One thing I love about my job is that no two days are the same.  “Policy and advocacy” means lots of things: listening, persuading, recommending a course of action and—perhaps most importantly—giving a voice to people who haven’t been given the opportunity to speak up for themselves. Advocacy happens when someone engages in dialogue about an issue they care about—and I care about making water and sanitation a reality for people in every corner of the globe.

1961 produced some classics, such as Paul Newman in The Hustler, Ray Charles singing “Hit the Road Jack,” and Barbie’s Ken. It also produced an American vision of foreign aid.

Last month, I joined the international development community in celebrating the bipartisan introduction of the Senator Paul Simon Water for the World Act of 2012 in the House of Representatives. It is needed and smart legislation in its own right, but it’s also a response to the need to improve USAID’s implementation of the Senator Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act of 2005.