Twitter for Sh-tters

Just because we’re on Twitter doesn’t mean we like it. I can sum up my hatred for this social networking tool in a lot less than 140 characters. But occasionally people who use Twitter can surprise you and not be narcissistic assholes.

Take Twitter for Sh-tters, which is using the site to raise money for building toilets in India.

India, in case you didn’t know, comprises a large chunk (660 million) of the 2.6 billion people in this world who are still without proper waste removal services. Therefore, every $400 raised through Twitter means a new eco-sanitation toilet for Indians.

“Apart from the money raised, the bigger purpose of Twitter for Sh-tters (T4S) is to make people, especially the youth, talk about sanitation,” said David Crosweller, UK director of Wherever The Need, the NGO that is building the toilets.

Isn’t that what we’re doing here? I mean, come on – give NTG a little credit for spreading the gospel.

All ego-crushing aside, the facts are really startling. “According to the 2001 Census, only 18% of Indians use toilets. About 78.4% of the rural and 13.6% of the urban population still practices open defecation.”

To me, $400 per toilet seems a little steep. I’m not sure if an “eco-sanitation” toilet is the best option for people who need this to stave off disease and illness. Our lust for green design sometimes gets in the way of our sense of utility. Worrying about our carbon footprint should come after people have a sanitary area to drop a deuce. However, Wherever the Need claims that the toilets are “very cheap and simple to build and operate.” They also provide opportunities to collect fertilizer and compost to reuse.

To get involved with Twitter for Sh-tters, you sign up to be a T4S “Daily Dumper”. By signing up, “you pledge to spend a day tweeting about shit (literally, or not, up to you) to raise money for Wherever the Need.”

For a stylized video description, enjoy: