Public Interest Registry (PIR), the people behind .ORG, announced WHOlives as one of the winners of the 2023 .ORG Impact Awards, an annual program that honors and celebrates outstanding mission-driven organizations and individuals working to make the world a better place.
WHOlives won the Hunger and Poverty category at the awards ceremony in Washington, D.C. The organization was chosen as one of the seven winners – selected from almost 1,000 applications from more than 70 countries.
“WHOlives shows us a better way forward,” said Jen England of Food Rescue Hero at the ceremony. “They’ve created the self-sustaining solution to bringing clean water to developing communities. To this date, this has ensured that over 12 million people across 40 countries now have access to clean water.”
John and Nicci Renouard of WHOlives accepted the award in D.C.
“It just warms my heart to see all the wonderful people that are here that are dedicating their lives to making lives better somewhere else,” John Renouard told the audience. “We’re so excited to be part of the .ORG family, who also takes the time to recognize the small doers in this community.”
In 2011, John Renouard invented the Village Drill – a human-powered drill that’s more cost-effective than other methods of drilling water wells. The innovation is a game-changer that’s accelerating the pace of expanding access to clean water. More than 2 billion people around the world still lack a source of clean water, England said.
With an award donation of $10,000, WHOlives can complete two more water wells in developing countries. Just $20 is enough to bring clean water to one family for life. Become a monthly donor at WHOlives.org/donate.
The D.C. ceremony was hosted by Padma Lakshmi, activist, author and host/producer of Hulu’s Taste the Nation.
WHOlives was named a finalist for the .ORG Impact Awards in October.
ABOUT WHOLIVES
WHOlives is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit focused on empowering people with clean water in the developing world and advocating for girls by ending female genital mutilation (FGM) and child marriages. The organization’s goal is in the acronym WHO – providing clean Water, better Health and economic Opportunities to all people – while prioritizing sustainability and self-reliance. Since 2011, WHOlives has drilled more than 13,000 wells in 40 countries using its revolutionary human-powered Village Drill, securing clean water for more than 12 million people. In the effort to end FGM, common-sense solutions and leadership have already resulted in a wave of arrests and convictions since fall 2022. Connect with WHOlives.org on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
ABOUT PUBLIC INTEREST REGISTRY
Public Interest Registry (PIR) is a nonprofit that operates the .ORG top-level domain—one of the world’s largest generic top-level domains with more than 10.8 million domain names registered worldwide. .ORG is open to everyone, providing a global platform for organizations, associations, clubs, businesses and individuals to bring their ideas to life. PIR has been a champion for a free and open Internet for two decades with a clear mission to be an exemplary domain name registry, provide a trusted digital identity and help educate those who dedicate themselves to improving our world. PIR was founded by the Internet Society in 2002 and is based in Reston, Virginia.