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We have been studying this in class since we got that huge packet on the hydrosphere. Water is scarce. The problem is that we need it to survive and without it we will die. Water purification really isn't a big issue where we are living now, but in other parts of the water it is. Over 1.2 billion people are without clean drinking water. In fact as stated in the article, as you read the article by the time you're an estimated twenty human beings will have died due to unclean water. It is almost like a domino effect. If children get sick from bad drinking water then they cannot go to school. If they do not go to school they will not receive a proper education and if they cannot go to school then there parents usually have to miss work to stay with them while they are sick. From this parents are not getting their work done and my loose jobs or income. If clean drinking water is achieved then the poverty levels would decrease greatly because of the domino effect. When a young boy was asked from the person interviewing, "What do you want to be when you grow up?" His answer was simply, "Alive." (It was not stated who the interviewer was or who the young boy was) This crisis is going on all over our world and we must act on it as supporting humans. The problem is clean drinking water, but many problems happen because of this.
Opinion: This is a terrible crisis that I could not imagining having to deal with in everyday life. I leave for school and grab a water bottle knowing it is clean water knowing i won't get sick. Kids in other parts of the world do not have this ability. It is truly sad and I wish the solution would come faster before more lives are taken due to bad drinking water.
Questions 3:
#1-How could you help?
#2-What organizations could help?
#3-Name two ways we could help fix this problem?
This article has actually made me start to think deeper about this topic. We easily obtain clean drinking water, but other people don't, and therefore die. The part that touched me the most was the interviewee that responded "alive" to what he wanted to be when he grew up. They have to worry so much about it, that's the only thing they can hope for. Americans take advantage of water while we could/should actually be helping others without it. When I think about how many people die everyday when there is not enough clean water, it really makes me want to help them, but at 14 there isn't much I can do. I have a few more questions about this:
ReplyDelete1) What are the countries with the worst water quality/quantity?
2) How much less that the daily necessity of water are these people drinking?
3) What are the worst diseases caused by this water shortage?
I never considered this. I always thought that poverty usually results in poor water quality. This article now makes me consider that poor water quality may result in poverty. There should never be a point in a child's life where they are hoping to live when they are older. Especially if water quality is the cause of it. Just as Nicole said, we really take advantage of our water.
ReplyDelete1. At 15, there really isn't much to do besides pray or donate money.
2. There is an organization called the National Drinking Water Clearinghouse that helps out with water quality.
I found a great site with water quality statistics. It shows many interesting facts and how they the water quality has been decreasing over the years. http://www.unwater.org/worldwaterday/downloads/WWD2010_Facts_web.pdf
Flat out, this sucks. Whenever I read/watch about these topics I think, who am I to ask for clothes, electronics, and fancy things, while all the kids out there in Africa and Asia ask Santa for a pair of shoes, water, to fix a hole in their house or a decent meal. No matter what kind of socio-economical status you come from, these tragedies are sad and depressing. While I know that we are on the topic of water, I’d like to point not only do we take water for granted, but also shoes, beds, our house, cell phones, and even our education. Some people hate school while there is millions of kids out there who are dying to be in their positions. When we see these articles/documentaries almost immediately we think no one should suffer through that while others are living on like 10 billion dollars. Although we are young, there are a couple things we could do:
ReplyDelete1. Start a fundraiser, collect some money, and contribute towards a playpump (that merry go round pump). It only costs 7,000, which seems like a lot but if enough people could pitch in the goal is very achievable.
Secondly I know I am taking this idea from class but that filters for families website was designed so that families like ours could purchase a cheap filter that would help out many.
Some websites/organizations that I found include:
www.globalwater.org
www.charitywater.org
www.water.org/learnaboutthewatercrisis
And to answer Nicole's questions,parts of Sudan,Venezuela,Zimbabwe,South Africa,Tunisia,Cuba,and Pakistan.
Also, some diseases include diarrhea, babesiosis, amoebiasis, cryptosporidiosis, cyclosporiasis,and microsporidiosis (I know they're really big words but I don't know much about them other that they're caused by non-treated water, infected animals, chemical runoff, and contaminated eggs.
Awesome comments by all!!!
ReplyDelete