November 19th is World Toilet Day - a day to celebrate the importance of sanitation and raise awareness for the 2.5 billion people (nearly half of the world's population) who don't have access to toilets and proper sanitation. By attending or organizing an event, you can help spread the word and break the silence about an embarrassing topic.

This is an overview of events to mark World Toilet Day. If you are organizing an event that is not listed here, please submit to wtd@worldtoilet.org.

Want to host an event, but need some ideas? We have lots of resources here.

Click map for details.

List of participating countries Australia Bangladesh Belgium Bulgaria Cameroon Canada Germany Ghana Kenya India Liberia Libya Nepal Nigeria Pakistan Rwanda Singapore South Africa Sweden Tanzania United Kingdom United States Zambia Zimbabwe

INTERNET EVENTS

The Big Squat: Join the world to squat in a public place at noon for ONE MINUTE in recognition of the 2.5 billion people without access to sanitation. Learn more here.

Or, sign the online petition to demand action and an end to the sanitation crisis organized by End Water Poverty.

AUSTRALIA

1. In the Melbourne CBD at 9.30am on World Toilet Day, the Australian chapter of the World Toilet Organisation - the Australian Toilet Organisation - is holding a Big Squat. WaterAID Australia will also be participating. For more information, please contact Scott Chapman from the Australian Toilet Organisation, or visit here.
2. In Brisbane: Rowan Barber will celebrate "having a designated place to poo" by fasting, meditating and praying while sitting silently on a toilet in King George Square. For more information or to RSVP, visit here.
3. Surf for Toilets: Australians can celebrate "World Toilet Day" at the beach. Find out more and get involved here.

BANGLADESH

1. Seminar on World Toilet Day at the National Press Club in Dhaka. The panel will be made up of policymakers and specialists, followed by a question and answer round and a rally through the major roads of Dhaka. The contact person is Mohammad Zafar Baig.

BELGIUM

1. In Brussels, Plasactie, an activists group from Belgium, started five years ago with the petition "Do not silence my bladder" to demand more free public toilets, will distribute Wc-cheques in to the ministry responsible for consumption issues. In Ghent, they will distrubite the Wc-cheques at paying toilets. The issue is that there are free urinals for men, but women are forced to pay upwards of 2 euros to go to the toilet - which discourages them from relieving themselves and causes discomfort and can lead to infection. With this symbolic Wc-cheque with a value of 50 cent, they will be complaining about paying to use the toilet even after being a consumer of the shops, restaurants, bars, super markets, bioscopes, etc. They will also be participating in the Big Squat at 16u00 in the Ghent City hall. For more information, visit them here or contact Baharak Bashar.

BULGARIA

1. Uconomics, which is the publisher of the Bulgarian "Utilities" and "Facilities" Magazine, is organizing a national conference in Bulgaria on World Toilet Day. Its purpose is to present the opportunities to improve this public service in the country through EU funds, public-private partnership and private initiatives. Our conference is called TOILETS.bg and is taking place from 9 am to 3.30 pm in the Metropolitan Sofia Hotel. The contact person is Atanas Georgiev.

CAMEROON

1. Operation School Toilets: In Ngie Sub Division (located in the North West Region), Spire International is conducting a clean-up campaign in school around toilets and drinking water sources in primary schools. There will also be a workshop on the importance of improved sanitation and toilets, and will engage the students with games and sketches. For more information, contact Umenjoh Eldad.
2. Community Action For Development-CADEV, in Tombel, SW Region of Cameroon, will be organizing two events in collaboration with the Presbyterian General Hospital Nyasoso and the Aggressive Christian Health. First, they will hold a Health and Sanitation Talk at the Tombel Council Hall. This event will be officially opened by the Lord Mayor of the Tombel Municipal Council. And secondly, they will organize a "Keep Toilet Clean" campaign in Nyasoso with students and pupils of schools. The Medical Officer and the Principal of G.H.S. Nyasoso and a staff of CADEV will coordinate this programme. Banners and Hand Bills are being prepared for this event. For more information, please contact MBONTEH JACOB NZANG.

CANADA

1. Engineers Without Border (EWB) from MacDonald Campus of McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, are organzing three World Toilet Day events: 1) In the main lobby they will have a booth with information, have squatting competitions and other games oriented around toilets. 2) The Big Squat Movement - at 11:30 they will gather as many people as possible to squat for one minute and take a picture (they are also thinking about going to as many classes as possible to give a quick presentation and then have them squatting for one minute and take a picture). 3) Panel Discussion - they will have two professors (Dr. Claudia Mitchell and Dr. Suzelle Barrinton) who love toilets and do a lot of international work give a talk oriented around toilets at the end of the day. For more information, contact Jenna Senecal.

