Have you ever said, "I'm dying of thirst?"

If so, I bet you didn't really mean it.

If you're like me, you don't spend too much time thinking about water -- it's everywhere we go. When we're thirsty, we flip a handle or push a button. When we're dirty, we twist a shower knob. When our garden needs watering, when our pasta needs to be boiled, when we use the bathroom -- water is just there for the taking.

But for almost 800 million people on the planet, it's not. Millions of women and children have to walk hours each day to get water from muddy ponds and rivers. And much of that water is infested with bacteria, parasites or leeches.

When I learned that an average of $20 can give someone access to clean, safe water, I decided to start a campaign to help. My goal is to raise $2000 by the end of 2012. charity: water will use 100% of the money to directly fund the water projects in the field. Even better, when the projects are complete, they'll show me just where our money went. That's right -- we'll be able to see the GPS coordinates, photos and other details about the community we've impacted!

I've never actually been dying of thirst. I'm sure we'd all like to see a world where no one does.

Together, we can make a difference in the global water crisis. I hope you'll consider helping.