Target: Antonio Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations
Goal: Create interdepartmental agency and binding treaty related to water conservation and sustainability.
Demand will overrun supply of freshwater by nearly half in just seven years. Meanwhile, about ten percent of countries in the world are facing severe water stress. Since global water usage is expected to go up exponentially by 2050, this number could soar past a billion people. And even in nations with a steady water supply, the water is unsafe and unsanitary for hundreds of millions of people. All of these concerns are summed up by a prominent head of the United Nations, who bluntly stated that “we are draining humanity’s lifeblood through vampiric overconsumption and unsustainable use and evaporating it through global heating.”
Despite all of the warning signs in America and abroad about a serious water crisis, little headway is being made. In the US alone, the nation’s highest court could soon upend key parts of the Clean Water Act. And water infrastructure around the world, especially in developing nations, is mediocre at best.
For the first time in decades, members of the United Nations will be meeting about these issues at the UN Water Conference. Many pledges and promises will be made, including expected goals regarding infrastructure investment, a halting of agriculture subsidies (agriculture accounts for as much as 70 percent of global water usage), promotion of new water conservation agricultural techniques such as drip irrigation, and Just Water Partnerships between nations.
None of these lofty ambitions will mean anything, however, if the world’s preeminent organization does not demonstrate a prolonged commitment. Sign the petition below to urge the establishment of a dedicated UN agency devoted to the water crisis and the pursuit of a binding treaty that can put words into meaningful action.
PETITION LETTER:
Dear Secretary-General Guterres,
“Humanity has broken the water cycle.” These words spoken by you, while true, only state the problem. The United Nations now needs to devote the time and resources to confronting this existential threat. The UN Water Conference and the expected Water Action Agenda are a good start.
But these actions cannot be symbolic. They cannot be the end of the story. Please help establish a dedicated agency within the UN devoted to this crisis, and make the realization of a binding treaty on water action a top priority.
Sincerely,
[Your Name Here]
Photo Credit: Aviz
865 Signatures