All language subtitles for T C S01E06 1080p WEB h264-EDITH_track3_[eng]

We have parents starving
to feed their children.

WOMAN: Enough is enough.

Salmon farming is a fucking
environmental catastrophe.

If we don't stand together, we
cannot have this country we
want.

ALL: Enough is enough.

NARRATOR: In today's world,
everybody wants their voice to
be heard.

Do not think this will not
affect you.

NARRATOR: But when the people
in power don't listen...

The lies that are being put out
now is purely out of hatred.

NARRATOR: ...you need to come
together to make real change.

So don't walk past here
with your noses up.

NARRATOR: In this global
series,

we will follow a team
of international activists.

We have to speak out.
You have to use your voice.

You have to be courageous,
and you have to be brave.

Nobody should be abandoned to
die.

[speaking Spanish]

We can save many lives if we
act

not through hatred, violence or
division.

NARRATOR: These activists
will inspire and
revolutionize

the work of local
campaigners...

Now we face a threat--
extinction

of everything we know and love.

NARRATOR: ...who are
struggling to make a
difference in their own
communities.

It is Black people who are
being murdered

by a system that doesn't care
enough about them.

Y'all ready? Y'all ready?

NARRATOR: As they work
together

to see if they can shine a
light on injustice

and transform their lives for
good.

This work is, like, super
important.

It's really life or death, so,
good luck.

Stand up, fight back!

NARRATOR: In this episode,
we explore the global water
crisis.

As the world's population
increases exponentially,

so does the problem.

MAN: This is not water
that humans should depend on.

NARRATOR: By 2025,
half the world's population

will be living in water
poverty.

Ghana is just one of the many
countries in the midst of
this crisis.

His son literally died
because of water contamination.

NARRATOR: Here, one man is
battling to bring clean water

to one of its most neglected
regions.

At first, water is the--

NARRATOR: And turn the
tide...

MAN: Plastic! Plastic!

NARRATOR: ...on a dire plastic
problem

made worse by the crisis.

TRINICE: This is impacting
not only their way of survival,

but their actual being.

♪♪

NARRATOR: Thanks to its rich
natural resources,

Ghana has one of the fastest
growing economies in Africa.

But in the midst of an
economic and population boom,

its infrastructure
is struggling to keep up.

As a result, one in ten
Ghanaians

spends more than 30 minutes a
day simply getting clean
water.

My name is Joseph [indistinct].
I'm a proud Ghanaian.

People would have to travel all
the way

for about two, three kilometers
to come and fetch water here

in the morning, in the
afternoon and in the evening.

So we are privileged
to have this across the road.

Yeah.

When I was growing up, access
to water was really a
challenge.

As a child,
I have to walk several miles

just in search of water,

and I have to wake up
very early in the morning.

And then by the time you return
home,

you reporting to school very
late.

I realized that this situation
was crossing my education.

And whenever I see people
wasting water,

I realize that they have not
been in the situation I found
myself.

And we have, you know,
stagnant waters in the gutter.

What happened?
Who can tell me?

NARRATOR: To attempt
to change the status quo,

Joseph dedicates his life to
educating the younger
generation

about issues around water
poverty.

I am working to ensure
that deprived people in Ghana

have access to water.

It's a basic human right which
everybody should be entitled
to.

NARRATOR: Only 36% of the
country

has access to safely managed
water.

It's a problem that
disproportionately affects
people

in rural communities.

[interviewer] Is this the place
that your people fetch water?

JOSEPH: Yes.

[interviewer] Wow.

Not safe for consumption,

not safe for even animals.

This is not a water
that humans should depend on.

NARRATOR: In areas where
there is limited
infrastructure,

Joseph tries to raise money
to drill mechanical wells

known as boreholes to
provide fresh drinking water.

JOSEPH: Morning.

I'm the founder of Young
Visionary Leaders Ghana.

I founded this organization in
2015.

We just put in measures in
place to ensure that we get
more supports.

Normally, it takes two years

to raise fund for one borehole.

We need people who can actually
help us.

We need help from people
who support the-- the vision

of ensuring that people have
access to water.

♪♪

NARRATOR: To help Joseph
raise awareness of his work,

Trinice McNally from the
Changemakers team

has been drafted in
to collaborate with him.

[audience cheering]

I'm an educator and organizer,
and also a culture worker.

Our work is at the intersection
of education,

mobilizing folks, teaching and
political education.

NARRATOR: Before she meets
Joseph for the first time...

