Dream Village Launches with Saved by the Well; World Water Week Events from 3/22 - 28

March 17, 2009 - PRLog -- Over 1,000 children are participating in Dream Village's water awareness events nationwide

NEW YORK, NY— Dream Village launches March 20, 2009 as a kick-off to World Water Week (March 20-28). Our first book, Saved by the Well, discusses the global water crisis in a way that is accessible, entertaining, and inspiring for any child; this is further evidenced by the number of teachers, scout leaders, and community center representatives from across the US who will use our book and our website to teach the children they work with about the global water crisis.

“Dream Village uses picture books and the web to teach children about a specific social, economic, or environmental issue and then puts them in a position to do something about it,” says Suneet Bhatt, Co-founder of Dream Village. “We donate a minimum of 50% of our profits to charitable causes based on votes cast by our readers.”

Dream Village is proud to join a host of organizations commemorating World Water Day, an international day of observance and action, and the intent is to draw attention to the importance of water in our lives, while  highlighting the struggles of people around the world who struggle for life’s most basic resource. According to the WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme on Water Supply and Sanitation, approximately 1 in 6 people worldwide do not have access to the necessary basic amount of freshwater needed for drinking, cooking and cleaning.

Saved by the Well places the global water crisis in terms that children in elementary school can understand, and that people of all ages will enjoy and learn from. The book tells the story of children in Spontania, Mozambique who struggled for access to clean, fresh water--until PlayPumps International gave them the tools to gain access to clean water. PlayPumps International installs innovative, sustainable, patented water pumps powered by children at play. The PlayPump system doubles as a water pump and a merry-go-round for children.

"It is important for all children to learn about these issues", says Pinki Shah, a 5th grade teacher in Manhattan, "because kids make change." Ms. Shah will be coordinating one of 40 awareness sessions across the US on March 20th. She and her class of 5th graders have been instrumental in the evolution of Saved by the Well and of Dream Village overall.

Dream Village Program Highlights

•   On March 20th, over 1,000 children (in 40 locations in 14 states) will read Saved by the Well, visit our Website, learn more about the issues discussed in the book, and cast a vote telling Dream Village where to donate its profits. Participating states are: AK, CA, CT, FL, GA, MA, MD, NC, NJ, NY, OH, PA, VA, and VT.
•   Children who vote on our site during World Water Week will also determine where an additional $2,000 will be donated. A private sponsor has agreed to donate $2,000 to the causes featured in Saved by the Well and discussed on the website but will allocate that $2,000 according to the votes cast by our readers during World Water Week.
•   On March 20th, we will also kick off a "Dream Maker, World Changer Contest" where the lucky winner will win a full scholarship to Beam Camp, a $5k value.
•   Our launch will feature partnerships with nonprofit organizations like GlobalGiving, PlayPumps International (featured in Saved by the Well), Camfed (the Campaign for Female Education) and Friends of the World Food Program.
•   We are working on a variety of impressive strategic partnerships, including one that positions us to launch an iPhone version of Saved by the Well shortly.
•   Our book pipeline features two more books this year, including one that teaches kids how to bring their own ideas to life (titled The World’s Greatest Pillowfight and based on a true story).
•   Dream Village won the October “Ideablob” small business plan competition sponsored by Advanta Credit Cards, has been accepted into “Investors’ Circle”, is an Echoing Green Semifinalist, and has presented at conferences ranging from DEMO 2009 to Footprints (hosted by Duke University).
Dream Maker, World Changer Contest
Dream Village is sponsoring the Dream Maker, World Changer contest in conjunction with our launch, World Water Week and Earth Day events. The contest is open to all children who have read Saved by the Well and will ask our readers to share their thoughts on the book and the issues discussed. The essay winner will receive a full scholarship to Beam Camp (http://www.beamcamp.com), a 4-week overnight summer program for boys and girls aged 7-17 in Strafford, NH. Beam Campers cultivate hands-on skills while exploring innovative thinking, design and the creative process. They transform ideas into artifacts and personal achievement into community success. The program's centerpiece is The Beam Project, a large-scale collaborative endeavor that campers plan, produce and play with.

Using Dream Village in the Classroom
   Read and discuss the book with your class or the children you work with as part of World Water Day
   Use the Website to further explore the global water crisis, related issues such as hunger and education, and other relevant topics such as Africa and Mozambique
   Use the book, site and Guide as a starting point to discuss social responsibility and global issues, and even to come up with your own creative ways to get involved and make a difference

Learn more about Dream Village

•   Corporate site (an informative series of blog posts): http://corporate.dream-village.org/
•   Children's site (Launching 3/19): http://www.dream-village.org
•   DEMO 2009 (DV was featured on a panel of social entrepreneurs): http://tinyurl.com/DVatDEMO2009

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Uses picture books and the web to teach children (age 6-10) about a particular social, environmental or economic issue and then empower them to do something about it. We donate 50% of our profits based on votes cast by the children who read our books.