My birthday is around the corner. Until last year, I had never asked for birthday presents. But after learning that almost one billion people go without clean water, I decided to make an exception. Just like last year, I’m asking all my friends and family to donate to charity: water and give clean water to people who need it. It's not really a gift to me; it's your gift to the human kind.

Every day, 5,000 kids die from water-related illnesses before they reach their fifth birthday. But it doesn't have to be that way. There are simple solutions like drilled wells, spring protections and BioSand filters that help provide clean water to communities around the world.

100% of every dollar you donate to my birthday campaign will be used to build clean water projects in developing countries. charity: water funds their operating costs separately through a group of private donors, so 100% of all public donations will go directly to people in need.

This means a lot to me. I thank you for your generosity.

Yan