World News & Stories

13-year-old Nimco lives in the Baki district of northwestern Somalia, an area of the country that’s been devastated by years of civil war. Her village had a serious shortage of latrines. Until recently, 70 per cent of people were relieving themselves outside, causing sanitation issues that led to sickness and even death.

Recently, I returned from North Korea, officially known as the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, where I had the opportunity to visit some of World Vision’s alternative energy water projects. 

But sometimes Otília is too weak to play soccer…or go to school. This happens when she has diarrhea caused by the water the family drinks from the stream.

In many urban areas of India, families live in old, one-room houses. The houses do not have toilets, so everyone is forced to rely on public toilets that are shared by several families. The lack of dignity makes using these facilities a harrowing experience for young women.

What started in 1985 as a way to shake the cobwebs off after New Year’s Eve has now grown into a family affair for the Courage clan. Gaye Courage, the “Queen Polar Bear” and mother to Co-Founders Todd and Trent, was the one who instigated the whole thing when she told her boys to “go jump in the lake”. Today, Gaye joins the family on New Year’s Day to take part on the largest charitable polar bear dip in Canada.

Water is a lifesaver, but it can also be a major threat to human life when it's contaminated. Learn more about waterborne diseases.

Poverty refers to a lack of the necessities of life, food, shelter and clothing. In reality, poverty is more complex than that and includes other factors.

The World Bank forecast that in 2021, severe poverty would increase to between 143 million and 163 million people. Even here in Canada, poverty rates are on the rise.

At Lupembe Health Centre in Malawi‘s Lupembe-Mlare sponsorship community, medical staff and community members were stuck in a longstanding struggle over a scarce but necessary resource: water.