A student organization will demonstrate how far some children must walk each day to reach the nearest source of water at 3 p.m. Friday at Risman Plaza.

UNICEF KSU invites all students to participate in the three-mile walk through campus, which amounts to the same length some children must walk each day to get water.

“Of the 900 million people worldwide who lack access to water, over half of them are children,” Taiwo Adesina, president of UNICEF (United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund) KSU said. “They’ve done nothing to deserve the situation they are put in, but every day they are forced to walk to get any water.”

Adesina said students do not have to pay to participate in the walk. The number of participants will determine the amount of money donated to the Tap Project.

“Students have an opportunity to make a difference and change this issue,” Adesina said. “All you have to do is show up, sign in and walk. We will be giving a sign-in sheet to our financial sponsors.”

Adesina said the need for water is often neglected because in the U.S., citizens have several ways of getting water.

“It’s a major issue,” Adesina said. “We tend to overlook it because water is easily accessible, but people do suffer to get water, and the water they get isn’t necessarily clean.”

T-shirts will be sold in the Student Center before the event for $10. The proceeds will go toward UNICEF’S Tap Project, which will provide water to children living in Vietnam, Togo and the Central African Republic.

Contact Christine Morgan at [email protected].