Have you ever been “dying for a drink of water” and not been able to have one? For one billion people in the world, clean, safe, reliable drinking water is not readily available.
On this day in 1993, the United Nations General Assembly declared 22 March “World Water Day.” It’s a day to focus attention on the preservation of water resources and to promote and coordinate conservation measures worldwide. As an act of solidarity and conscience-raising, clean water advocates encourage people to get through the day without turning-on any taps—which is very hard to do.
Providing clean, safe drinking water to a community—be it a village in West Africa or a metropolis like London—has an enormous effect on its citizens: diseases are eliminated, commerce develops, and people have more time to improve their lives (time previously spent hauling water in jugs).
So today, whether you abstain from water usage or not, spare a thought for the people around the word who don’t enjoy the necessary luxury of safe, accessible drinking water.
Shown above, a letterpress-printed greeting card depicting an open, rolling sea. Printed in a workshop on Swan’s Island, Maine (where life with water is well-appreciated), they are part of our collection of Spring greeting cards, now in-store. Please stop in to see them.