- Good morning. Hey, y'all.
- Hi, Trinice.

NARRATOR: ...Trinice wants to
check in with the other
Changemakers.

As you all know that a lot of
my ancestry is actually, like,
Ghanaian.

So it's-- it's truly a
homecoming.

FLAVIA: It's going to be
a very powerful experience,

and it's also going to be very
challenging

because you will be, like,
in this middle avenue

of being part of that place,

but also trying to bring
something new in order to help.

So please take care of your
emotions also.

♪♪

- Hi. Hi.
- JOSEPH: Hi.

- Are you Joseph? In the flesh.
- Yes, I'm Joseph. Yes.

- I'm Joseph. Nice meeting you.
- Thanks for having me.

I'm so-- Good to meet everyone.

Hi, nice to meet you.

- I'm loving it. Feels good in
here. - Yeah. Yeah.

I'm really excited to be here.
I've been reading all about
your work.

And I'm just here to learn and
to support

and figure out, like, how we
can team up and I can help.

All right.

So, so far,
we've been able to donate water

- to about five communities in
Ghana. - Wow.

And we think that access to
portable water is a human
right.

- TRINICE: Everyone should have
access. - Everybody should have
access.

But then to also go further,
getting policymakers on board,

campaigning for what is due
them,

I think we share common in our
priorities,

- something that we can work on
as a team. - Absolutely.

And then making sure that
people who do not have voice,

- now they have voice. -
TRINICE: Yeah, they're sensors.
Yeah.

I'm really excited for us to
get started.

JOSEPH: I'm so much happy to
meet Trinice.

We share similar passion.

So it's going to be an
opportunity where we can share
knowledge

about certain things that she's
doing that is working for her.

TRINICE: I think Joseph
has a huge responsibility.

He has to build more awareness
politically

about what's happening
and what the impact is,

and I hope that someone is
gonna start to take it
seriously.

♪♪

NARRATOR: Trinice will spend
time working with Joseph

on the ground exploring water
poverty.

Today they're heading out
of the capital Accra

and into rural Ghana.

What would you say the
challenges are

in terms of everyday people
getting access to water here in
Ghana?

Some communities
that are outside Greater Accra,

they don't have the
infrastructure when it comes
access

- to potable water.
- TRINICE: Okay.

And most of these people
would have to depend on rivers,

streams, stagnant waters for--
for survival on daily basis.

There's a need
to work on the infrastructure.

It's serious challenge
that we are facing as a nation.

NARRATOR: For centuries,
Ghana has attracted outside
powers

who have plundered its natural
riches.

Under colonial rule, its
people were also stolen from
the land

and brutalized by the slave
trade.

The colonial powers built
infrastructure

solely to serve their ruling
interests,

sowing the seeds of a
rich-poor divide.

This divide has deepened in
the 70 years

since Ghana finally broke
free from British rule.

JOSEPH: Colonialism
affected us as a country.

Looking at where we were
and where we are today,

there has been
a lot of improvements,

but we still lack access
to some basic amenities

such as road networks,

quality healthcare, quality
education.

I think we have a long way to
go.

NARRATOR: Joseph is taking
Trinice to a village in Ketu
South,

a region of Ghana where much
of his work is based.

-Thank you.
-Yeah. You're welcome.

NARRATOR: Until recently,
many of the people of
Hatsukope

relied on contaminated water
from open wells, rivers and
lakes.

Now they have a continuous
supply of fresh water,

thanks to Joseph's activism.

His work helped provide
a mechanized borehole,

which uses an electric pump
to extract clean water

from 80 meters below ground
level.

This system will support about
6,000.

Four communities are supposed
to benefit from this system.

- Okay, everyone comes here.
- Yes, everyone comes here.

Most especially in the morning,

you see a lot of people here
fetching water.

We are just happy that people
are benefiting from this.

Yeah. So we need more
and more and more and more.

BOTH: More and more and more.

- In outer communities.
- Everywhere.

♪♪

JOSEPH: Traditionally in Ghana,
when you have a special guest,

anybody who comes into your
house, you're supposed to fest

or share that person the
water...

telling the person that you
have welcomed the person to
your home.

Water in our tradition
means unity and friendship.

It also means life.

[all applauding]

[speaking native language]

Do you have
any traditional types of wisdom

that you can share with us

about how we be in wise
relationship with the land?

Thank you for welcoming me
into your community.

I pray that water will just be
the start

of all the good things
for you and your family.

