200 marathons in a year: Activist in SA to address global water shortage

The last time she did it she cracked her femur, but ultra-distance athlete Mina Guli arrived back in SA on Tuesday with the goal to run 200 marathons in one year.

This is part of her Run Blue Campaign to raise awareness about the global water shortage.

The Australian was last in SA in 2018 when she attempted to run 100 marathons in 100 days around the world. Her efforts were thwarted when she cracked her femur in the process.

The campaign went viral and as a show of solidarity people from all over the world “donated” their running hours to Guli to ensure she was able to complete 100 marathons in 100 days.

In 2016 she managed 29 marathons in 38 days across seven deserts on seven continents. 

Guli is in Johannesburg but will be in Cape Town next week to take part in a community run as a leg of her marathon which will end at the UN Summit on Water in March 2023. 

The runner said SA had a special significance for her as it was the country where she cemented her resolve to spend the rest of her life working to solve the global water crisis.

“Standing on the banks of the Orange River, I heard the pain in the voices of farmers and park rangers who told me as the river dried up, so did their incomes, livelihoods and futures. I was shocked. This is not only water they need, but water we need for our food, our energy and our planet. I decided enough was enough and I would dedicate the rest of my life to doing whatever needed to solve the global water crisis.”

Guli is CEO of the Thirst Foundation, an NPO focused on delivering action on water.

One of the goals of the Run Blue Campaign is to gain commitments from 200 companies across the world to take concrete action on water in advance of the UN Summit on Water.

The campaign began in her home county of Uluru on March 22. She has since completed runs in Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Botswana.

At the launch of her SA leg, Guli said in the country she sees what the power of water can do to change people’s lives, from young farmers who told her “do I pray for rain or leave my farm?” to children in Beaufort West skipping school to wait for water to be delivered.

“Water is at the heart of everything we do, build, eat and  use. Every single day. And yet everywhere we see the signs of this essential resource under stress,” she said. 

According to the Thirst Foundation, one in three Africans feel the impact of water scarcity and 400-million people in Sub-Saharan Africa do not have access to basic drinking water.

The situation is growing worse. It is predicted by 2025, close to 230-million Africans will face water scarcity and up to 460-million will be living in water-stressed areas.

“I am in awe of the resilience shown by the people in these areas. Their ability to adapt and survive in the face of these critical conditions is incredible. What’s missing is strong water leadership from governments and companies that will enable these communities to thrive. What we need is our leaders to have the same type of courage we have seen in the many water-stressed communities we’ve visited, the courage needed to act to solve the water crisis.

“We have an opportunity in the lead up to the UN Water Summit next year to give voice to the voiceless, to lift the voices of the people on the frontlines of the water crisis across Africa and together as a community, not only to put water onto the global agenda, but to drive concrete commitments from companies, governments and individuals to solve the crisis.

“We need to make the invisible visible. Only when water is front of mind will we see the type of commitments the people of Africa and around the world need to solve water problems,” Guli said.

Guli is in Gauteng for the next few days before heading to KwaZulu-Natal and Cape Town.

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