RTE Member, and Chair Emeritus WASRAG, Ron Denham – Rotary India’s Vision for WASH
Introduction by Nilam.
Ron has been a Rotarian for almost 60 years, starting in 1958 in Welland. He joined Toronto-Eglinton in 1964, and has served as president, and District Governor. He was elected Paul Harris Fellow and is a Benefactor and Major Donor to The Rotary Foundation. In recognition of his outstanding contribution to Rotary, to his vocation and to the world community he was presented with the “Service above Self” award, Rotary’s highest honor.
Ron was the founding chair of the Water & Sanitation Rotarian Action Group (WASRAG), A group of over 1800 Rotarians helping people in the developing world improve life and livelihood through the provision of safe water and sanitation. In that capacity he has fostered many water and sanitation projects in Kenya, Ethiopia, Uganda, Ghana, and in many states in India.
His current mission is to encourage all 1.2 million Rotarians to become familiar with world water issues, and every Rotary club (33,000) to become involved in sustainable water and/or sanitation program.
Ron spoke about the serious water issues facing India. Their fresh water supplies are very stressed by pollution, lack of conservation, and a rapidly growing population.
Rotary’s focus is on helping India through the construction of damns, reviving water bodies, and education on using water resources. The Rotary plan also includes efforts to provide over 1000 villages with functional household tap connections by 2025. In addition, over 150,000 schools will be assisted.
A full summary of Ron’s presentation will be available on our website. You can learn more at their website at wasrag.org
Jackie thanked Ron for his incredible work.
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