[all applauding]

TRINICE: Rolling up to
Hatsukope was really beautiful.

I really appreciated the
libation.

Being welcomed with the drums
felt like I was home.

We start everything off
with honor and homage.

And what is that relationship
to? Water.

'Cause you can't do anything
without water.

♪♪

NARRATOR: The global water
crisis is about to hit
breaking point.

Experts predict that in as
little as seven years,

we'll have 40% less water than
we need.

This could directly lead
to the displacement

of 700 million people...

with one in every four
children living in water
poverty.

In Ghana, the only fail-safe
option for clean drinking
water

is to buy it in plastic
bottles and sachets.

As a result, the nation
produces

more than 1,000,000 tons
of plastic waste each year.

Due to the country's
limited infrastructure,

less than 10% is recycled.

This has led to a
catastrophic plastic
pollution problem.

JOSEPH: Ghanaians' mentality
when it comes to plastic
pollution

is actually very, very bad.

They don't think about the
consequences of plastic
pollution,

how it affects all of us.

People just throw it away

wherever they think
is convenient for them.

NARRATOR: Nowhere
is the problem more visible

than on parts of Ghana's
335-mile-long coastline.

♪♪

To find out more, Joseph has
sent Trinice

to meet Nii, a local
fisherman.

- Hello.
- Hi.

Hi. I'm Trinice. Nice to meet
you.

NARRATOR: His community
is directly affected

by the country's plastic
crisis.

TRINICE: Oh, my gosh.

This is disgusting.

The amount of pollution
and the amount of plastic

is really devastating.

Most of the people
that we see here are fishermen,

so I'm sure that this is
impacting not only their way of
survival, right,

but their actual being.

NARRATOR: Nii wants to show
Trinice

exactly how the problem
affects his livelihood.

Okay.

[speaking native language]

[singing in native language]

NII: Plastics.

- TRINICE: You can see it. -
NII: Trinice, plastics,
plastics!

- TRINICE: No fish. No fish.
- As I tell you, plastics.

- No fish. Plastics.
- TRINICE: No fish.

NII: Instead of fish, it's
plastics!

Instead of fish, it's plastics!

To come out every day,
to spend money on supplies

and never find fish.

More plastics coming. More
plastics.

- Fish is plastics!
- TRINICE: It's just coming up.

FISHERMAN: [indistinct]
more plastic again.

TRINICE: Oh, my gosh.

So, it's not sustaining a
family how it used to.

How long has this been
happening?

TRINICE: It's killing us.

NARRATOR: For hundreds of
years,

fishing has been the
lifeblood of the people of
Jamestown.

Today, Nii hardly makes enough
money to feed his family,

To see the ways that
not only are people's careers

and their traditions being
decimated,

but this is what we're doing
to the ocean, you know?

- This is what we're doing to
the earth. - NII: Plastics!

So being here is really...

I don't even have the words.

It's just really heartbreaking.

NARRATOR: It's predicted,
that if this rate of pollution
continues,

by 2050, the ocean will
contain more plastic than
fish.

NII:

Yes.

TRINICE: Oh, my gosh.

♪♪

NARRATOR: The combined effect
of Ghana's rapid population
growth

has caused rapid
urbanization.

Korle Lagoon is home to tens
of thousands of people.

It also happens to be one of
the most polluted bodies of
water on earth.

TRINICE: Yes.

TRINICE: Where are you gonna
put it?

So, where's your government?

TRINICE: Do your elected
officials--

Do they come and talk to local
people?

Only at elections time.

- You're right, you're right. -
TRINICE: Before election time.

You don't see them again
till the next election.

Yeah. They all come to you.

Ah!

When people talk about Ghana,
they love to talk about

- how advanced Ghana is.
- Yeah, you're right.

Like, economically,
they like to talk about

- how advanced Ghana is
politically. - Yeah.

- But that's for the rich.
- Yes, please. Yes, please.

That's not for everyday people.

How could people's backyard
just be full of waste

and no one do anything about
it?

Right, 'cause they have
[indistinct].

Yeah. Mm-hmm.

Yeah. Yes. I'm your people.
Yes. Yeah.

Yes. Yes.

We're gonna share it. I'm gonna
share it.

And they're gonna know.

NARRATOR: The prolific plastic
waste isn't just restricted
to the beaches.

It also clogs the country's
drains and gutters,

causing a buildup of stagnant
water.

This in turn leads to
disease...

and children are particularly
at risk.

