Celebrate World Water Day Everyday

Since 1993 World Water Day (WWD) has been instrumental in bringing awareness to challenges and sustainable water initiatives on a global level. This March, as people around the globe celebrated World Water Day we revisited the origins of it and what “World Water Day” really means in 2018.

The idea for a day to acknowledge water as a critical resource for the public sector, businesses, civil society and ecosystems was proposed in Agenda 21 of the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro. World Water Day (WWD) promptly made its debut the following year. Every year UN-Water plans and coordinates the program while non-governmental organizations join in to support the cause through promotion in organizing events and providing media tools. [1] UNICEF and WaterAid are fundamental in raising awareness for WWD while furthering their separate missions: to protect children’s rights and to improve access to save water, improved hygiene and sanitation to the world’s poorest communities. [2; 3]

Twenty-five years later the idea behind WWD is more important than ever. Millions of people are still without access to safe drinking water. Every year 3.4 million people die from waterborne diseases. [4] On this WWD, and every day, we are challenged to not only create technological solutions for water issues but also lobby for changes in public policy and change the minds of people who think water is an inexpensive disposable resource. It is in those efforts that we can ensure we are protecting the essential finite resource water really is for everyone around the world. [5]

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