receive water. To show solidarity with these people, twelve artists and groups joined forces to present their artistic creations on the theme of water to the city’s residents.

It’s in this eclectic atmosphere that young and old alike celebrated water on March 22. The artists expressed themselves through a variety of artistic disciplines including theatre, video mapping, juggling, contemporary dance, water drums, living statues, dramatic sculpture, projections, DJing and much more! This colourful event will without a doubt go down in the annals of the capital!

To find out more about the activities organized as part of WWD 2013, see the news section of ONEDROP.org.

ONE DROP and Cirque du Soleil adopted an innovative approach to celebrate World Water Day (WWD). The One Night for ONE DROP benefit concert, conceived by Cirque du Soleil and which recognizes the Earth as an artistic creation and highlights the importance of water to its precious ecosystem, was presented for one night only in Las Vegas, in the “O” theatre at the Bellagio.

From March 25 to 31, ONE DROP gave the public the opportunity to witness this moving homage to water. Through a $5 donation, many of you were able to actively support our mission of ensuring that water is accessible to all, today and forever, by watching ONE NIGHT for ONE DROP.

As the mastermind behind One Week for ONE DROP, Cirque also chose to mark WWD with several fundraising events held between March 18 and 22.

We are proud to announce that all these wonderful initiatives combined have raised $5.3 million to fund ONE DROP initiatives worldwide.

The ONE DROP team would like to extend a heartfelt thanks to all those who contributed from near and far to the resounding success of the 2013 WWD celebrations.

In Haiti, World Water Day was marked by the inauguration of the community water centre in Mariani. The day began with the presentation of Ayiti, Pawol lapli ak lakansyèl (Haiti: Words of Rain and Rainbows), a multidisciplinary show inspired by Haitian realities which aims to raise spectators' awareness of water-related issues and their role in the reconstruction of the country. Afterwards, the centre was officially opened and its facilities put into service!

Powered by solar energy, the centre provides free, continuous access to drinking water, water for domestic use and showers. After Belloc and Colline Deslandes, this is the third facility of its kind to be installed by Project Haiti. This centre will improve sanitation and living conditions for the community through access to drinking water without risk of disease. It is also a unique gathering place that encourages social cohesion.