In Ghana, 76% of households

are exposed to drinking water
containing fecal matter.

And nearly 2,000 under-fives
will die each year from
diarrhea

caused by poor sanitation.

JOSEPH: We're going to meet a
man called Mr. Dadulu.

- Mr. Dadulu.
- Who-- Yes.

- Okay. - Who is a native of
this community.

Okay, so he's a from here.

Yeah, he's from here, and he
will share more of the
challenges

that this community is facing.

NARRATOR: Today,
Joseph is introducing Trinice

to a man who's paid the
ultimate price

for dirty drinking water.

JOSEPH: Good afternoon, Mr.
Dadulu.

Hi, nice to meet you.

- I'm Trinice. It's good to
meet you. - Thank you.

NARRATOR: Mr. Dadulu is from
a long line of farmers

who have been living on this
land for over a hundred
years.

JOSEPH: Now we are here
in Dadulu's house.

NARRATOR: Around 20% of
Ghanaians rely on rainwater

for drinking and household
use.

JOSEPH: This water...

- [speaking other language]
- TRINICE: Okay.

JOSEPH:

- TRINICE: Like a storage.
- JOSEPH: Yeah, a storage.

There is a war for the water.

- TRINICE: They come here for--
- [speaking other language]

JOSEPH: Yeah, so what they do
is...

- TRINICE: At the bottom. Yeah.
- JOSEPH: Yes.

- TRINICE: And then boil it.
- [man speaking other language]

JOSEPH. So, sometimes they boil
it,

- but sometimes--
- TRINICE: You don't boil it.

NARRATOR: When rainwater is
scarce, Mr. Dadulu's family

must find an alternative
source of water.

[Dadulu speaking in other
language]

Contaminating it.

Contaminates the water,
they drink from the water,

- they step into the water that
people-- - Have to drink.

Exactly, have to drink and then
defecate into the water.

JOSEPH It was as a result

- of the water that they--
yeah. - Water contamination.

Because they are kids,

they don't know whether the
water should be treated before
they drink it.

So, last year, what happened
was...

My son was actually drinking it
while they are fetching it.

JOSEPH: And because of how far
the hospital was...

Please let him know that I'm
really, like,

devastatingly sorry to hear
that.

Uh...

JOSEPH: If there were to be
a health facility

that is closer to this place,

they would have been able
to rescue the child from,

you know, dying immediately.

DADULU:

JOSEPH: So, that was the
situation.

As soon as possible.

[speaking other language]

[speaking other language]

♪♪

I see people dying
because they have to drink

contaminated water from
streams, rivers.

It is very critical for
everybody to have access to
potable water.

NARRATOR: Mr. Dadulu lives
in what was once a rural
area.

It's now a bustling town
that's continuing to grow.

This street was just a small
road

with bushes, yeah, left and
right.

Now we have, you know, houses,

we have churches, we have
shops.

This place is developing day
in, day out.

NARRATOR: Mining in this
region has not only increased
the population,

it's draining the local water
supply and other resources.

- JOSEPH: It's a very busy
town. - TRINICE: Yeah.

But there are so many
challenges that the local
government facing

in order to ensure that people
have access

to some social amenities.

We have the Ketu South
Hospital.

The only hospital that we have
in the whole Ketu South.

Just imagine, we have
communities that are far away
from here

and when something happened, by
the time they get to the
hospital...

- TRINICE: They're not well.
- ...it's too late.

And these people
are dying in the out over there

without no action being taken.

There are lots of challenges
that they are facing

when it comes to,
you know, social amenities.

- Yeah. Basic shit. Talking
about water. - JOSEPH: Yeah.

- TRINICE: Hospital.
- Health.

TRINICE: Thanks for sharing
the challenges.

I have a better, like, idea
of what's happening.

Mr. Dadulu's community
is already an impoverished,

vulnerable community.

Learning about his son who
literally died a few feet from
where we were sitting

because of water contamination.

Children shouldn't have to know
how to decipher

what water is good and what
water is not.

They should be able to drink
water when they're outside.

And that's what
he should have been able to do.

And because he did, he's not
here.

♪♪

NARRATOR: It's not just
disease

that makes children
vulnerable to water poverty.

In many homes across Africa,

they are the ones responsible
for collecting the household
water.

- TRINICE: Hi, Sylvia.
- SYLVIA: Hi.

NARRATOR: Local translator
and journalist, Sylvia,

has offered to take Trinice
on one of the daily water
gathering trips.

