Blog Action Day 2010

Updated 3/2017-- photos and all links (except to my own posts) removed as many are no longer active and it was easier than checking each one.

This years topic for Blog Action Day is water.  Many of us take clean water for granted, but even in the United States we are finding more and more that our drinking water is contaminated with prescription drugs.  Dry years put our water reservoirs at risk and often result in mandatory restrictions on water use.

I am guilty of taking water for granted.  I do try to use a full load when washing my clothes.  I do turn off the water while brushing my teeth.  I don’t water my lawn regularly.
But I am still guilt of taking it for granted.  I expect clean water to be there for me to drink and use for bathing.
Clean water is not the norm for many in the world.  Nearly one billion people lack basic access to safe drinking water.  That’s nearly 1 out of every 8 of us. 

Organizations like CharityWater.org are trying to bring clean wells to areas in Africa that lack clean water.

water as a catalyst: disease prevention.
charity: water focuses on life’s most basic need -- water. But to significantly cut down disease rates in the developing world, water is just the first step. Almost everywhere charity: water builds a freshwater well, we also require sanitation training. In some communities, we build latrines; at the very least, we promote simple hand-washing stations made with readily-available materials. Clean water can greatly alleviate the world’s disease burden, but only with education and hygienic practice. charity: water is committed to using water as a gateway to sanitary living.

Access to clean water would help eliminate the nearly 38,000 deaths of children under the age of 5 who die weekly from unsafe drinking water and unhygienic living conditions.

Learn more. Perhaps donate to one of the charities like CharityWater.org.  Sign the petition for an International Water Treaty to Provide Clean Water Everywhere.

Earlier this year I made some quilt blocks for Global Quilt Project who is making a quilt that will be auctioned off and 100% of the proceeds will go to a new well for a village in Central African Republic and a latrine for a school in CAR.

Blog Action Day

Updated 3/2017-- all links (except to my own posts) removed as many no longer active. and it was easier than checking each one. 

This year the topic of Blog Action Day is climate change, so I have decided to briefly mention the link between population control/contraception and climate.  This connection is finally getting attention again.  It was discussed when I was in college in the 70’s but became a political hot potato when China limited the number of children their citizens could legally have.

My roommate in college, KB, was an environmental science major.  She and I had many discussions (arguments) over how many children a family should have.  My mother had 8 children.  I also had two half-siblings from my father’s first marriage and 5 step-siblings.  She came from a family of 2 children.

At the time, I voiced the desire to have 4 children.  She thought I was being irresponsible in not limiting the number of children I had to 2 children --  one to replace myself, one to replace my husband (as yet not meet). 

As it turned out, she had 3 children and I had none.  I’m not sure if hers was by choice (if she changed her mind) or not.  Mine was not, it just wasn’t meant to be, but maybe we ended up balancing each other out.

Last month, world leaders meeting at the United Nations and later in Pittsburgh included world population in their discussions on climate control.  I don’t think it would be necessary to mandate population control.  We could do more to help prevent the unwanted pregnancies by making contraception more available.

The report, "Fewer Emitters, Lower Emissions, Less Cost," (PDF) determined that if contraception was made widely available between 2010 and 2050 to women and men around the world who wished to use it, the reduction in unwanted births could result in saving 34 gigatonnes (one billion tonnes) of carbon emissions. That's roughly 60 years worth of U.K. emissions or 6 years worth of U.S. emissions.

Population growth is linked to changes in food and water supply and housing. Rapid increases in population growth is most likely to have negative effects – increasing food and water scarcity, environmental degradation, and human displacement.

There are more than 200 million women throughout the world who want, but lack access to modern contraceptives. This lack of contraceptive availability results in an estimated 76 million unintended pregnancies each year. This increase puts strain on regional environmental resources (water, food, housing) with increased disease if those resources aren’t sufficient.

The Lancet editorial discusses the need for better contraception available to women around the world. “It is disappointing to see that there are still tensions between the population and some of the sexual and reproductive health and rights community.”

The editorial points out a case study from Ethiopia that trained people in sustainable land management practices, while increasing availability of family planning. The area saw an immediate improvement to the environment with better agricultural practices, which in the long term will be sustained and not eroded by a rapidly increasing population.

Contraception is important to population control which is important to the health of our planet and global warming. It’s all linked.

REFERENCES

• Fewer Emitters, Lower Emissions, Less Cost, a Cost/Benefit Analysis; Thomas Wire; August 2009 (pdf)
• Sexual and reproductive health and climate change; The Lancet, Volume 374, Issue 9694, Page 949, 19 September 2009 doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(09)61643-3
• Managing the health effects of climate change; The Lancet, Volume 373, Issue 9676, Pages 1693 - 1733, 16 May 2009 doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(09)60935-1
• Should contraception qualify for climate funds? by Candace Lombardi; September 17, 2009

Blog Action Day 2008 – Poverty

Updated 3/2017 -- video and all links (except to my own posts) removed as many no longer active and it was easier than checking each one.

Blog Action Day 2008 Poverty from Blog Action Day on Vimeo.

There are many major systematic reasons for poverty. The Global Fund combats AIDS, Tuberculosis, and malaria which have a crippling effect on the fight against poverty. In 2008 The Global Fund is the official Blog Action Day charity. You are encourage bloggers to donate to this organization.

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