World Water Day

Did you know that today is World Water Day?

Water is the most important ingredient to life — we’re dependent on it for everything — so it makes sense to take one day a year to focus on the importance of fresh water and advocate for the sustainable management of freshwater resources.

While there are still more than 780 million people around the world who lack access to improved water sources, there’s some good news. It seems that the clean drinking water target of Millennium Development Goal seven has been recently achieved.

Adopted by world leaders in 2000 with a 15-year timeline, the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are concrete, numerical benchmarks for tackling extreme poverty in its many dimensions. MDG 7 is to halve by 2015 (from 1990 levels) the proportion of the population without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation. And we’ve done it.
In 1990, only 76 per cent of the world’s population had access to clean drinking water facilities. By 2010, this had increased to 89 per cent. This means that over two billion people gained access to improved water sources from 1990 to 2010. At this rate, there will be universal access to clean drinking water by 2027.

So with a major Millennium Development Goal now being met is the job of providing safe, clean water for everyone on the planet in reach? This morning on my radio program, the Morning Cafe, I spoke to DJ Konz – Executive Director – Advocacy with Compassion Australia.

Compassion’s child development programs place access to clean, safe water at a priority. Through a program called Critical Interventions, Compassion tackles issues like clean water (wells and water purification systems), toilets and hygiene to provide solutions that enhance and improve living conditions for children in Compassion programs.

If you want to hear our conversation and find out what you can do to help provide clean water for more people on our planet, just click the play button of the audio player below.

[audio:http://mpegmedia.sonshinefm.ws/feeds/MOR220312_0953.mp3]

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