Ocean treaty needed to tackle “deep trouble”, says UN envoy
Stockholm, Sweden Thomson Reuters Foundation The world’s seas are increasingly threatened by global warming, acidification and pollution, making it crucial to agree on a global treaty to protect them, the UN oceans envoy said. Peter Thomson warned in an interview with the Thomson Reuters Foundation that the oceans were “in deep trouble”. “It is worse […]
Indigenous people need a say on water rights, UN rapporteur urges
Stockholm, SwedenThomson Reuters Foundation Indigenous peoples from the Amazon to the Arctic are being left out of the global conversation on water property rights, a United Nations’ Indigenous rights expert warned last week. Speaking on the sidelines of an international conference on water in Stockholm, special rapporteur Victoria Tauli-Corpuz said Indigenous people needed to be […]
From Yemen to South Sudan, climate and water stress seen worsening conflict
Stockholm, SwedenThomson Reuters Foundation Social and political tensions fuelled by climate change have yet to translate into international military confrontations, but local conflicts are heating up due to pressures such as drought and water scarcity, officials and researchers said on Wednesday. In fragile states like Yemen and South Sudan, competition for scarce natural resources is […]
BATTLING THE DRY: ‘WATER WOMEN’ QUENCH THIRST OF CENTRAL INDIA’S PARCHED VILLAGES
As World Water Week is marked across the globe, ANNIE BANERJI, of Thomson Reuters Foundation, reports from India on the role ‘water women friends’ are playing in tackling the water crisis in central India…
Are water shortages driving migration? Researchers dispel myths
Stockholm, SwedenThomson Reuters Foundation Water scarcity is one factor driving millions of people from their homes each year but is often not the only reason why they move, researchers told an international conference on Tuesday. In most cases, other economic and social problems like conflict, corruption or a lack of jobs contribute to the decision […]
From Ikea to Gap, firms aim to use scarce water more wisely
Stockholm, SwedenThomson Reuters Foundation Putting on a pair of jeans or drinking a beer has a cost beyond the pricetag, with billions of tonnes of water used globally each year to manufacture them and other consumer goods, companies said at an international water conference on Monday. But with population growth and climate change making water […]
The cost of clean water: $US150 billion a year, says World Bank
Thomson Reuters Foundation THE PRICE OF SAFE WATER? $US150 billion a year according to a World Bank report. PICTURE: Luis Tosta/Unsplash Countries need to quadruple spending to $US150 billion a year to deliver universal safe water and sanitation, helping to reduce childhood disease and deaths while boosting economic growth, said the World Bank. Investments should […]
Water: Women and girls spend 200 million hours collecting water every day, says UNICEF
With World Water Week underway in Stockholm, DAVID ADAMS reports on the disproportionate “cost” collecting water from sources outside their homes has for women and girls around the world…