I'm running for 24 hours to raise funds for World Vision's floods response in Afghanistan - beginning by rehousing my colleagues who have been made homeless after seeing their houses swept away.

On my recent trip to Afghanistan I had the privilege of visiting World Vision projects in Herat, Ghor, Faryab and Badghis. Afghanistan is afflicted by an economic crisis compounded by the impacts of climate change, leaving an estimated 12.4 million people food insecure and over half of the population in need of humanitarian support.

Many face hunger, disease, a lack of healthcare or access to services, but at food distributions, health clinics, water facilities, street children's projects and on people's small farms, my colleagues do an amazing job day in, day out, to reach the most at-risk Afghans with urgent assistance helping them to survive, and then to adapt and thrive.

However, while I was in Ghor province, I also visited World Vision colleagues whose homes were destroyed by the spring floods. These floods are just one example of extreme weather this year disrupting - and in this case devastating - already difficult lives. It is heartbreaking to see World Vision colleagues, who give so much of their time and energy, living in tents on the rubble of their former homes, some with family members who are pregnant or elderly.

As I returned to my comfortable old Victorian terraced house in Carlisle I felt I had to do something. World Vision Afghanistan is almost entirely grant-funded and so unassigned money is hard to find for new purposes – there is no ‘pot of gold’ we can repurpose.

Generously, some of my colleagues who are able have pledged a day's salary to support our colleagues in need, but this is a big ask of Afghans, however they're employed. So, I thought perhaps others would like to help too.

That's why I'm dusting off my running shoes to spend 24 hours running and walking to see if we can do more to prevent colleagues languishing in tents into winter.

As I donate this day on my feet, could you donate one day’s lunch money, a day's regular household expenses, a day's salary, or any other amount, to support colleagues made homeless by the floods?

Thanks in advance for considering this.

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