water – Career Meaning

Barely a drop of safe water to drink in Gaza, UN aid agency warns

“Access to sufficient amounts of clean water is a matter of life and death…children in Gaza have barely a drop to drink,” said UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell. “Children and their families are having to use water from unsafe sources that are highly salinated or polluted. Without safe water, many more children will die from deprivation…

Stories from the UN Archive: Marlon Brando, the UN’s first frontman for water

The Oscar-winning actor helped the UN amplify the need for clean water in a South American village in a unique podcast (even before they were called podcasts) almost 70 years ago. Soundcloud The Hollywood legend memorably narrated The Well of Happiness in 1956, following a UN-led project in the South American country long before the 2030 Agenda…

World News in Brief: Water crisis for children, hunger in East Africa, new Yazidi memorial

The double burden of dwindling availability – and inadequate water for drinking and sanitation services – is compounding the challenge, putting children at even greater risk. The Climate Changed Child – released ahead of the COP28 UN climate change summit later this month in Dubai – throws a spotlight on the threat facing vulnerable children. It…

First Person: Farmers running out of water in Punjab, India

Water is crucial to rice farmers and when it is lacking, they tend to rely on groundwater. Globally, water taken from underground reservoirs supports 40 per cent of agriculture, but if groundwater levels fall, it becomes harder to reach over time. In Punjab known by some as India’s breadbasket, groundwater is being depleted faster than…

WMO: Stocktake of water resources needed as global hydrological cycle is in distress

Destructive droughts and heavy rains are causing harm, while melting snow and glaciers heighten flood risks and endanger long-term water security. The UN weather agency’s State of Global Water Resources 2022 report emphasizes the need to better understand freshwater resources and urges a fundamental policy shift. It calls for enhanced monitoring, data sharing, cross-border cooperation,…

First Person: How youth and forests tackle Honduras’ water crisis

Montserrat Xilotl, a Regional Technical Advisor in Climate Change Adaptation for the UN Development Programme (UNDP), explains why. Montserrat Xilotl, Regional Technical Advisor in Climate Change Adaptation for the UN Development Programme (UNDP). “Forests are nature’s water filters and storage systems. When rain falls, the trees, and vegetation capture and absorb it, allowing it to…

World News in Brief: Water ‘being taken for granted’, global teacher crisis, Nipah in India update

“We must stop taking water for granted,” FAO Director-General Qu Dongyu said at the opening of the Rome Water Dialogue, focused on its critical role relating to soils, land, climate change, biodiversity and agriculture. With agriculture accounting for more than 70 per cent of the planet’s freshwater withdrawals, “by increasing efficiency, reducing negative impacts and…

Japan: IAEA monitoring treated water release from Fukushima nuclear plant

Experts from the UN nuclear watchdog were present to monitor and assess that all relevant international safety standards were applied, as part of a multiyear review of a process that could last for decades. The decision to release the water into the sea has sparked criticism in Japan and the region. Long-term commitment The IAEA…

Water Action Agenda takes shape in Stockholm flowing on from landmark conference

World Water Week is taking shape from Monday in Stockholm, Sweden. This is an annual gathering of thousands of organizations and individuals – Government experts, UN officials, scientists and academics – who come together to rethink how water is being managed. Serious challenges loom Among them is the President of the General Assembly, Csaba Kőrösi,…

Ukraine: Zaporizhzhya nuclear plant initiates reactor shutdown following water leak, reports IAEA

The purpose of placing reactor unit 4 in cold shutdown is to investigate the exact cause of the leak and carry out necessary maintenance to repair the affected steam generator, according to a statement by Rafael Mariano Grossi, IAEA Director General. There was no radiological release to the environment, the statement noted, adding that over…