• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Skip to footer navigation

  • Calendar of events
  • 687 Larch Av, Teaneck NJ
  • 201-836-5187
  • Contact Us
  • DONATE
Ethical Culture Society of Bergen County NJ

Ethical Culture Society of Bergen County NJ

  • Home
  • About
    • Platform
    • From our Society’s President, Susan Lesh
    • FAQ
      • How does Ethical Culture make a difference in society?
      • What social life is there in Ethical Culture?
      • How is Ethical Culture religious?
    • Ethical Brew
    • Ceremonies
    • Philosophy
    • Constitution & Bylaws
    • Our Building Calendar
    • Contact Us
  • Ethical Kids
    • Sunday School
      • Primary Class
      • Elementary Class
      • Junior Class
      • Senior Class
      • Sunday school FAQ
    • Youth Group
  • Leader
    • Wedding Officiant
    • Speaking of Ethics: Living a Humanist Life
    • Leader’s Talks
  • Social Action
    • All Social Action Articles
    • Battling Racism
    • Environmental Action
    • Healthcare
  • Adult Ed
    • Job Club
    • Socrates Cafe
    • Do Tell!
    • Ethical Culture Review of Books
  • News
    • President Column
    • UN Report
    • Platform Addresses
  • Events

2003 is the International Year of Fresh Water

April 13, 2003

2003 is the International Year of Fresh Water.(www.wateryear2003.org). On October 16, the Dag Hammerschuld Auditorium was the setting for a briefing entitled WATER OF LIFE; FRESH PERSPECTIVES ON THE WORLD’S WATER CRISIS. The hall was filled to capacity with many seated in the aisles. The briefing, and day-long program, one of the most inspiring ever, came about because of the networking efforts of Martha Gallahue of the National Service Conference of the A.E.U. with the U.N. Department of Social Affairs, the Values Caucus, and the Earth Values Caucus cooperating to bring an ethical perspective to this vital issue.

All of human life depends on fresh water. Unevenly distributed throughout the world, some countries have it in abundance, others are severely deprived. With every flush of a toilet, we in the richer countries use up the same amount of water used by an average person in the developing world for every need in a day. Unsafe water and sanitation cause an estimated 80% of all disease in the developing world. Some 6000 children die every day from diseases associated with unsafe water and poor sanitation hygiene. Girl children are often not permitted to attend school because of the unsafe conditions caused by lack of proper latrines. Water used for irrigation can be unavailable because of cost, or is unfit for drinking. Women, the water carriers and primary users of water, bear the greatest burden of its misuse and scarcity.

Clearly, increasing the supply of water and maintaining its purity is a matter of life and death. Dr John Todd, a professor at the University of Vermont, and founder of Water Stewards, Inc, is a water doctor who goes to places where bad water can be treated by applying the wisdom of ecology to provide low cost and sustainable solutions. (www.waterstewards.org). A ribbon of plants, which flourish on sewage, has transformed Fu Jong, a city in China with streets fouled by a sewage canal, protecting the cleanliness of estuaries and bays. Ecological principles can help American industry — a highly polluted area surrounding a chicken factory was inexpensively converted to a beautiful clean lagoon when its bottom was seeded with kelp. In water-starved Kenya, the construction of dirt pans to collect rain water has the extra benefit that the moist soil surrounding these mini-reservoirs produces fertile kitchen gardens. Similar projects are taking place in Nepal and India. With political will South Africa has performed the remarkable feat of making fresh water available to half of its deprived population, an enormous improvement in seven short years.

