User:WB Saghir/sandbox

The German Toilet Organization (GTO) is a non-profit NGO founded in the year 2005 in Berlin. It aims to raise awareness about the world's sanitation issues and to provide clean and sustainable sanitation for everybody. The work of the GTO varies from puplic campaigns to sanitation projects in different countries. In 2008 the organisation got internationally renowned when they partnered with UN-Water to create "sanitation is dignity" the official campaign of the International Year of Sanitation, decleared by the UN in 2008.

Motivation
The work of the GTO is motivated by the fact that an estimated 2.5 billion people, living mainly in so-called "developing countries", do not have access to adequate sanitation facilities. Approximately 5000 children die every day through diarrhoeal diseases caused by dirty water and a lack of sanitation.

Activities
The GTO is working in several fields of activities. They have implemented sanitation projects in Sambia, Philippines and Sri Lanka.

The GTO offers a hygiene education tool-kit for schools to allay diseases caused by a lack of hygiene.

Their campaign "where would you hide" is a travelling exhibition, which has been on display in many countries, to teach the public about the worldwide crisis. It advocates the importance of sanitation to decision makers. "The exhibition shows 35 life-size, stand-up illustrations of people defecating in public, as they try to hide behind everyday objects such as flower pots, bags or umbrellas in order to maintain their dignity."

A main focus lies on public campaigns to raise awareness and spreading knowledge regarding the sanitation issue in the world and to break the "toilet-taboo".

Through sanitation training courses the GTO teaches German NGOs in the field of sustainable sanitation and how to implement it in developing countries.

The GTO was the driving force and one of the founder of the German WASH Netzwerk.