Blog: Running a marathon – because everyone has the right to running water

Dr Mike Keil, Senior Director of Policy, Research and Campaigns

Next weekend I will be running the Edinburgh Marathon. “Why?” I hear you ask. Well, mainly it’s due to a misplaced promise I made to my kids but it’s also about raising money for my chosen charity, WaterAid. The training is in the bag now, with over 600 miles covered in the last five months, now it’s all about staying injury free, keeping the mind-games in check, and raising as much sponsorship as I can for WaterAid.

Why WaterAid?

In many ways, WaterAid is the obvious choice for those of us working in the water sector. We know from our jobs the importance of having safe, clean, running water available. But my support for WaterAid runs deeper than having an appreciation for the value of water. There are other aspects too, which make the work of WaterAid so critical:

1. Water is a basic human right. We can’t survive without it. The UN recognised this back in 2010 when clean drinking water and sanitation were made universal human rights. WaterAid’s core aim is to make clean water, decent toilets and good hygiene normal for everyone, everywhere – essentially giving people that human right. I don’t know about you, but I couldn’t imagine a world without water on tap and toilets that work 24/7.
2. It’s about equality. It’s often women and girls who have to fetch the water, and this is often far, far, away. This can lead to many girls missing school, which impacts their future prospects and puts many in harm’s way. In addition, there’s the period factor too. Having no access to toilets is horrible at the best of times, but it’s even more horrific for girls or women who are having their period. Being the father to three girls has made me much more sensitive than I used to be to these gender disadvantages.
3. It’s about opportunity. Communities can thrive with access to clean water and toilets. This helps in so many ways. It’s clearly far better to put communities on a sustainable footing upon which they can build. This means there’s a huge amplification of the benefits.

That’s why WaterAid is my charity of choice for the Edinburgh Marathon.

Donations welcome!

If you would like to sponsor me, you can do so at https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/mikekeil . It would be massively appreciated by me, the whole team at WaterAid and of course the millions of people that WaterAid help. I want to extend a huge thank you to everyone who has sponsored me already. If you would like to find out more about WaterAid’s work, we recently spoke to them on our Waterfall podcast.

Finally, when I’m running the marathon I’m going to avoid thinking of running water, as I want to avoid having loo breaks!