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[STK]
[IN] TEX ENV ART
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-- WITH PHOTO -- TO ARTS, ENVIRONMENTAL, AND NATIONAL EDITORS:
World-Renowned Artist Vik Muniz Joins Movement to Bring Clean Water to
Tanzania
SEATTLE, March 10, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Celebrated artist
Vik Muniz will join the Students Rebuild Water Challenge by creating a
one-of-a-kind art piece in spring 2014. The Students Rebuild Water
Challenge, in partnership with charity: water and Global Nomads Group,
will bring clean, safe drinking water to more than 16,000 Tanzanians.
The Students Rebuild Water Challenge asks students worldwide to make
and mail in paper beads. Every 20 handmade beads will provide access
to clean water for one person because the Bezos Family
Foundation-through its Students Rebuild program-will match beads with
up to $500,000 in funding for 41 charity: water projects for Tanzanian
schools and communities. Water projects include rainwater harvesting,
new wells, repair and updating of non-functioning wells and
maintenance.
To date, more than 300 teams from 43 states in the United States and
19 countries have joined the Students Rebuild Water Challenge.
Countries signing up include Australia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Burundi,
Canada, China, the Dominican Republic, India, Iran, Italy, Mexico,
Poland, Romania, South Africa, Swaziland, Trinidad and Tobago, Turkey,
the United States and Uruguay.
Muniz will create and donate unique artwork using beads mailed in by
March 31, 2014. The Water Challenge uses the symbol of a bead because
they have been used as adornment, communication and currency in Africa
for thousands of years. Details of how to participate in the Students
Rebuild Water Challenge-including how to make paper beads-are
available at http://studentsrebuild.org.
Muniz also contributed his time, vision and talent to a previous
Students Rebuild project. Following the 2011 Japanese earthquake and
tsunami, the Students Rebuild Paper Cranes for Japan Challenge called
on young people to make origami cranes, which the foundation matched
with reconstruction funding. An overwhelming response of two million
paper cranes from 38+ countries and all 50 United States inspired
Muniz to create a large-scale art piece from thousands of paper cranes
which was photographed for a beautiful benefit poster. All proceeds
from the poster continue to support Japanese reconstruction.
About the Partners:
Vik Muniz Vik Muniz was born in São Paulo, Brazil but currently works in both New York City and Rio de Janeiro. Initially a sculptor, Muniz grew interested with the photographic representations of his work, eventually focusing completely on photography. Learn more at http://vikmuniz.net/
Students Rebuild Students Rebuild is a collaborative program of the Bezos Family Foundation. The Students Rebuild mission is to inspire young people to connect, learn and take collective action on critical global issues. Learn more at http://studentsrebuild.org #SRWaterChallenge
charity: water charity: water is a non-profit organization bringing clean, safe drinking water to people in developing nations. We use 100% of public donations to directly fund sustainable water solutions in areas of greatest need. Almost 800 million people in the world live without clean water. That's one in nine of us. Our goal is to end the water crisis in our lifetime by ensuring that every person on the planet has access to life's most basic need. In our first six years, charity: water has funded 8,661 water projects in 20 countries to serve more than 3.3 million people with clean, safe drinking water. Learn more: http://www.charitywater.org/
Global Nomads Group Global Nomads Group (GNG) is an international NGO whose mission is to foster intercultural dialogue and understanding among the world's youth. GNG engages and empowers young people worldwide using media, including: live-interactive videoconferencing, webcasts, social networking, gaming, and participatory filmmaking. Founded in 1998, the organization has conducted virtual exchange programs in more than 50 countries on all seven continents, reaching more than one million young people. Learn more: http://gng.org.
Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140310/DC80229
SOURCE Students Rebuild
-0- 03/10/2014
/CONTACT: Sabrina Urquhart, Manager, Students Rebuild, Bezos Family Foundation, (+1) 206.275.2048 ext. 120 | sabrina@studentsrebuild.org
/Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140310/DC80229
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
CO: Students Rebuild
ST: Washington
IN: TEX ENV ART
SU: FOR NPT
PRN
-- DC80229 --
0000 03/10/2014 21:31:00 EDT http://www.prnewswire.com
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