Wollongong's role in providing clean water to Uganda

Aug 19, 2005

Last year’s EcoDebate at the University of Wollongong featuring Ros Kelly and Ian Kiernan has achieved its aim of installing a well in northern Uganda. About 300 people heard an entertaining debate between top personalities on the best way to achieve environmental change, and then responded generously to raise needed funds.

The well has been installed in the village of Okoto, in the Apac district of northern Uganda, and will provide safe water to about 1,500 people.

At present in Uganda, one in five children under the age of five dies, and one in two are forced to drink water as they find it.

“It’s possible this well has saved around 75 lives,” said EcoDebate organiser and University of Wollongong PhD student, Luke Scott. “The pictures we have show the old water source as a polluted puddle, kilometres from anywhere, the new well is providing safe water in the village itself.”

At the EcoDebate, Ros Kelly, barrister Tim Robertson and deputy head of the Australia Institute Dr Richard Denniss argued for negotiating environmental change, against the activist approach of Ian Kiernan, Environmentalist of the Year Dr John Wamsley and Greenpeace campaign manager Danny Kennedy. The EcoDebate was moderated by The Sydney Morning Herald environment writer and author James Woodford. NSW Shadow Environment minister Michael Richardson also addressed the crowd on the issues he saw as the biggest challenges faced in NSW.

Dr Wamsley used his experience with the southern brown bandicoot to demonstrate the failure of negotiation. He got active in saving the species in South Australia, and now the bandicoot thrives. He tried to negotiate with the National Parks and Wildlife Service in NSW, and now the bandicoot is extinct in this state. Ros Kelly summed up the negotiation side by distributing gifts to the opposition speakers -- a McDonald’s tie to Mr Kennedy, a Thiess hardhat to Dr Wamsley, and a plastic bag to Mr Kiernan. Danny responded with perhaps the most passionate speech of the night, swaying the final vote the activist’s way.

In closing, Luke Scott read an email from Ryan Hreljac, a 13-year-old Canadian boy who has raised more than $1 million for third world water projects and who heard that people at the Wollongong EcoDebate were also willing to help. The Ryan’s Well Foundation installed the well in Okoto, and has now installed 173 wells in nine countries worldwide, serving more than 300,000 people.

Mr Scott said that every eight seconds, a person dies in the world because they do not have access to clean water.

EcoDebate attendees contributed nearly $600 to the appeal and additional money came from the EcoDebate committee and sponsors -- University of Wollongong, The Illawarra Mercury, the University of Queensland, the Sydney Catchment Authority, Thiess Services and the Illawarra Regional Development Board to reach the necessary target of $2,200.

For further informationcontact Luke Scott on 0413 547679.

Media please note: The Media Unit is able to forward photos of the old water source in Okoto, Uganda, and the new well courtesy of the Ryan’s Well Foundation which installed it.

For more information, contact:

media@uow.edu.au
University of Wollongong
Ph: (02) 4221 5942; fax (02) 4221 3128