World Water Week In case many of you don’t know, World Water Week just finished in Stockholm, Sweden. World Water Week takes place every year and is hosted by SIWI (Stockholm International Water Institute). During August 21st – 27th, professionals from science, business, civil society, and government from all over the world will come together and exchange views and practices on this year’s theme - ‘Water in an Urbanizing World’. Each year’s topic builds upon the last, in an effort to find real answers to the world’s water challenges. The workshops and seminars at World Water Week are designed by the Scientific Water Committee, a group of scientists, experts, and professors from the development and water fields. Here are some examples of the topics that will be discussed: Integrated Urban Flood Management Challenges and Approaches in the Developing World History, Ethics, Religious Values: Contributions to Water and Food Security Human-right Based Approach and Community Involvement in Public Water Supply in Tanzania Making Sure That Dams Don’t Create More Problems Than They Solve How to Reach Millions - A Pro-poor Approach for Water and Sanitation in Urban Areas In addition, there are over 100 workshops and seminars addressing urban water and sanitation challenges. To see the full schedule and what each discussion addresses, click here. A component of World Water Week that has been popular is the Water Cube, a giant glass-walled video room where anyone can document/speak/share their work or views on water. These videos get edited right away and posted online for real-time viewing at www.watercube.tv. An interesting video I saw was Ard Schoemaker from the Rain Foundation, speaking about a new focus in water management- the three R’s: Recharge, Retention and Reuse – “How to store water in the soil and use it at a predictable time”. He is focusing on rain water as a viable source of potable water, and saving it wisely so nothing gets lost. Complementing WellDone’s efforts in Ghana, Stanley Martey of Ghana Water Company Limited explains how the community has been able to take over a water management contract, and with support of the Ghanaian government, manage water operations to its citizens by “increasing coverage, saving peri-urban areas, and providing customer care”. You can check out his video here. Currently, WellDone’s Jim Yoon is there, collaborating and learning about what the big players in the water sector are saying about water security and moving towards everyone’s goal of clean and safe water for all, while also being a representative for WellDone’s work. In the coming weeks, hopefully some concrete solutions or lessons will come out of World Water Week, which I plan share with you. In the mean time, you can learn more about this week dedicated to water at www.worldwaterweek.org. Happy Thoughts, Shwetha Read More

Hello fans of WellDone! I am glad to join as a WellDone volunteer and contributor to this blog. Having recently immersed myself in the development sector, I am passionate about getting the word out about what it really means to have access to clean and safe water. Last year, I worked for an amazing organization named Arghyam, an NGO in Bangalore that funds water and sanitation projects across rural India. Part of my work there allowed me to travel to different parts of India, where I got to see firsthand what the rural population struggled with when it came to accessing clean water. Whether it was distance, leaky or broken infrastructure, or water quality, there was no common problem or common solution. I also got to see what the gaps were between government and the community, between policy and implementation. Before working at Arghyam, while I worked at Yahoo!, I had the opportunity to visit tsunami ravaged Sri Lanka. At this point, my interest in water surfaced, as I realized how much people depended on water not only for their existence, but their livelihoods. In this blog, I hope to educate you all (and myself in the process) about what the ‘global water crisis’ really is, including happenings in the water sector locally and globally. Expect to read posts from me about everything from water talks to documentary reviews. As a community interested in water security the right way, as in more effective solutions to accessing clean water for a growing world, we should support partners like WellDone, who believe in the passion of a small group of people who are leveraging their skills in design and technology to ease the burden of the global south. Looking forward to sharing with you all my thoughts, findings, and aha! moments. Happy Thoughts, Shwetha Sridharan Water security enthusiast Read More