Have you used the restroom today? Was it outside? In an open field? Perhaps in a bucket or a shallow hole in the ground? Maybe in the river where you bathe and collect water for drinking?

Chances are, if you are reading this you have the luxury of porcelain potties, 2-ply toilet paper and hand soap. Most of us have never thought of a restroom as anything other than a toilet and some privacy. It isn’t uncommon for us to complain when the seat is less than spotless or when we can’t reach the roll.

Sanitation, which we take for granted, is non-existent for more than 2.5 billion people around the world – that’s 38% of the world’s population. Rather than using facilities as we do, people in developing countries often defecate in make-shift latrines or open places. More often that not, their drinking water sources are contaminated as a result.

And so it begins, the endless cycle of waterborne disease, sickness and death. Lack of adequate sanitation is yet another inhibitor to the prosperity of the developing world, stripping people of their dignity and ability to work and go to school.