Sixteen years ago, I traveled to Mali as part of a medical mission — leading art workshops for children and families receiving care. Before I left, the health professionals I'd worked alongside gave me a piece of advice: if you ever come back, start a hand washing initiative. It would do more for public health here than almost anything else.

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So we did. We went into schools, organized sports tournaments, and used the energy and enthusiasm of kids and families to spread a simple message: wash your hands with soap. It was working.

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Then we asked a question that changed everything: where is this water coming from?

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The answer, almost every time, was the same. Local women and girls were carrying it from great distances — hours out of their day, energy out of their bodies — to supply our workshops. It was generous, and it was unsustainable.

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Around the same time, a group of 42 women approached us. They tended a small garden together, but had no reliable water source, no fencing, and no shelter. 

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We asked them to design their dream garden. Then we helped them build it.

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The results were undeniable. A new chapter of the Wash Project was born — and we haven't looked back. Every year since, we have partnered with one new community, helping them build a garden that transforms not just their harvest, but their village. Today, the Wash Project works directly with over 1,200 women and their families across rural Mali.

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We're so happy you're here.

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With gratitude, ​​

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Barclay Martin, Co-Founder