A REFLECTION ON WORLD WATER WEEK: 20 - 26 MARCH 2011
If you’re like most people, you have no idea where the water you use every day comes from. And for many of us, water might be the most taken for granted resource we enjoy.
Most of us turn on the tap every day to run ourselves a glass of water or to wash our hands without a second thought as to the origins of those few milliliters of water. And we are the lucky ones. Every day, 900 million people do not have access to clean water, and about 10,000 children younger than 5 in Third World Countries die from illnesses as a result of using unclean water. Globally, unclean water is the largest killer in children younger than 5. (Source: Water and Sanitation Rotarian Action Group).
Hence, the importance of World Water Week, which ran form 20 – 26 March 2011. This annual event seeks to improve the relationship between people and water through conservation and local action addressing equal access for all global citizens. Additionally, World Water Day – held during World Water Week, on March 22nd – is also intended to provide awareness of this precious commodity.
There was a vast amount of international support for the event. For example, in the US, thousands of restaurants participated in the UNICEF Tap Project.
|
|
Conceived in New York, patrons were asked to donate $1 for the tap water they normally receive for free, and all funds raised would support UNICEF’s efforts to bring clean and accessible water to millions of children around the world. Since its inception in 2007, the UNICEF Tap Project has raised almost $2.5 million in the U.S. and has helped provide clean water for millions of children globally. Now in its fifth year, the award-winning UNICEF Tap Project, a nationwide campaign sponsored by the U.S. Fund for UNICEF, returned during World Water Week, March 20–26. The first program of its kind, the UNICEF Tap Project has become a dynamic movement that affords everyone the opportunity to help provide the world’s children with safe, clean water. The concept is basic and compelling: “When You Take Water, Give Water”. 2011 UNICEF Tap Project Funds will specifically target Togo, the Central African Republic and Vietnam.
Sweden will be celebrating their own World Water Week from the 21 – 27 August 2011, courtesy of the Stockholm International Water Institute, and there are numerous workshops, exhibition and training programmes on the cards for the event. World Water Week is hosted and organised by the Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI) and takes place each year in Stockholm. The World Water Week has been the annual focal point for the globe’s water issues since 1991. Each year a particular theme is addressed to enable a deeper examination of a specific water-related topic. While not all events during the week relate to the overall theme, the workshops driven by the Scientific Programme Committee and many seminars and side events do focus on various aspects of the theme. The themes change each year, but each fits within a broader "niche" that covers several years. The grouping of themes within a niche is designed to develop a long-term perspective on a broad yet significant water and development issue. It also ensures that each year builds upon the previous years' outcomes and findings. |
|
The current niche for 2009-2012 is "Responding to Global Changes", which looks at the potential and necessary responses in water policy, management and development to address pervasive and increasingly impacting global changes. For more information on the various activities and programmes, visit http://www.worldwaterweek.org/about.
Water sanitation is one of the greatest challenges faced by mankind, but in some cases progress is being made. For example, after the end of Apartheid in South Africa, the newly elected government inherited huge service backlogs with respect to access to water supply and sanitation. Since then, the country has made satisfactory progress with regard to improving access to water supply: It reached universal access to an improved water source in urban areas, and in rural areas the share of those with access increased from 62% to 82% from 1990 to 2006. South Africa also has a strong water industry with a track record in innovation. Globally, however, there is a long way to go to improve the quality of water consumed by billions of people in third-world countries.
World Water Week is one week, yet we need water all day every day. How will you be helping in saving water
Sources:
http://www.greenconduct.com/news/
2011/03/20/world-water-week-2011/
http://www.sdentertainer.com/news/
world-water-week-2011/
http://www.tapproject.org/about/
http://www.worldwaterweek.org/about
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_supply
_and_sanitation_in_South_Africa
Image source:
http://oliverdailynews.com/wp-content
/uploads//2011/03/world-water-week.jpg |
|
|