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

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

If you're like most of us, 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 we wash our clothes, when we boil our pasta, when we use the bathroom... water's just there for the taking.

But for a billion 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 parasites and leeches. In fact, 80% of all diseases in the world are caused by unsafe drinking water and lack of sanitation.

That’s why University Meadows, along with the other 28 student communities of Campus Living Villages, has decided to make a difference through our Impact Thirst campaign. Our goal is to raise $1 per resident by Earth Day, April 22, to support charity: water. One dollar doesn’t sound like much, but with a force of approximately 17,500 residents and employees across the country, we have the power to make an impact on the global water crisis.

The cool thing about charity: water is that they spend 100% of the money we raise directly on the water projects. Even better, when projects are complete, every dollar is tied to a village and all the wells are posted on Google Earth.

Few if any of us have actually been dying of thirst. And if you're like us, you'd like to see a world where no one does. Together, we can.

Life. Just add water!