Today, all eighth and ninth graders in the public school system here in Decatur, Ga., are partaking in a day-long seminar known as Water Wise. Last night, I attended the preview complete with presentations about water-borne diseases, water conservation, and the intricate interplay between energy use and water.
Today, all eighth and ninth graders in the public school system here in Decatur, Ga., are partaking in a day-long seminar known as Water Wise. Last night, I attended the preview complete with presentations about water-borne diseases, water conservation, and the intricate interplay between energy use and water.
The night capped off with a screening of the 2011 documentary film, "Carbon for Water." The film follows an effort by Vesterfaard Frandsen to disseminate its product LifeStraw, a water filtration technology, in Kenya's Western Province. The water filter aims to reduce the lost time, health risks and carbon dioxide emissions that come from women and girls gathering wood and water, and boiling it for consumption.
The project continues to be funded through the carbon market as a way to meld disease reduction, the improvement of livelihoods and business. Watch the trailer below.
All this was a reminder that "Water is life's mater and matrix, mother and medium. There is no life without water," as said by the late Albert Szent-Gyorgy. Clean water, that is.
The views expressed are those of the author(s) and are not necessarily those of Scientific American.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR(S)
Robynne Boyd began writing about people and the planet when living barefoot and by campfire on the North Shore of Kauai, Hawaii. Over a decade later and now fully dependent on electricity, she continues this work as an editor for IISD Reporting Services. When not in search of misplaced commas and terser prose, Robynne writes about environment and energy. She lives in Atlanta, Georgia.