TRINICE: Is it typically just
kids?

SYLVIA: The oldest person

you see among them is 13 or 15.

They're leading the young ones
to go.

NARRATOR: One of the
teenagers in the group is
Abigail.

She's been fetching water on a
daily basis

since she was nine years old.

SYLVIA:

Three times. [indistinct].
Okay.

ABIGAIL:

SYLVIA:

So, this is the water
they fetched for bathing,

washing, and doing other house
chores,

except drinking because it's
not pure for drinking.

NARRATOR: It's just after 7:30
a.m.,

and for many in the group,
this is their second journey
of the day.

TRINICE: So, imagine taking
this trek early in the morning

when you probably can't see.

Could also be potentially scary

'cause you can't see what's,
you know, beneath the bushes.

NARRATOR: After a two-mile
trek,

the children finally locate
some rainwater.

ABIGAIL:

NARRATOR: Abigail walks
roughly six miles a day

in search of enough water

for just one day's household
chores.

Drinking water will need to
be sourced elsewhere.

- So, right now the water is
not clear. - Right.

So, when they get back,

you have to put it down for
some time

- to settle.
- TRINICE: Mm-hmm.

- And then they will boil it.
- SYLVIA: They boil it.

NARRATOR: Thanks to the
seasonal rains, the children
have been lucky today.

[children laughing]

During the dry season, when
rainwater deposits have dried
up,

they will have to walk even
further

or go home empty handed.

BOY: [indistinct]

♪♪

TRINICE: If this is
a good workout for me...

then it's a strenuous...

task on your body for them.

This is more work than what the
average person is doing...

- SYLVIA: Yeah,
- ...at a job 9:00 to 5:00.

This is more work than-- Two,
three times more than that.

And there's no payment.

Meeting really sweet
young people like Abigail

made me really inspired.

They are leading the charge to
get water in their community
every day.

That's why I'm, like, honored
to be here

because I get to learn more
about what's happening,

not just what they tell us on
TV,

because they want us to feel
sorry.

You know, that's what they do.

They create this, like,
sad depiction of, like, life.

So, it's, like, "Oh, pity is
me."

And no one here is asking for
pity.

People are just asking
for what they deserve.

Everyone in Ghana understands

how much water affects
their entire existence.

If we don't have water,
we can't do anything.

♪♪

I want people in Ghana
to ask more questions.

I want them to think critically

about why things exist in a way
they do.

The work that Joseph is doing
is really crucial work,

and it's literally life or
death.

NARRATOR: Having seen
firsthand

the struggles
that Ghanaians are facing...

- TRINICE. Hi!
- FLAVIA: Hello!

...Trinice wants to talk
to the Changemakers team

to work out how best to help
Joseph.

So, what's happening in Ghana
outside of Accra,

there's no piping system,
right?

There's no draining system.

Things of that nature that
connect to a water resource

simply don't exist.

So, not only do people
need drinking water,

but folks need water
to do household chores.

It's cleaning their vegetables,
right?

It's bathing, it is washing
your clothes.

At the root of this water
crisis

people need actual
infrastructure.

Listening to that

just really threw into sharp
relief,

the difference and--

or the privilege that I've had.

I mean, I grew up in Ireland,

there was never a shortage of
water,

in fact, there might have been
too much of it.

And I've never once thought
about that as a worry, as a
concern.

So, people are having to buy
bottles of water

and drinking water
out of a plastic bottle

then brings in the issue
of plastic pollution.

I've noticed, just driving
around, I haven't seen a
garbage can,

and people don't actually have
access

to the tools they need to
recycle.

Yeah, it's, like, tricky
dilemma.

You provide safe water, which
is bottle,

and you also, uh,

are collaborating
with the pollution problem.

And it's a loop
that reinforces the problem.

TRINICE: Yes, I would agree.

So, going to Jamestown,

I met with the guy, name is
Nii.

And he took me down to the
beach.

Everything is covered in at
least four inches in plastic.

People are being forced, right,

to try and go fish,
and they're having to fight.

He's a seventh generation
fisherman

who catches no fish.

Like, literally, it was just
plastics.

It really opened up
my world in a different way...

and is helping me to see my
world differently, right?

Because I wouldn't have called
myself a climate justice
activist before.

But everybody better become
climate justice activists

because literally the world
is falling apart.

Yeah.

It's just difficult because
it's not like just TV for us.

So I'm just, like, my family
lives there.

So I'm just, like, yeah,
it's just a-- it's just...

