Ariane begins her United States Tour

Ariane Kirtley arrived in the United States on Saturday to begin an Amman Imman fundraising tour that will take place over the next six weeks.

This week, she will visit several schools in
the Washington DC area, both Montessori and independent, where she will speak to students about life in the Azawak for the 500,000 people who live there without viable sources of water. She will describe how the people in this region survive by adapting their lives to the seasons, collecting marsh water during the rainy season and traveling long distances in search of water during the nine month dry season. No matter what the water source, whether it is water from the marsh, a hand-dug shallow well, or a deep cemented well, it is most often dark as hot chocolate and contaminated. Yet, because there are so few permanent water sources, the people have no choice but to drink this dirty water. By the time she leaves, the students here in America who witness her stories and see her pictures will surely be more appreciative when they turn on the tap and get the benefit of cool, clean water.

On Monday, Ariane will speak to both middle and high school students at the National Cathedral School. On Wednesday, Ariane visits Aidan Montessori School in Washington, D.C.

In addition to raising their awareness about the struggles of the people of the Azawak,she will also share with them Amman Imman's success in building a permanent water source for the people of Tangarwashane who are now supplied with crystal clear water. No longer do the people in Tangarwashane have to scoop water out of the marsh during the rainy season. No longer do they have to travel long distances during the dry season to reach the deeper shallow wells, often to only find that they are either dry from over exploitation or had never been dug deep enough to reach water.

Now the people of Tangarwashane can turn on a faucet.

At the end of the month on October 26, Oneness-Family School, in collaboration with other area Montessori schools, will feature Ariane and Amman Imman at a special evening event that will celebrate African culture and raise awareness of the specific challenge of water scarcity that plagues our world today. Stay tuned for details!

Many thanks to Faye Ferguson, chief financial officer at National Cathedral School and Kathy Minardi, head of Aidan Montessori for taking part in organizing Ariane's school visits this week.