GERMANY

1. The German Toilet Organization will celebrate the World Toilet Day 2009 with 100 Students at the Brandenburg Gate in the heart of Berlin. As part of the GTO project "Klobalisierte Welt" (Toiletised World), the students are taking to the streets to demonstrate for action and to present their work to the world. And the schoolchildren have really let their imaginations run wild: bringing the issue to life with toilet fairies, a toilet gravestone, and not to mention a 2m high loo-bedecked globe! A press conference will be held at 9.30 in the Literaten-Salon of Restaurant Tucher beside the Brandenburg Gate. The main celebration and a press photo will take place immediately after the press conference at Pariser Platz in front of the Brandenburg Gate. The contact person is Thilo Panzerbieter.
2. In Berlin, Solidaritätsdienst International presents "Voices for Sanitation" and "Where Would You Hide?" exhibition next to the S-Bahn station Friedrichstraße.
3. The German Toilet Organization presents information panels about the positive impact of sanitation inside the Toilet Center of the main railway station in Munich. This small exhibition was made possible with the support of Hering Produkttechnik.
4. The Malteser International in Cologne plans an exhibition marquee in front of the Domforum (including meeting with the press at 11am), and an event at the toilet facilities at the "Dom" car park. For more information, the contact person is Thomas Reh.
5. While people in Germany take for granted having a clean and fully functional toilet in their home, many school toilets are badly neglected. Therefore, for World Toilet Day, all Schulklo users and visitors are invited to take pictures of neglected toilets along the themes of "Would you use it?" or "Only swine flu feels well here!" The best will be displayed on their website. Send your photo here.
6. On the occasion of the World Toilet Day 2009, CWS-boco, a supplier of professional washroom hygiene solutions and textile services, started the online competition titled "Hands on Hygiene" seeking the best online videos on hand hygiene. With this competition CWS-boco wants to draw attention to the importance of regular and thorough hand washing in times of the swine flu pandemic. The videos will be presented in the company's virtual WebWC (http://www.cws-boco.com/video). A jury of experts will evaluate all entries and select the top three which will be awarded.

GHANA

1. In the city of Ho, Life Development Foundation (LIDEFO) will be analyzing stool tests of school pupils in two rural communities in Matse Have and Takla Tokor. For more information, please contact Executive Director Rev. Silas Tsivanyo.
2. Water Health Ghana, a leading water provider in Ghana, will be celebrating World Toilet Day with a radio discussion on a local radio station in their area of operation, Ga West Municipality of greater Accra Region in Ghana. They will be raising awareness on the radio about sanitation, and also organizing a clean-up campaign around drinking water sources, and calling on the goverment and stakeholders to empower communities to build and own household toilets. Finally, they will be advocating especially for women empowerment to demand more household toilets. The contact person is Victoria Norgbey.

KENYA

1. In Kigali City local health workers have been invited to address a gathering of two villages in Lailoni to encourage better sanitation and using toilets. Concerts and traditional dancers will thrill the attendants - ensuring the event will be fun, but still successful in changing behaviors. They will also participate in the Big Squat for one minute at noon. This is being organized by a Community Based Organisation (CBO) called Fayya Barsifana (meaning: we educate health). The contact person is Galgalo Bocha at +254725537365.

