Near Ekuvukeni,
in Natal, South Africa,
a woman carries water on her head.
After a year of drought,
when one child in three is at risk of death,
she returns from a distant well,
carrying water on her head.
The Price of Water: Guatemala
According to the Water Resources Assessment of Guatemala compiled, US Army Corps of Engineers explains that, “The quality of surface water resources is generally fresh except along the coastal areas of the country. However, based on established biological and chemical standards, every water body in the country should be considered contaminated. In agricultural areas, pesticides are a primary source of contamination. Sewage from Guatemala City has caused the Rio Villalobos, which receives 60 percent of the sewage, and the Rio Las Vacas, which receives the remaining 40 percent of the sewage, to be considered the most contaminated streams in the country.”
School’s Out
When I think back to my own year in Kindergarten, I remember a lot of fun stuff: learning letters and listening to stories, making collages, playing with my friends. It was pretty laidback. My daughter, on the other hand, was given long lists of words to memorize, time-consuming projects, and a ton of homework—more than any five-year-old should have to deal with. So when a homework assignment was too much, or a project too big, I’d do what any responsible parent would do. I’d crumple it up and throw it in the trash. “Go outside and have fun!” I’d say.
I’m privileged that I can do such a thing, I know. The only reason I could, quite literally, throw out some of my child’s education is because she was getting way more than she needed. She had a surplus of education at her disposal. It’s the same thing with water. I can forget to turn off the faucet while scrubbing dishes (though I try not to) because I have more water than I need.
For many people around the world, and in Niger specifically, water and education are tightly linked, and neither is something to be casually thrown away. Over 60% of people in rural Niger don’t have access to clean water. Those people must deal with the daily task of making multiple trips to a stream, a shallow well, or other water source, which is often filthy and often miles away.
A Shower Alternative
There is increased awareness of the need for clean water in the world. The global water crisis has become both a rallying point for many who strive to address the issues of lack of access to drinkable water and other limited resources. When thinking about fighting about the water crisis, we usually think about the struggle for clean drinking water, and it can be easy to overlook another challenge faced by those lacking access to water – the inability to take a shower and bathe their children.
A Time for Reflection
As tornadoes sweep across the country, destroying anything and anyone in their way, people are left with broken hearts and crumbled hope. As the foundation of Earth is wiped out, so too are an abundance of innocent lives. A horrific act of nature, unplanned and unwelcome, can shake the lives of many, turning their world upside down in the matter of seconds. Though right now the pain is raw, views clouded by the grief, I truly believe there is something we can all learn from these experiences. It may take months or even years, but the struggles we must trek through in this life will shape us into warriors, filled with valuable wisdom and a strong soul.
Wells Bring Hope vs. Boko Haram
It’s impossible not to feel outrage at what has happened in Nigeria: 276 girls kidnapped by Boko Haram in mid-April, and the government has been ineffectual in getting them back. The international community is finally paying attention after Boko Haram leader, Abubakar Shekau threatened to “sell them in the marketplace” as slaves or child brides.
These were girls, ripe with hope and striving to get an education, who risked their lives to come to school for one day to take an exam, despite the fact that many schools in their region had closed because of the Boko Haram threat.
Water Crisis?
But for approximately 8 million people in rural Niger, the only water available is downright filthy, and even that is in short supply. It’s usually the same water animals swim in, and it’s often contaminated with bacteria and parasites that can lead to a number of horrible diseases, such as diarrhea, trachoma, and bilharzia. For Nigeriens, the water isn’t “yucky”—it’s dangerous and often deadly. With no other options, though, they have no choice but to risk drinking it. That’s why Wells Bring Hope is determined to drill the 11,000 more wells that are needed to provide everyone with the clean, safe water they need. When a village gets a well, the people in that village get access to clean water—something we in the U.S. often take for granted—and their lives are transformed. For them, water isn’t about washing cars or watering lawns. It’s about survival—another thing many of us take for granted.
Women and Water
ut Niger was different. It was raw. It took that knowledge I had in my head and moved it to my gut. As I rode hour after hour through a barren landscape, the needs became simpler and more gut wrenching. Water is life. Water is everything. There are no other needs if there is no water. There are no other choices if there is no water.
Water Wars
The correlations between human conflict and environmental issues are complex. Environmental factors are rarely the sole reason for conflict, but issues such as access to and availability of clean water inevitably lead to clashes or violence. Environmental degradation, poorly designed trade and aid policies, and reckless exploitation of natural resources imperil human security.
Water, Water, Everywhere?
This past Saturday was World Water Day, a day to be grateful for our access to clean drinking water and a time to turn our attention to the millions of people who are so fortunate.
Globally speaking, fresh water is an endangered resource. Droughts are common and water is scarce. According to the U.S. State Department, the domestic need for fresh water will exceed supply by 40 percent by the year 2030. While people are aware of the global water shortage to some extent, many do not realize the implications for the impoverished residents of undeveloped countries.
