Today is World Water Day and the fourth year of the Water for Life Decade.

The Water for Life Decade 2005-2015 will give a high profile to implementing water-related programmes and the participation of women. The UN hopes that the Decade will boost the chances of achieving international water-related goals and the United Nations Millennium Declaration.

In Canada, there are a number of initiatives promoting water as a public right such as the Blue Communities Project and World Water Week events in British Columbia.

According to Oxfam Canada:

  • 890 million people – about a seventh of the world’s population – do not have access to safe drinking water.
  • Some 2.5 billion people also live without access to basic sanitation.
  • 1.2 billion of which have no access to any form of sanitation.

What is really cool is how social media (e.g. twitter, blogs, Slideshare) are being used to promote safe drinking water:

Leslie Bradshaw tweeted about how her followers on twitter could get involved. Each person that follows @WorldH20 or @chlorine on twitter or joins the corresponding Facebook group would result in 100 liters of water being donated to those in need.

According to Leslie Bradshaw:

The project itself has been made possible by the American Chemistry Council (a client I have enjoyed working with via New Media Strategies), in partnership with GOOD Magazine, Population Services International and a group of leading health organizations.

This is a great cause, so get on twitter and Facebook and help out. Each of us can play our part.


Relevance: shows the power of social media