INDIA

1. Join the Beyond Profit Magazine staff and friends on Chowpatty Beach, Marine Drive at 5pm on Thursday, November 19 for a Big Squat. For more information, visit them here.
2. Beautiful Toilet Contest: Vasantham Trust is working with 72 schools in Kanyakumari district of Tamil Nadu to reduce stigma and discrimination about toilets through storytelling clubs in schools. On World Toilet Day, schools will be visited and the three best toilets will be given a certificate and award. For more information, please contact C. Chandra Kala.
3. Procession in Madurai: By the Annai Theresa Rural Development Trust, a procession of sanitary workers and college students to raise awareness for sanitation. For more information, please contact G. Jeyaraj.
4. Toilet Contest: In Jabalpur (a city in the state of Madhya Pradesh) Janpad Panchayat Panagar, in association with Prakruti Mitra Environmental Society, will conduct a toilet contest in 122 schools and 80 Gram Panchayats (local governments at the village or small town level in India) of Panager to reduce toilet stigma and discrimination with storytelling clubs at schools. On World Toilet Day, the schools and Gram Panchayats will be visited, and the best toilets will be given a certificate and award. For more information, please contact Dr. Yatish Jain.
5. Action India, a charity dedicated to empowering women, adolescents, and the youth in Delhi's urban slums and rural villages, have big plans for World Toilet Day. Their community events will include an exhibition and signature campaign, a awareness rally, a slogan and painting competition, a meeting with stakeholders, and the viewing of a movie. They are also planning to present an awareness programme with teachers and students on the proper use and cleaning of toilets. For more information, please contact Arvind Kumar.
6. The Rural Community Trust in the Viluppuram District of Tamil Nadu is planning to organize an essay, speech, and drawing competition among five rural schools around the theme "The health of your child begins in the toilet". Prizes and certificates will be awarded to the outstanding students. For more information, please contact M.G.Francis Xavier.
7. A girl child toilet campaign would be undertaken in partnership with twenty local schools all across India with a focus on setting up new toilets, and renovating existing ones. Exclusive awareness rallies on importance of sanitation would also be organised among the local community in partnership with the schools. In Tamil Nadu, the participating schools are located in Chennai, Pollachi and Theni. In Kerala, seven schools participating in Ramakalmedu and Idukki district. In Maharashtra, nine schools in the Sangli, Satara, and Dhule District. And in Gujarat, one school in the Bachau, Bhuj district. These activities are being organised by Vestas and the contact person is Madhu Kumar B.
8. Sustainable Life Trust in Dharmapuri, Tamil Nadu, will be organizing best toilet contests in their block (Dharmapuri) to reduce stigma and discrimination. They will also organize a competitions in essay writing, slogal writing and drawing for the school children. Certificates and prizes will be awarded to best 3 toilets and winners. For more information, please contact S.Pradapan.
9. In the Virudhunagar District of Tamil Nadu, Nether's Economic and Educational Development Society are organizing a best toilet contest in schools to reduce stigma and discrimination, and also will feature competitions for essay writing, slogan writing and drawing. Certificates and prizes will be awarded to the best two toilets and winners. For more information, please contact P. Raja Gopal.
10. In Pune the Ecosan Services Foundation is organizing university students for a rally and to spread the importance of sanitation. They will also be participating in the Big Squat. The contact person is Sreevidya Satish.
11. Hope International in Delhi will be erecting a temporary toilet near a tented girls school. They will use the toilet to test whether having the toilet near the school would motivate the girls to join the school. For more information, please contact Nirmal Kumar Gupta.
12. Sewa Samajik Sanstha, in Saharanpur (U.P.) is an NGO concerned with livelihoods, education and sanitation/hygiene awareness among the most marginalized in their community. On World Toilet Day, in ten villages, they will be educating people about sanitation and proper hygiene through different programmes. They will organize a rally, hamlet meetings, an awareness programme in schools an a demonstration using a toilet among the poor community. For more information, please contact Manoj Kumar at +91-9350171863.
13. Total Sanitation Campaign Thrissur has organised a seminar for World Toilet Day in 19th November 2009 with participation from the District Panchayath, National Service Volunteers of St. Mary's College Thrissur and the Health Department. This seminar will highlight the importance of toilets in human life. The programme is scheduled on 9.00am on 19th November. The programme will inaugurate by Sri. Ambadi Venu, President of District Panchayath and the ensuing discussion will be lead by C. Chandrababu, Secretary of District Panchayath Thrissur and former District Co-ordinator Total Sanitation Campaign, Thrissur. Phone No. 91487260154

LIBERIA

1. In Monrovia on World Toilet Day, MOPGEL will launch a "Clean up Liberia" campaign. This campaign seeks to mobilize community residents, students and others to build public toilets throughout the country to address the fact 65% of the country's population doesn't have access to sanitation or safe drinking water. For more information, the contact person is Hisenburg Q. Togba.

LIBYA

1. In Tripoli they will be holding a workshop open to the public, and inviting a school to an open day at the national park of Tripoli. For more information, the contact person is Aimen Sherif.

NEPAL

1. Rural Village Water Resources Management Project is holding extensive advocacy program in at least 50 villages around Dhangadi to learn why open defecation is harmful, and campaigning for the construction of toilets in all homes. Visit them here. For more information, the contact person is Kalawati Pokharel.
2. World Vision International in Lamjung District (Western Nepal) is organizing a number of activities for World Toilet Day. At schools and children clubs, a learning session on the importance of sanitation will happen on World Toilet Day itself. In advance of World Toielt Day, a meeting of the district Sanitation Steering Committee of Lamjung district is happening, where Word Vision is encouraging all members to celebrate the holiday and has committed financial support. Also ahead of the day, 2,000 leaflets will be produced on the importance of toilets and how to safely build a toilet in a rural area, and distributed in the district. Finally, a workshop called "Sanitation and Toilet" will be organized in Beshishahar, where nearly 100 participates from surounding villages, schools and agencies are expected to attend. A video on ECOSAN Toilets will be shown, as well as a discussion on the importance of sanitation. For more information, please contact person Surendra Babu Dhakal.

