Manny Hernandez, NIU associate art professor, spoke Monday in Jack Arends Hall about his work in helping provide a way for people in third-world countries to have safe drinking water.

His presentation, “Save the World,” focused on his work as an expert in the construction of low-input kilns and his construction of water filters that have been used to help provide a way to purify portable water for countries in need. All construction Hernandez does in third-world countries are built on-site.

The total unit for the filters costs $15.50 and has the potential to last for years if proper maintenance is done.

In result of his efforts, communities with water filters have seen 90 percent fewer diarrhea patients, according to a target test project done six months ago.

Hernandez began his work with water filters in the beginning of 1999 and has been doing general work in this area since 1993.

Hernandez said if someone could take one thing from his presentation, he would want for them to be conscious about water and to think about how much water they waste.

“Just getting off bottled water helps the environment,” Hernandez said. “You aren’t clogging up landfills.”

Hernandez has been asked to build a kiln to make bricks that are more energy efficient over the summer in Honduras and to set up a training facility for making water filters in Texas.

Hernandez also allowed the audience to try water from the Kishwaukee River, filtered using one of his filters.

Senior painting major Rogelio Gamez tried the water and said it tasted OK, and that the presentation was inspiring.

“I think we see the world kind of getting smaller in a sense and we need to be involved,” Gamez said.

Tammy Stein, art education graduate student, also thought the presentation was inspiring.

“I thought his lecture was very inspiring, that such a simple process could provide such an immediate and life-giving need,” Stein said. “[Hernandez] is admirable in his efforts and travels and dedicating his life to bringing people pure water through his artistic vision and design.”