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24 posts tagged water
Artists Against Fracking Launches
by Kimberlie Birks
Lately, hydraulic fracturing (aka hydro-fracking) once again making headlines. You may have even heard it on this morning’s NPR report.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo is expected to decide soon whether to allow natural gas companies to use the controversial drilling technique known as hydro-fracking. New Yorkers are sharply divided on the issue. Prodevelopment groups say that New York’s rust belt—the area that stretches west from Albany along the Pennsylvania border—needs new industry and new jobs. Meanwhile environmentalists vehemently oppose injecting the earth with the cocktail of hundreds of unknown chemicals, that could contaminate vital water supplies.
Women and Water
by Lulu Almana
image via swarrick
“We take it completely for granted, and yet it’s a minor miracle when you think about it and the problem is we don’t think about it, we ought to every time we turn on our taps,” remarks water and climate analyst Peter Glieck of the Pacific Institute.
Millions around the world do not have this luxury. Water is a critical women’s rights concern. Around the world, water is a commodity which women and girls are responsible for finding and carrying in buckets back to their homes on a daily basis. This is not just a back-breaking task which sometimes causes spine and pelvic deformities, but carries the threat of sexual and gender-based violence. In regions where water is scarce, it forces women to travel far from home in order to fill their buckets with enough clean water to supply their households for the day. During these long journeys, women and girls face terrifying stories of violence and rape. Victims often become outcasts of their communities. Dry seasons don’t make things easier, and women have to spend more time and travel further to find water. Returning home late has put women at risk of domestic violence and accusations of secret affairs from their husbands.
Deeper than Water, Columbia Water Center
Directed by Gabe Askew
Preserve the 1%
by Lisa Mucciacito
MarcroSea New York dumpster pool divers
If you are like us (and Miami Vice), you Feel the Heat. The extreme temperature is just one of the consequences of climate change, and reminds us—as we ponder the shortest path to the pool—that we must value and preserve our water resources. As National Geographic stated so succinctly,“All the water here on Earth now is all the water there ever was, and ever will be.”Add to this that 97% of said water is brackish or salty, while a further 2% is locked in ice caps and glaciers and one can start to feel a little hot under the collar.
Water is a Human Right
In the United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights, dignity, equality, security, and freedom of thought are all acknowledged. But what about water access? With over 1 billion people in the world not having access to safe drinking water and millions dying each year from lack of water with basic sanitation, one could argue that fresh water access is a universal human right. This essential right is the focus of the Women and Water Rights exhibition.
There are over 50 artists that have contributed to the exhibit, drawing their inspiration from water insufficiency and its lengthy history. The exhibit, Women and Water Rights: Rivers of Regeneration, first premiered in February 2010 at the Regis Center for Art at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. During its run, it was very effective at highlighting the importance of water accessibility for all people around the world. The project continues with Women and Water Rights: Concerning Water, an exhibit at the Phipps Center for the Arts in Hudson, WI, running through July 22, 2012 . Featuring work by local, national, and international artists, water as a right serves as the inspiration, subject, and material for the various pieces of art.
Artist E.V. Day’s Inspired Activism
An engineer’s credo is this: “Scientists dream about doing great things. Engineers do
them.” The Water Tank Project (TWTP) mapped out a strategy and executed it in the likeness of engineers - socially, logistically and artistically. But our work has just begun. Our Kickstarter campaign is live, our community is growing and our cause is increasingly becoming known among New Yorkers and beyond. Ultimately, we must move from planning and engineering roles to those of activists. Acclaimed artist E.V. Day provides the inspiration to make that possible.
Water Conservation - There’s an App for That!
There’s a concept called, Life Hacking, first coined by British technology journalist, Danny O’Brien in 2004. It’s the idea that efficiency tools originating from software coders now extend to a broader public. And so we can leverage technology to live healthier, happier and more organized lives. When considering water conservation, tracking our usage and making it more conscious in our minds is more easily done by help of mobile and web applications.
In 2010, Facebook introduced the Personal Water Footprint Calculator. After filling out a quick survey and drawing information from your basic profile, the app delivers a prompt overview of your personal water use. It also suggests a number of changes you can make as a commitment to actively practicing water conservation methods. The Personal Water Footprint Calculator demonstrates that almost everything we do can conserve water with a slight alteration, such as bathing and cleaning dishes.
The Future of Plastic
Visualize the size of our planet. Now, imagine Earth entirely circled by plastic bottles four times over. This depiction is not imaginary in scale, as this is the amount of bottles thrown away each year. Even more impacting is the legacy of these plastic bottles. It takes about 500 years for them to biodegrade.
Here at The Water Tank Project we care about this issue because we see a market trend toward recycling and elimination of low-grade plastic bottle use. We intend to propel this trend into a movement. Through our voice expressed by artists, we can bring attention to a vital resource that nurtures and sustains life – water. Raising awareness of the ill-effects of plastic bottle use is an important part of the effort.
Mr. Rosenwach is the man.