Yeah, it's pretty horrific
actually.

What Joseph is doing,

in terms of trying to eradicate
the issue around the water
crisis

is, like, a multipronged
strategy.

And one of the most important
parts of his strategy

is providing political
education to children and youth

because they understand this
issue better than anyone,
right?

Because they're currently right
in the belly of that beast.

So I was wondering, with your
expertise,

if you had any ideas
about how we could get the kids

more engaged and involved.

If you want to get kids
engaged,

you need to involve the things
that they care about.

I mean, and they love, of
course,

to do arts and sing
and dance and they love colors.

So you can approach them
in a way that they do not

only know the problem,
but feel the problem,

and most of all,

feel that they can be part of
the solution.

NARRATOR: Inspired by the
call with her fellow
Changemakers,

Trinice wants to run their
idea past Joseph.

- Hey, everyone. Hi, Joseph.
- Hello.

Hi.

I have a really good idea that
I wanted to share with you all.

- We're talking about children.
- Okay.

So maybe you can lead this
teaching at the school.

- JOSEPH: Yeah.
-Maybe having some of them

share their stories
about what their experiences

with not having access to
water has been.

What are they calling for? What
do they want to see happen?

How are they being impacted?

Because they're the ones that's
going to collect the water.

- Right. So they know better,
right? - When it comes to

the vulnerability of their
situation children are
vulnerable.

- They know first.
- Yes, exactly.

- So how's that sound? - Yeah,
that's a very good idea.

- Okay, you like it? - Yeah.
Yeah, we really like it.

How can they also come up
with a lasting solution?

Maybe you can-- I know you're
interested in art.

Have you thought about
what that could look like?

Maybe some type of, like, art
installation

or, like, an artivism where
students can participate
actively.

Showing up of, you know,
banner, like--

- Oh, so like a banner drop?
- Yeah, yeah.

JOSEPH: So this is what we are
aiming at.

I think this is gonna be really
good. I'm loving this. Can I
come?

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

- I'm happy to see you there.
- Okay.

NARRATOR: Trinice and Joseph
are taking their artivism
idea

to a local school in Ketu
South.

[singing in other language]

NARRATOR: She's hoping he can
connect with the children in
a holistic way

to drive home the importance
of water preservation

and the dangers of
contamination.

[singing in other language]

- JOSEPH: Are you happy to be
here? - CHILDREN: Yeah.

Okay. Every living thing, you
know, drinks water, isn't it?

Yeah. So that means that you
know there is importance of
water

in the life of every living
thing.

As a citizen of Ghana...

you must know that
the future belongs to you.

Hey, You want to paint?

Any message at all?

Anything at all
you want to say about water,

you can write it on it.

TRINICE: I enjoyed your lecture
style.

I'm hoping that we can
build a political education.

Yeah.

This is about how are they
progressing, how are they
learning.

Excited to see
what they're gonna add to it.

Maybe they'll be able to move
some of these issues at home.

Yes.

Because they're already making
the connections for themselves.

- Exactly.
- So, the class professor.

- Yeah, yeah.
- [both laugh]

Actually, I can see a lot of
words.

"Water is life."

"Water for all Ghana."

The hashtags, you know, the
water drop, the taps, the
hands.

This is so beautiful
and this is communicating

a lot of message to everyone at
all who sees this.

Perfect.

So, the kids are having a good
time.

I'm having fun. They're making
fun of my accent.

What about when you introducing
yourself?

Like, "Hi, my name is..."

[kids imitating Trinice]
"My name is [indistinct]."

- Oh, your name? Okay.
- [all laugh]

They're getting their creative
juices on.

They're thinking about the
messages they want to write.

People are getting
creative using their hands,

using their minds, using other
objects.

And yeah, things are great.
We're having a good time.

We're using art to tell our
story. They have a plan.

JOSEPH: Let's-- uh-huh,
let's have it this way.

- Are you ready?
- CHILDREN: Yes!

- JOSEPH: Are we ready?
- CHILDREN: Yes!

Are we ready?
- CHILDREN: Yes!

JOSEPH: Okay.

TRINICE: It was
a really enjoyable experience.

Folks are really engaged.

And then also people are, like,
being teenagers.

JOSEPH: Stretch it, stretch it.

TRINICE: Joseph is an excellent
lecturer.

[children shouting] Water!

- JOSEPH: We need...
- [children shouting] Water!

- We need...
- Water!

- We need...
- Water!