In spite of the beautiful blue that astronauts see as they approach from outer space, with 70% of the world’s surface covered in water, only 2.5% is fresh water, and three-quarters of that is frozen in ice caps. 40% of the world’s population is now living in areas with moderate-to-high water stress, and water use is increasing faster than population growth. Only a few countries are wealthy enough to use desalination. Kuwait, Japan, and Italy, as well as the United States, use some desalinated water. Saudi Arabia uses desalination to meet 70% of its drinking water needs. Desalination will become cheaper with increased demand and improved technology. But poorer countries can not afford this sophisticated method. However the simpler technology of inexpensive ecological principles can provide a whole new avenue for projects at municipal levels, or for industry with serious problems, as well as countries that choose to make a national policy of a biological approach. Whatever the method, cooperation between private industry and government presents challenges of fair distribution as well as cost. Government must ensure that private sector participation does not enrich the few at the expense of the many. As Gandhi has said, “Nature has enough for our need, but not enough for everybody’s greed.” Solutions do exist. An ethical perspective joined with technical ingenuity and practical will, can do what needs to be done.

Sylvain and Phyllis Ehrenfeld
IHEU Representatives to the UN & the AEU Nat’l Service Conference

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Bursly says

    July 23, 2012 at 11:31 am

    I don’t know if this is an ethical quetsion or a legal one. If you honestly forgot to inform you boss that you did not need the cash advance anymore and you received it then you are being ethical and legal.How do you receive courses for a Christmas gift? Don’t you mean that you received the money to pay for the courses, or you sister paid for your courses as your Christmas gift?

Primary Sidebar

Sign up for our newsletter.

Upcoming Events

Sun 17

Platform: Techniques to Achieve Equity in the Classroom

January 17 @ 11:00 am - 12:30 pm
Sun 17

Job Club Workshop

January 17 @ 2:00 pm - 3:00 pm
Mon 18

Conversemos (Let’s Talk)

January 18 @ 7:30 pm - 9:00 pm
Fri 22

Mindfulness at Midday: Meditation, Movement, and Discussion Group

January 22 @ 12:00 pm - 1:30 pm
Sun 24

Platform: Video Games and Ethics

January 24 @ 11:00 am - 12:30 pm

View More…

Being White

Society asks Teaneck to Make BLM Mural Permanent

About Us

Ethical Culture was founded to focus on community and good works, rather than personal salvation. Read more…

We believe in ethics. We believe in people.

Please believe in us.

Ethical Brew

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • Vimeo
  • YouTube

Archives

Footer

Connect with Us

Address: 687 Larch Ave, Teaneck, NJ 07666
Phone: 201-836-5187
Email: admin@ethicalfocus.org

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • Vimeo
  • YouTube

Recent Posts

  • Society asks Teaneck to Make BLM Mural Permanent January 16, 2021
  • Committee Nearly Ready to Recommend Interim Leader Candidates December 25, 2020
  • Visualizing 2021 December 20, 2020
  • Members Pass Budget and Constitutional Changes November 28, 2020
  • Remembering Bruno Danese November 28, 2020

We believe in ethics. We believe in people.

Please believe in us.

Topics

atheism atheist church book review children civil rights climate change community compassion death democracy Doris Friedensohn Elizabeth Warren environment Ethical Brew Ethical Culture ethical dilemmas ethical education ethics everyday ethics Felix Adler global warming happiness healthcare humanism humanist humanists human rights Israel Joseph Chuman meetinghouse Middle East politics racism religion Robert Gulack Secular Humanism social action Socrates Cafe Sunday School Susan Golden technology Trump unemployment winter solstice world health

What We Do For Fun….

There's always time for play: celebrations, discussions (some in Spanish -- find Conversemos on our calendar on the fourth Tuesday of the month), hikes, picnics, cultural outings, and affinity groups like our monthly Men's Dinners and Women's Dinners.
Kids get into the act
Diane running the show

Important Links

  • Member of the American Ethical Union
  • Ethical Brew
  • Sanctuary Committee
  • BC Gun Violence Prevention
  • NJ Website Designer

NJ Web Designer

© The Ethical Culture Society of Bergen County NJ

  • Calendar of events
  • 687 Larch Av, Teaneck NJ
  • 201-836-5187
  • Contact Us
  • DONATE