Interview: Peter Cleary (LifeStraw)
Check out the video of me using a lifestraw in some turbid water!
I was afforded the opportunity of chatting with Peter Cleary of Vestergaard Frandsen, the makers of LifeStraw, a few weeks ago.
Here’s the details of that interview.
Please introduce yourself.
My name is Peter Cleary (pictured) and I am the Communications Director for Vestergaard Frandsen.
SW: What was the timeframe from idea to reality for the LifeStraw?
PC: Several years.
SW: What areas are currently getting LifeStraws and where are you planning on going with them?
PC: LifeStraws are currently being used in India, Pakistan, Kenya, Madagascar, Zambia, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Ghana, Turkey, Indonesia, and Dubai. We hope they will be sued throughout Africa, Asia, and wherever they are needed to prevent disease, reduce suffering and save lives.
SW: How can people get involved and get lifestraws in the hands of those who need them?
PC: They can visit www.lifestraw.com and click on LifeStraw Personal to learn more about the product, then click the donations section where they can contribute as little as $10 for the purchase and distribution of this lifesaving product.
SW: Is there a limit to how dirty the water can be before LifeStraw stops filtering the bad stuff?
PC: No, Lifestraw works on even the most muddy (technically called turbid) water of Africa.
SW: What kind of life change have you seen from people who have access to a LifeStraw vs. those who don’t?
PC: LifeStraw can break the cycle of sickness and disease that often results in chronic diahhrea that often claims the lives of children, pregnant mothers and people with compromised immune systems.
SW: I’ll be honest, when I first heard of LifeStraw, I thought it was a gimmick. Do you run into that much?
PC: Not really, though some people are surprised to learn about how simple the product is to use (no electricity needed, nor batteries or replacement parts).
SW: What’s on the horizon for LifeStraw?
PC: Earlier this year we launched a home version of the product called LifeStraw Family that is designed to provide one and a half year’s worth of clean and safe drinking water for a typical family in the developing world.
SW: You’ve got an Africa trip coming up. Give us the lowdown.
PC: I’m off to Livingstone, Zambia to participate in a big event called World Malaria Day. In addition to high tech personal water filters, we are the global leader in producing long lasting bed nets that prevent the transmission of malaria. We make about four million bed nets a month for the developing world. I will speak at an event commemorating World Malaria Day and be joined by the Ministers of Health from 15 African nations, Princess Astrid of Belgium, African musicians like Yvonne Chaka Chaka (called the Princess of Africa), and these incredible young guys who are leaders of an exciting project called the Zambezi Expedition (http://www.zambezi-expedition.org), which traces the journey of explorer David Livingstone down the Zambezi river. Along the way they are providing free medical services, and our bed nets, to some of the poorest people in the world.
SW: What can people to do get the word out about LifeStraw?
PC: Exactly what you are doing now: talk, write, blog, chat, and continue to raise awareness about the simple and effective solutions that exist to some of the biggest problems people face is the best way to draw attention to them. Despite the huge problems many people face in the world, there are actually a lot of cool things people can do to make a real difference. Supporting LifeStraw is just one of those.