NIGERIA

1. The Centre For Toilet Awareness is holding a seminar on "The health of your child begins in the toilet" and a city campaign in Ibadan (Oyo State). Contact person: Awofeso ldowu Davies

PAKISTAN

1. The Sangat Development Foundation will be celebrating World Toilet Day this year with a seminar on "Open defecation and its possible harmful impact on Child Health" and a Toilet Sanitation Contest in the village Abbas Khan. Contact person is Nisar A. Brohi.
2. On World Toilet Day, Human Development Programme (HDP) will be launching an awareness campaign for the eradication of open defecation in the rural community in District Swabi. This is in accordance with a Community-Led Total Sanitation (CLTS) program. They are also aiming to bring low cost latrines to the community and to schools. For more information, please contact them here.

RWANDA

1. The Rwanda Toilet Organization is participating in the Big Squat. For more information, please contact François Nkulikiye.

SINGAPORE

1. The World Toilet Organization celebrates World Toilet Day at *Scape Youth Centre. An evening of fun is planned, featuring a Big Squat and the photo exhibit "Sanitation's Irony" by Heratnor Nuri. Sign up to attend here. The exhibit runs through November 20, 2009. For more information contact Joey Wong
2. The students in Grade 5 at the United World College of Southeast Asia (East Campus) will be celebrating World Toilet Day with a talk about the importance of sanitation, a showing of The Adventures of Super Toilet, and ending with a Big Squat. The contact person is Nikki Shaw.
3. At 10am on World Toilet Day, the Restroom Association in Singapore will announce the recipients of the LOO Awards, the first restroom awards for organisations and individuals. The award ceremony will be held on 2 December at Suntec Singapore in conjunction with the World Toilet Summit & Expo. The announcement will take place at VariNice Eating House, Blk 531, Ang Mo Kio Ave 10, #01-2429, S(560531) (Next to Cheng San Hawker Centre). For more information, please contact Emerson Hee.
4. Google employees will be participating in The Big Squat at their office.
5. Shaws Pre School will conduct a mass handwashing activity at 945am on 19th Nov and do a kiddo Big Squat after that! They have two school in Singapore and the number of children taking part will be around 220. The contact person is Liane.

SOUTH AFRICA

1. At the Niketoana Local Municipality, they will be celebrating World Toilet Day with the communities in Reit and Lindley in South Africa Free State Province by going door to door with cleaning materials and giving away brushes and buckets, as well as toilet paper. For more information, please contact Moleme Jeaneth.

SWEDEN

1. SCA, an international hygiene products and paper company, will celebrate World Toilet Day with a photo contest called "Shoot a toilet". People from all over the world are asked to submit their own digital images with the freshest, most interesting or most beautiful public toilets in the world. They will be able to upload their images to www.hygienemattersatsca.com, where visitors can rate and comment the images. The images will become the base for a Global Toilet Guide. The contest runs from November 19, 2009 through January 31, 2010. The contact person is Konstantin C Irina.

TANZANIA

1. With over five million people in Tanzania without access to any kind of latrineS, the week of World Toilet Day has been designed to help raise awareness and education on sanitation and hygiene in general. Happening mostly in the Lindi region (southeastern Tanzania) at the Ilulu grounds, different WATSAN stakeholders, namely NGOs, the private sector and the government are involved. There will be a school competition on WASH issues organized by WAHECO, a demonstration on latrine emptying technology by TEDEGRO and also a "Fyatua choo na ushinde (click the toilet and win)" campaign by UNICEF in collaboration with other stakeholders, such as WaterAid, WSP and the Ministry of Health and social welfare. On 20 and 21st November the Ministry of Health will be conducting the stakeholders meeting on Sanitation and Hygiene Policy in the same region. For information, please contact Sekela Mwambuli.

