Have you heard about Raincatcher Imperial?

We all take for granted that when we switch on the tap, clean, drinkable water will pour out. Sadly, for millions of people around the globe, this is not the case.

The Problem

In many countries, state-funded municipal supplies are expensive, leaving the poorest billion people in the world with no choice but to fend for themselves. While some are able to dig their own wells, many rely on community-shared sources that cannot sustain a large population. This inexorably leads to perennial droughts. Furthermore, the quality of this water is not guaranteed and the lack of a well-maintained system allows disease to spread very quickly amongst the population.

Our Solution

Our solution is Raincatcher Imperial – a university society-turned-charity founded in 2009. We are a branch of the registered UK charity Raincatcher and work closely with the local Tanzanian NGO, Caritas, to provide a reliable source of clean water for the people in the region of Tabora by building rainwater harvesting systems.

Every year since 2009, we have sent out a team of Imperial College students to Tanzania to build these water collection systems and to provide essential water sanitation training to the local population. These systems provide easy access to uncontaminated water by storing rainwater form the rainy season for use during the eight-month-long dry period of the year. In total, nearly a million litres of water storage has been set up in schools, universities and community buildings. The project is supported purely by charitable fundraising through the effort of its team members and supporters.

This Year’s Project

This year, we are going to take one step further in reaching our goal of setting up a sustainable water source for the Tanzanian population by carrying out two simultaneous projects.

The first project is to build tanks to collect, filter and store water in the town of Igunga that will provide water for two schools – St Leo’s Primary School and St Margaret’s Secondary School for Girls. At the moment, the municipal supply of water is unaffordable and the only other option is for students to walk over 10 km to collect water from an alternate source. Our tanks will have capacities of 20,000 to 100,000 litres and an estimated lifetime of over 40 years, providing a free, sustainable supply of clean water.

The second project aims to provide various training schemes for people in local villages. We will be focusing on topics such as water sanitation, hygiene and conservation. We will also teach families how to construct their own smaller-scale water storage containers, built from easily available or locally-sourced materials. Further, in collaboration with Caritas, we aim to train a select few to carry on teaching their fellow community members after our departure as part of our ‘Training of Trainers’ scheme.

Get involved!

So what can you do to help? Just look out for the many fundraising opportunities Raincatcher will be putting on throughout the year. Each one will be creative, fun and for a good cause. We’re hoping to raise £20,000 this year, and have raised as much as in the past.

All the money we collect will go directly to helping the Tanzanian people and personal costs – such as flights and accommodation – are paid for by the team members themselves. Get involved with one of our four departments – Research, education, fundraising or public relations – by sending us an email now at raincatcher@imperial.ac.uk.

To find out more, or to donate money to us through Virgin Money Giving, follow this link: www.raincatcherimperial.org