“Water is life….especially where every drop of water counts”
Today marks World Water Day, a day that people come together to advocate and fight for the fact that over 748 million people continue to live without safe water. It is unimaginable.
As someone who has traveled to the developing world and witnessed firsthand what lack of safe water is like, it has truly touched my soul. Women and girls are impacted even worse. They are generally the ones in charge of spending hours a day fetching and carrying water on their back or taking care of family members who are sick (or worse yet even die) due to lack of safe drinking water.
Now lets talk toilets. Not having access to sanitation is horrible as well. It spreads disease. It is embarrassing and it is not safe. Girls have been kept out of school due to lack of latrines or have been raped while trying to use them. When people are forced to open defecate it is humiliating and contaminating spreading disease.
Woman leaving the newly constructed toilet compound thanks to WaterAid.
Even here in the US we are witnessing great water shortages. California has experienced severe drought and has had to replace restrictions on its people. What will happen in 2030 when it is estimated by the UN that we could have a 40% water shortage worldwide?
What is not an infinite resource. Like many things, we need to protect and preserve it, not waste it but also give it to those in need.
We have a lot of challenges lying ahead. It will be the policies enacted today that will determine our future.
To join today’s actives and learn more, jump on twitter and follow the hashtag #WorldWaterDay. There are links to all sorts of articles on the concerns we are facing with water and sanitation.
I have also written quite a lot about water and sanitation on my blog. To read these posts, click here.
Without a doubt the crisis of water is the biggest one that we face as part of the ecosystem we dependent upon–a system that has been abused and mismanaged by the human animal.
Yes it is so sad. Sometimes it makes one feel quite hopeless that we will ever change.
Thanks for this Nicole.
Thanks for reading it Andrew!
My pleasure. I hope you enjoyed my post Day 82 🙂
I meant to say Day 81
Great post. Having just been to California & NYC I was thinking that NOW is the time to start the level of conservation in California – EVERYWHERE. There is just so much waste in cities/states that have yet to experience any level of drought.
Yes indeed. It is so dry in California. So much water is wasted daily. I try hard to reuse my water and never take too long of showers. But I’m just one person.
Everything starts with 1 person!
Your post is a great reminder of how much we have to be thankful for, and how much we stand to loose if we don’t respect it. Thanks for your advocacy work.
Yes so true! Thanks so much for the comment and for caring! 🙂
Such an important and dwindling resource Nicole. Good for you for featuring it and you photos speak eloquently about it as well.
Thanks Tina! Yes it makes me sad. I just wish we would do something now about our planet. Everything is being taken advantage of and it is a huge concern.
Thanks so much for the link Andrew! 🙂
Reblogged this on Nilzeitung.
The hubby and I were just talking about water and what poor stewards we are of it. When you think of how little access some people have to fresh water, it makes watering golf courses seem very indulgent.
Yes so true. Especially watering golf courses in the desert! It is really sad.