Today marks the second day of the Global Health Council's 38th annual International Conference in Washington, DC and events are in full swing. Spanning the entire week, global health professionals and organizations from all over the world gather to be a part of an exciting health conversation. This year, the Health/WaSH Coalition decided to do something different—something new to engage conference attendees in an innovative and interactive conversation about an issue that needs some healthy attention.

There is nothing sexy about diarrhea and diarrheal disease and that is often reflected by the lack of interest in clean water, sanitation and hygiene programs (WaSH). Despite some progress over the last decade, more than 1.5 million children died from diarrheal diseases in 2010. As a part of the global community, we are still far from reaching the Millennium Development Goals for access to clean water and sanitation. However with the combined efforts from active partners, larger public support, and sustained (or even increased!) funding and globally aware advocates like you, we can see that number fall drastically—and quickly.

So you want to get involved? You can. Together, WaSH Advocacy Initiative, UNC Water Institute, WaterAid, PSI, WSSCC, PATH, and JSI have teamed up to sponsor the Health/WASH “What's your Poo IQ?” Advocacy Challenge, an interactive scavenger hunt taking place at the GHC Conference. Participants will engage with WaSH partners to discover their Poo IQ while learning about the importance of WASH programs. The Challenge will kick off on Tuesday, June 14th at the “WaSHing to Improve Health in Developing Countries” panel discussion.  Be sure to attend the session beginning at 5:15 PM in the Congressional Room, have your Poo IQ postcard in hand and join the conversation.

If discovering your Poo IQ isn't quite sexy enough, then perhaps the possibility of wining an iPad 2, Kindle, or flipcam will convince you to play. You'll also be able to share your incredible Poo  and WaSH knowledge after participating in the hunt. Spreading awareness about the importance of WaSH interventions for health brings us one step closer to saving children's lives.  And just think—when someone asks you whether you've joined The Hunt - you can proudly say, “Yes, actually. I know my poo IQ. Doo you?”