To People of the World:
“When the well’s dry, we know the worth of water.”
Those words were spoken by American statesman, scientist, and philosopher Benjamin Franklin more than 200 years ago, and today, throughout the world, more and more people are learning firsthand the truth of that prophetic statement.
Fresh water is the tie that binds every living thing, as vital to life as air. Yet in the world today more than a billion people lack access to clean drinking water. Although the supply of fresh water on the Earth is constant (the amount is the same now as when dinosaurs roamed the planet), demand for that water has increased. The problem is people–our increasing numbers and our abuse of one of our most precious resources.
In places demand exceeds supply, and wells are indeed running dry. Also lakes and rivers: In Central Asia the Aral Sea has shrunk by half, its water diverted for cotton crops; Lake Chad, in drought prone Africa, is a twentieth its former size. In North America the Colorado River barely trickles into the Gulf of California, and China’s Yellow River fails to reach the sea some years.
To conserve our water resources will take concerted action on a global scale. As one of the world’s largest non-profit, educational organizations, the National Geographic Society is committed to educating people worldwide about the condition of our planet and to finding solutions to protect and restore our natural resources. Through our scientific research grants and financial support for practical conservation solutions, our conservation awareness programs such as Geography Action and our many publications and television programs, we strive to focus attention on our planet’s needs.
Despite the magnitude of the problem, there is also hope, sometimes in small but not insignificant ways. Building small earthen dams in Rajasthan to capture monsoon rains puts a traditional solution into the hands of the local villagers, supplying water for their farm plots and even replenishing the ground water. Inexpensive treadle pumps allow farmers in Africa to efficiently irrigate their crops, and therefore improve their families’ quality of life. Merely filtering water through several folds of sari fabric substantially reduces cases of cholera in Bangladesh.
If we all work together, much can be accomplished.
Thank you to the delegation of the Republic of Tajikistan to the UN for the opportunity to participate in such an important book.
