Latest News

ONE DROP received this week costumes, fabric & accessories from the employee based group Artisans du Monde at Cirque du Soleil’s costume department. These will be sent to our Project India’s partner Gram Vikas’ schools. Students will use these in a nine day workshop to develop theatre shows on water & sanitation which will be presented throughout the district of Ganjam, Orissa.

For ONE DROP’s project in India we are collaborating with Gram Vikas, a local Indian technical partner to ensure access to safe water in 100 villages in the district of Ganjam. Complementing the installation of appropriate technologies, ONE DROP is partnering with both local and Canadian based organizations to implement social arts based activities that aims to sensitize and mobilize the local population towards better practices of water and sanitation management. Notably, ONE DROP and its local Canadian partners Maureen Martineau & Yvan Côté have designed a nine day Children’s Theater Workshop for school children of four Gram Vikas schools, which will show students to develop and deliver short theater shows on water and particularly sanitation. The students will then tour surrounding villages in the district of Ganjam, Odisha to perform the plays, throughout the year of 2013. ONE DROP wants to thank Artisans du Monde and wish all participants and facilitators of the upcoming Children’s Theater Workshop all the best!

On October 30, Hurricane Sandy hit the des Palmes region, home to Léogâne—the site of ONE DROP’s Project Haiti. The conditions on the ground have made taking stock of the damage a difficult task.

Thankfully, the structures built by ONE DROP and its partners, such as the communal water centre, did withstand the storm. Part of the population of the affected area therefore still has access to safe drinking water.

However, agriculture has been hit hard. Approximately 85% of family crops have been lost, along with 60% of units for raising laying hens and 20% of goats. Significant amounts of arable soil required to grow crops have also disappeared and irrigation systems have been damaged. The damage caused by the storm, combined with the scarcity and high price of seeds, mean the coming spring’s agricultural production may be in jeopardy and a food crisis could be looming.

Oxfam-Québec, our main partner in the field, has already asked CIDA for the quick delivery of hygiene kits to reduce the risk of water-borne diseases such as cholera and to restore damaged plantations in order to prevent this potential food crisis from occurring.

Vancouver will host the 21^st LA SOIRÉE ONE DROP, the grand finale of this year’s endeavour, this Friday November 23rd. LA SOIRÉE ONE DROP will be one of the most important charity events, in support of water for all, in Vancouver’s history. Guests will attend the Premiere of Cirque du Soleil™’s Amaluna under the Big Top at the Concord Pacific Place. Funds raised will enable ONE DROP to finance a range of projects improving access to water and promoting responsible water management in developing countries.

The tremendous strength of our youth is a treasure that ONE DROP intends to showcase through its activities.

That is why, for a second consecutive year, ONE DROP is taking part in celebrations marking the We Day tour organized by Free the Children. This is the largest event of its kind in Canada, reaching tens of thousands of young Canadians until fall 2013. Many major partners and high-profile speakers dedicated to raising awareness for a better world are involved in this variety show.

ONE DROP is presenting an aerial silk performance to 80,000 spectators during the tour, which kicked off on September 28 in Toronto. Inspired by the circus arts, this performance is unique in its poetry. It encourages young people to make a difference for water as part of the "What is YOUR one drop?" campaign. This performance was made possible thanks to the financial support of the RBC Blue Water Project^®.

After having taken Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary and Winnipeg by storm, the We Day tour will be stopping in the following cities:

Waterloo: November 14
Montreal: November 20
Ottawa: April 29

More dates to come…

On November 24, at 7 p.m., the show will also be broadcast on CTV. For more information, check local listings. For a sneak peek, check out the enclosed video!

You can also watch performances from the tour in real time through webcasts at www.weday.com/webcast, aired starting at 9:30 a.m. (host city time). 

ONE DROP has also placed youth at the heart of its action by launching a website dedicated entirely to them. The site, ONEDROP.org/youth, urges youth aged 10 to 16 to take decisive action with regards to water. In addition to highlighting inspiring initiatives taken by the young people involved, the site offers information on water issues and a host of useful tools designed to look after this vital resource. This new site is also the perfect place to get the latest information on We Day activities.

Finally, the tour kicked off with Les Expéditions d’Atlas GéoCircus, produced by Productions PrestiGo, as students returned to school. Drawing inspiration from a short presentation on water issues to create the narrative, a globetrotter named Atlas GéoCircus put on a playful show, where the circus is like an open door onto a world where everything is waiting to be discovered. ONE DROP designed a study guide so that teachers can discuss the show's messages in greater depth with their students. By the end of June 2013, 120 performances will have been held in French-language elementary schools across Canada. The tour will enable ONE DROP to reach as many as 30,000 students, who will contribute to the ripple effect!

ONE DROP spoke to Daniel Lamarre, President and Chief Executive Officer of Cirque du Soleil^TM and loyal ambassador of ONE DROP since its beginning. ONE DROP’s ability to educate people and encourage them to protect water relies in large part on the presence of one key ingredient: the commitment of spokespeople like Daniel.

O.D.: You have supported ONE DROP for a long time. What prompted you to join Guy* on this adventure?
D. L.: What always impresses me about Guy’s choices is that he has the gift of seeing things that others don’t see. When Guy decided to take on the issue of water, it was not a widely known cause outside of certain well-informed circles. Guy not only grasped the issue but framed it in a way that it could easily be understood and taken up on an international level. I instantly rallied behind this cause because I knew the important role that a person like Guy can play—as can Cirque du Soleil, more indirectly.

O.D.: As part of your job, you often speak at important events, and you sometimes take that opportunity to talk about ONE DROP. Why is this important to you?
D. L.: People—reporters, especially—often ask me: “What are you most proud of at Cirque du Soleil?” Of course, I am very proud of the quality of our shows and also of the scope of the organization. But what I am most proud of is that, over the years, we have succeeded—both through our internal projects and with ONE DROP—in giving meaning to what we do. In other words, we are able to, in our own modest way, effect change that has a significant impact on individuals and on society at large. For me, that is a very strong motivator. I think it’s part of Cirque’s DNA. I am very happy that, because of my position, I have an opportunity to put this into words and to reach a great number of people.

O.D.: What moves you most about the projects that ONE DROP undertakes?
D. L.: It’s the fact that we have a direct impact on people’s lives. It’s not something abstract, bureaucratic or administrative—it really is action on the ground. The second thing is raising awareness. Because I’ve changed the way I consume water myself. And more and more, I can see the people around me changing their habits, too.

O.D.: On a personal level, what do you do on a daily basis to protect water?
D. L.: There are many things! For example, I don’t let the tap run when I’m shaving or I’m brushing my teeth. And I don’t drink bottled water—I have my own reusable bottle. In fact, nobody drinks bottled water at Cirque anymore. These are all small changes to our daily routine, but they are part of the commitment we must all make.

O.D.: What is your hope for water?
D. L.: The big dream is obviously to eradicate poverty worldwide. I think that’s Guy’s original goal. And I agree, because we do have a problem of wealth distribution on this planet. When I see what happens in other countries and I see the luxury we have here, I think surely there is a way to do our part to ensure there is food and water for everyone.

*Guy Laliberté is the Founder of Cirque du Soleil and Chair of ONE DROP.