Water & Life

Most of the water present on the surface of the earth is not easily accessible by humans.

About 70% of the Earth is covered with water, and 97% of that is part of the salty oceans. Only a small portion of the Earth s water is freshwater. This includes such things as rivers, lakes, and groundwater. Freshwater is needed for drinking, farming, and washing. There is even water in the form of ice at the poles. Without water, life as we know it would not exist.

Brazil is relatively rich when it comes to water supplies. However, it is not equally distributed: 80% of it is in Amazonia (a region populated by just 5% of Brazil s inhabitants), which implies that the remaining 20% of water supplies should fulfill the needs of 95% of population. Water consumption doubled over the past 20 years, and the forecast says that it will double again by 2030. On the other hand, our per capita availability is three times less than in 1950.

● Water pollution is also a matter of worrying: oil spilling into clean waters, toxic farm fumigants, factory wastes, abuse of non-biodegradable and environmentally damaging cleaning products, acid rain caused by air pollution...

● From a cultural point of view, a vast majority of the population show individualistic traits, which makes them forget that water is a common good, and thus its consumption needs to be reduced.

● The future of this precious good -water- lies on the hands of the youngest part of our society. Youth should be granted the responsibility to become aware of this problem, so that one day they turn into social agents worried about the growing scarcity of water.

Goals

● Raise awareness among the youth about the importance of water to survival of mankind.Promote a good attitude towards drinking water.
● Strengthen community links.
● Fortalecer os vínculos comunitários.
● Develop the "conscious consumption" approach

Methodology (Five steps):

● Training and qualification of the "multiplying volunteers" and monitors.
● Sensitization and development of actions organized by multiplying areas.
● Monitoring and follow-up of these actions.
● Rewarding and certificating achievements
● Auditing