We need...

TRINICE: If a person is
engaged, they are forced to
think.

So Joseph is also helping to
develop a generation of
critical thinkers.

And critical thinking
is what actually shapes policy.

Critical thinking is what
shifts culture.

And I'm hoping to support
Joseph

and expanding his reach in
education.

[children chanting] We need
water!

Water...

[children shouting] Is life!

JOSEPH: Water...

Is life!

JOSEPH: What's water?

[children shouting] It's life!

TRINICE: Joseph's political
education efforts with children

will be able to do a lot.

However, they're not gonna
improve

the terrain by themselves.

People understand
the impact of not having water.

But they're trying to do
something about it.

[speaking other language]

NARRATOR: Despite
the country's difficulties,

many people across Ghana find
resourceful ways to fight
back.

- Hi. I'm Trinice.
- I'm Amanda.

TRINICE: It's good to meet you.

NARRATOR: To discover more,

Trinice is heading to an
area just outside Accra.

I've been noticing that
there's less plastic

in the areas that you're
working.

Yes.

And they pay you?

So the bigger, the more money.

I collect some in my house.

When I sell it, then I take the
money to buy another pure
water.

So how long ago did you start
collecting?

Oh, It's about six or seven
years ago.

- Wow.
- Uh-huh.

I realized that
if there's more plastic around,

and if we don't try to collect
it...

Right. Like clog the drain?

- Yes.
- Okay.

It chokes the gutters.

- Yes.
- Uh-huh.

And it makes the streets so
dirty.

That is how it is.

Yes.

So they try to collect more.

- If you have more, you get
more money. - Get more money.

Get more money. Yeah.

So it helps them to help them
too.

It helps them.

So do men do it?

- And-- Men?
- Yeah.

So it's more women?
More women.

More women, mm-hmm.

TRINICE: And what do they do
with the plastic when they take
it?

AMANDA: They use it to make
plastic bowls, chests and
tables, many things.

- Okay. So they, like, recycle
it? - Yes.

Okay. Okay. And repurpose.

Yes.

So it's not just about the
plastic. It's about helping the
women too.

Yes, yes.

And helping the earth.

Amanda is a badass organizer.

I'm really inspired by the work
that she's leading in her
community.

Not only is she organizing
women,

but also there's political
education, right?

Because people are learning
about

the importance of how they can
take care of their own
community,

-There' no water.
-There's no water at all.

- So the children have to walk
distance... -Far.

- ...before they get there. -
Is it very far to get water
here?

Yes, it is far.

So then they don't even have
time...

To go to school.

So you don't have time to go to
school?

If we are not educated well,
we can't do anything.

...maybe to help us.

- To create change.
- Yes.

Things probably would have been
the same hundreds of years ago,

but I just don't think it would
have felt as fatal

as it does now.

And I don't think that's just
because the Earth has populated
a lot more humans.

I think the issue is we are not
in relationship with the land,

and as a result of this not
being in a relationship with
the land,

we are not in right
relationship with each other.

I see this at home in the US,
right?

We see this all over the world.

[both speak other language]

- And thank you too.
- Thank you.

Thank you so much.

[indistinct] for what you have
done.

It matters so much.
The work matters so much.

Bye-bye.

NARRATOR: Inspired by what
she's learnt on the ground,

Trinice wants to talk
to the Changemakers team

to explore what else she can
do to help Joseph.

So Joseph is doing incredible
work.

And it's happening, really,
with a small team.

And even though
that work is super important,

unfortunately, we live in a
world that if no one knows
about your work,

then it's hard to get it to be
supported and to be sustained

and make the impact
that he really wants to make.

So I've been trying to figure
out some ways to help Joseph.

We live in a world where if
it's not on the Internet,

it didn't happen, right?

And I have my own qualms about
that.

But I think it's really
important that more people know
about

the work that Joseph is doing.

Maybe it will be possible
to try to contact

some high profile--

I don't know, I don't like the
word "celebrity"

or influencer or something like
that--

but somebody who is important
in Ghana

who could back Joseph's work
at a public level.

And it would be great for him
to be supported also at a
cultural level.

This household name needs to be
the person that the community
is looking up to,

where Joseph can use their
profile in a way to advance his
work.

I think it's a tried-and-tested
method.

You know, they can act as
gatekeepers to draw attention
to important matters.

It's important that people who
have such a platform

feel like they can use it for
good.

TRINICE: Social media is good
for a lot of things,

but in this case, it's a good
tool to mobilize people.

