Today Sunday is World
Water Day, a United Nations initiative to celebrate clean water and bring
attention to those who don’t have enough of it. Every 22nd March,
the world, under UN Water, seeks to reflect on the value and future of water in
our society being the centre of our food, driver of our industries and the
balance of human equality. A new report released
ahead of World Water Day warns about a looming shortage, and centers on this
year’s theme: water and sustainable development. Here are five ways to celebrate
World Water Day:
1. Learn
about poop water
First charcoal
juice becomes a thing, and now poop water? Hey, Bill Gates drinks it—thanks to
a new machine called the Omni-processor that literally transforms waste
into water through a steam engine. On his blog, Gates writes about
drinking a “delicious” fresh glass of it and marvels at the possibilities to
improve sanitation in low-income countries. “The processor wouldn’t just keep
human waste out of the drinking water; it would turn waste into a commodity
with real value in the marketplace,” Gates writes.
2. Take
a break from meat
Showering and
hydration are hardly your main uses of water—but food is. The average American
uses 7,500 liters of water each day, according to the U.N. If you’re
eating meat, your water usage shoots way up; a steak dinner for two requires
15,000 liters of water for the meat alone. Eating more meat and dairy has been
the single greatest factor for water consumption in the past 30 years, says the
group—so going vegetarian, even temporarily, can make a difference.
3. Wash
your hands the right way
Sounds gross—and it is a
public health hazard, according to UNICEF, organizers of Global Handwashing Day,
another water-related holiday worth celebrating. “Handwashing with soap
prevents disease in a more straightforward and cost-effective way than any
single vaccine,” supporter UNICEF writes.
4. Support
a future female farmer
Most of the world’s
hungry are women, says the U.N.’s new report, and most don’t own land—or even
have time to make an income, since 25% of their day is spent collecting
drinking water. “With equal access to resources and knowledge, female farmers,
who account for the majority of all subsistence farmers, could produce enough
additional food to reduce the number of the world’s hungry by 150 million,” the
report says. Investing in water and sanitation actually helps improve equality,
which helps stimulate the economy—every dollar invested yields between $5-28,
the UN estimates.
A new report from
WaterAid America found that one in five babies born in the developing
world dies during its first month of life because of a lack of clean water. And
35% of facilities in middle- and lower-income countries didn’t have water and
soap for hand-washing, another report from the World Health Organization found
Adapted from http://time.com/3753021/world-water-day/
(The writer Chrispory Juma is a Public Health Officer and Community
Mobilization Expert based in South Sudan. Email: chrispory.juma@gmail.com)
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