In partnership with UN Habitat, the Project WET Foundation has created educational materials promoting human-values-based water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) education in five countries in Latin America and the Caribbean. The overall project goal is to bring about a significant change in the attitude and actions of people as it relates to WASH by instilling values such as respect for water resources and the health of communities.

Approximately 5,000 educators and 100,000 students in Bolivia, Peru, Colombia, El Salvador and Mexico will receive copies of the WASH materials, which focus on healthy habits, disease prevention, water source protection and water conservation. All of the materials have been customized for the various regions and cultures they address and have been translated into local dialects of Spanish.

Three of the children's activity booklets that will be in use

Consisting of an Educators Guide with seven hands-on didactic activities for teachers to use in a classroom setting and a companion student activity booklet with seven interactive and engaging activities for students, the materials were created based on suggestions from teachers and education officials in writing and development workshops in each country. Moreover, all materials have been field tested by local schools in the area of implementation.

With the materials on press or published, the Project WET Foundation is now working on the ground to conduct training workshops with educators on teaching methods and activities. Those educators in turn will train local teachers, who will introduce the materials to their students.

To learn more about the new materials or about Project WET, please contact LAC Program Manager Julia Nelson.