UNITED KINGDOM

1. Comedy Night: It's Not A Taboo, it's Just Poo! At The Bedford's in Balham London, and held by international charity Pump Aid and in conjunction with the National Union of Students (NUS). For more information, visit them here.
2. To raise awareness of the global sanitation crisis, WaterAid and award-winning ad director Kit Lynch-Robinson are creating a chilling scene in the Hyde Park Corner men's toilets - complete with rubbish dump, maggots, rusted pipes, a stagnant stream and a unique toilet scent, Eau de Toilet. Members of the public will be able to experience the paradox between the above-ground world of London's beautiful Hyde Park and the loos below, as two very different worlds are brought together. The toilets will be open between 9.30 and 11am and are located near Albert Gate and Queen Elizabeth Gates (nearest tube: Hyde Park Corner). For information, visit WaterAID here.
3. Bards in the Bog, the Shetland project that has been displaying original poems in public toilets, is to be celebrated in print. A book of 24 of the best Bards in the Bog poems has been published by Shetland Library, and will be launched in the Library at noon on World Toilet Day, the 19th of November. For more information, please visit them here or contact Karen Fraser.

UNITED STATES

1. DC: Water Advocates will be on Capital Hill from 12.30 to 1pm to hold a "Sanitation is Dignity" exhibit, along with speeches on the crisis and solutions by invited guests. This is happening at the United States Capitol, West Front Grassy Area (north panel); West side of Capitol Building (facing Washington Monument). Near corner of 1st Street NW & Constitution Ave. NW. For more information, please contact John Sauer.
2. Georgia: Project CLEAN coordinator Dr. Tom Keating will squat in front of the German Goethe Institute in Atlanta from noon till 12:01pm in solidarity with the German Toilet Organization "Klobalisierte Welt" (Toiletised World) five school demonstration at the Brandenberg Gate in Berlin on 19 November 2009, World Toilet Day. Contact info is: 1.404.694.2605
3. Illinois: In Barrington from 1:45 through 2PM, rain or shine, a Big Squat is being organized at the intersection of Hough & Main Street. For information, please contact Lynn Hasselberger.
4. Illinois: In Chicago Google employees will be participating in The Big Squat at their office.
5. Massachusetts: In Beverly, a Big Squat is being organized at an undisclosed company. At least 26 people will be squatting, which will be witnessed by over 100 people.
6. Oregon: PHLUSH Co-Founder Barbara Lescher will speak on "Grassroots Efforts to Address Homelessness: Public Toilets" at Portland State University at 10 am on November 19th. Moderated by Professor Celine Fitzmaurice, who leads the Capstone Program Seminar in Homelessness Issues and Policy Approaches in the United States. Barbara Lescher is the Executive Director of Our Peaceful Place, a non-profit organization that works with the poor on the streets of Portland, Oregon. Join them at: Stephen Epler Hall, #106, Portland State University. The session meets from 10-11:50am. The contact person is Carol McCreary.
7. Washington: In Seattle join PATH and WaterAid America on World Toilet Day for an uncommon conversation called "Toilet Talk: Exploring the Links Between Health and Sanitation" about the basic human right to sanitation. Global experts will offer their perspectives and present innovative approaches to sanitation, clean water, and hygiene in the developing world. For more information and to RSVP, visit here.
8. Washington: In Seattle, in honor of World Toilet Day on Nov. 19, King County's Wastewater Treatment Division will offer free public tours of the West Point Treatment Plant to provide people an opportunity to learn about the treatment process and its crucial role in protecting public health, the environment, and our quality of life. For more information, visit them here. Pre-registration is required by noon on November 18th.
9. Wisconsin: In Milwaukee a Big Squat event will be held by the Seedfolks Roots & Shoots Club and Seedfolks 4-H Club. They will be squatting for one minute to draw awareness to sanitation. For more information and to participate, view the flyer here. The contact person is Venice Williams.

ZAMBIA

1. UNICEF Zambia in partnership with the Zambian Government (Ministry of Local Government and Housing and the Ministry of Health) with their partners will celebrate World Toilet Day in Choma during the first Learning Exchange meeting scheduled from November 15th through the 21st to coincide with the celebrations of a whole chiefdom attaining Open Defecation Free status. For more information, please contact Giveson Zulu from UNICEF Zambia.

ZIMBABWE

1. Youth 2 Youth in Zimbabwe (Y2Y) will celebrate World Toilet Day at pre-schools, primary and secondary schools in the Chitungwiza area. This event is especially important this year because many lives were lost because of cholera, and will pose as a reminder to the survivors that clean toilets are crucial for a healthy life. Activities will include squatting, poetry, plays, and a drawing competition and music from pupils. Schools will also be encouraged to "spring clean" their toilets - and the cleanest school will get a prize of detergents, and participating schools will get hand washing soap. For more information, contact Catherine Masunda.