Run for Water
Skrivet av Live Earth 12 januari, 2010 - 03:22
A question: if we can fly to the moon, can we make a US$1 water filter for people to use in their homes? And, if the answer is yes, why haven't we yet? This is one of my favorite things: the quest for extremely affordable point-of-use water filters.
There are some hopeful developments. After Hindustan Unilever had introduced their Pureit water purifier at a price level of 30$ for a very well-designed and effective water filter, protected by 21 patents and using 5 water filtration steps, Tata Company recently introduced their Tata Swach water purifier, at $20, with 1 filtration step, but equaly good-looking. And we already had the Vestergaard Live Straw Family filter, also at $20. In the open source hardware corner, we have the biosand filters, and ceramic pot filters. Lots of good stuff.
Skrivet av Andy Sternberg 11 januari, 2010 - 17:56
Every Monday we profile a Dow Live Earth Run for Water partner organization that works toward providing solutions to the nearly 1 billion people who lack access to clean, safe water. To donate to one of these projects, visit liveearth.org/give.
BARKA Foundation is a UN-affiliated NGO based in the US and Burkina Faso, West Africa. It is focused on the achievement of the 8 Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in a single country - Burkina Faso, considered to be one of the poorest countries in the world. When BARKA's Co-Founders, Ina & Esu Anahata, first went to Burkina, it was to study and practice the ancient indigenous spiritual technologies which many shamans and elders still keep alive there today. This work changed their lives, revealed the truth in their bones and aligned them with life purpose. The loving care they received by the Burkinabe, a people rich in culture, tradition, music and wisdom, compelled Ina & Esu to do something about the chronic and vicious cycle of food insecurity, disease and extreme poverty in which they are trapped. BARKA Foundation was born.
Skrivet av Live Earth 23 december, 2009 - 09:35
A women using her water storage tank in Guinnee-Bissau. Photo: Paul Akkerman
Rain falls unto roofs and then runs off. And then? You could catch it and drink it. Any suitable roof surface -- tiles, metal sheets, plastics, but not grass or palm leaf -- can be used to intercept the flow of rainwater and provide a household with high-quality drinking water. Rainwater harvesting systems have been used since antiquity, and examples abound in all the great civilizations throughout history.
Skrivet av Andy Sternberg 22 december, 2009 - 01:00
click to watch!LiveEarth TV Episode 2 provides a look into the global water crisis as it relates to children in the developing world -- 5,000 die every day as a result of unsafe drinking water.
Musician, artist, and entrepreneur Pete Wentz talks to Shira about why he got involved with Invisible Children, what the Global Water Crisis means to him now that he's a father, and why YOU should participate in the Dow Live Earth Run for Water.
You can make a difference now for the nearly 1 billion people without access to clean, safe drinking water. Give hope for the holidays by donating to a Live Earth Run for Water partner to provide solutions worldwide at liveearth.org/give.
Skrivet av Andy Sternberg 21 december, 2009 - 15:37
Click on a link below for more information on the 2010 Dow Live Earth Run for Water event in that city:
Skrivet av Live Earth 21 december, 2009 - 12:02
Every Monday we profile a Dow Live Earth Run for Water partner organization that works toward providing solutions to the nearly 1 billion people who lack access to clean, safe water. To donate to one of these projects, visit liveearth.org/give.
Project WET is an award-winning global non-profit organization celebrating its 25th year in 2009. Since its beginning, Project WET has dedicated itself to the mission of reaching and empowering children, parents, teachers and community members of the world with water education. Project WET achieves its mission by:
Skrivet av jgeeslin 20 december, 2009 - 08:00
Water security, like food and energy security, is one of the biggest challenges facing humanity. Businesses everywhere are beginning to find out that their water supply can no lo Worldwide Water Crisis: Time is Running Out nger be taken for granted.
Yet around one third of the population already lives in areas where water is physically or economically scarce due to insufficient investment in the necessary infrastructure, according to the International Water Management Institute (IWMI).
Skrivet av Andy Sternberg 19 december, 2009 - 18:59
While much of the focus of the Live Earth Run for Water and our partner organizations is providing clean, safe water solutions in the developing world, a report last week revealed that outdated regulations allow contaminated water to pass as legal drinking water in the United States.
Skrivet av Live Earth 15 december, 2009 - 07:30
A team of 5 drilling a well in Bolivia
If you want to make a borehole (the quickest way to make wells), you have two options. The first is hiring a big machine, which will arrive on a truck from the city, and gets the business done in a few hours. For at least $5,000 up to $20,000. Quick, easy, but far from cheap. The second is doing it by hand, using a manual drilling technology. It takes longer, it is heavy work, but it also gets the job done. For about $500. Now there is an interesting difference in price, don't you think?
Of course, manual drilling does not work everywhere. Clay, sand, and compacted sand are ok, but rock or large stones are not ok. But it just happens to be the case that hundreds of millions of people live in areas which have just the right soil types. One such country with the right soil type is Bolivia. It is home to two different manual drilling technologies, the EMAS method (which we will meet in one of the next blogs) and the Baptist method.
Skrivet av Live Earth 14 december, 2009 - 09:10
Every Monday we profile a Dow Live Earth Run for Water partner organization that works toward providing solutions to the nearly 1 billion people who lack access to clean, safe water. To donate to one of these projects, visit liveearth.org/give.
For 20 years, Water.org has been empowering communities in Africa, Central America, and South Asia to meet their own water and sanitation needs. Co-founded in 2009 by Matt Damon and Gary White, Water.org is the result of a combination of WaterPartners, founded in 1990, and H20 Africa.