Joseph's social media presence
is, I believe,

less than 200 followers.

That's pretty low.

So I'm looking forward to
developing a social media
strategy

that would not only amplify
his presence online,

but will get the word out
to build awareness.

How do we get more people to
support

and get people to understand
the importance of your issue.

Fundraising. I know that you
need more.

So maybe, like,

strategies to invite
more people into the work.

JOSEPH: Yeah, yeah, yeah.

- Let's build more awareness.
- Yeah. Yeah.

Okay. In your wildest dreams,

who would be some good partners
that you would want to work
with?

Yeah, so--

Across Ghana, and I guess,
across the world too.

[inaudible speaking]

Joseph, he seems
really excited about expanding

their social media presence and
reach.

So I told him that I would be
talking

to someone who is one of
Ghana's very own.

NARRATOR: Trinice has managed
to secure a meeting

with one of Africa's biggest
superstars, actress and model
Nikki Samonas.

Sis, you've changed.
You've changed because of him.

NARRATOR: Known for her
philanthropy, she's also a UN
Goodwill Ambassador.

- Hello.
- Hi.

- Hi, are you Nikki?
- Yes.

I'm Trinice, it's good to meet
you.

- Hi, great to meet you.
- Are you a hugger?

- [Nikki laughs]
- I'm a hugger too. Great.

NARRATOR: With an Instagram
following of 1.2 million,

Trinice is hoping she'll
lend her voice to Joseph's
cause.

I appreciate the work that
you're doing,

which is why I'm so excited
to talk to you about Joseph.

So he's really interested
in how can we support, right.

How can we be in conversation,
provide political education,

but also get people excited?

Well, it's a very important
thing.

I know that individually most
of us

are trying to fix
the water drainage system.

And if you don't manage water
well,

you're going to go-- you're
going to die, so to speak.

Yeah. People are going to
continue to die.

But we need the government to
amplify--

- The infrastructure.
- Yes.

Right. And educate
as more people as possible,

because I think
if people see you doing it,

well, I've been checking out
your social media.

Oh, right.

- I see that you utilize your
platform. - Yeah.

Would you be okay with doing an
IG live with Joseph,

with him providing a political
education,

talking to people about
why this is important...

Of course.

...how to recycle,
how we can make this change?

- Of course.
- All right.

- There.
- I found it.

- Perfect.
- Following.

There. Boom. Got it.

So now you're following.

And I know you're going to
help him get this up.

I have to.

- Let's do it.
- I have to.

Joseph, we got you.

TRINICE: Not only are we going
to see an increase in his
following,

but we are going to see
an increase in engagement.

- Hey, Joseph.
- Hi, Trinice.

- I'm getting ready to go back
home. - Too soon. Thank you so
much.

I know I'll see you again,
so it's not a goodbye.

One thing I really appreciate
about Joseph

is that I think that he's doing
his responsibility to protect
the Earth.

The more Joseph goes out,

and the more he's able
to do this hard work,

the better chance we have
to sustain this world.

- All right. Take care.
- All right. Bye.]

NARRATOR: Trinice's time in
Ghana has come to an end,

but Joseph's work continues.

Today, the village of Pakro
is the beneficiary

of Joseph and his partners'
work.

After a two-year wait, the
community can finally
celebrate

the opening of a new
borehole.

JOSEPH: Ladies and gentlemen,

there are a lot more of people
in Ghana

and what do not have access
to potable water.

We need everyone to take
action.

That means you and your family,
school and community

can make a difference.

NARRATOR: With Joseph's
profile now on the rise,

he's trying to raise money
for 15 new boreholes across
Ghana.

Once we are done with Ghana,

then we will take it up
to other African countries.

We are still working towards
the dream.

[speaking other language]

Whatever it's going to take me
to achieve that dream,

I'm going to do it.

[shouting in other language]

TRINICE: Joseph has used his
personal life experience to
push himself.

WOMAN: We want to say
a big thank you to you.

And I think that's why he's
been able to be successful

and that is why his work
will grow as well.

What is life if there's no
water?

There's no graduation, there's
no job, there's no fancy car.

There's none of the things

that motivates people
to move through life.

I'm not a person that believes
that because I've spent a few
weeks here

that I understand
all the issues crystallized.

But if we are clear and we're
cognizant and we're curious

about these issues,
we can get a lot farther.

Over 21,000 people who have,
you know,

benefited from our water system
across the region so far.

♪♪