Division of Student Affairs

Water: Our Precious Resource

According to the United Nations World Water Development Report, by 2050 at least one in four people is likely to live in a country affected by chronic or recurring shortages of freshwater. With the Great Lakes containing 20 percent of the earth's fresh water, this topic is of growing relevance to our region and to Case Western Reserve University.

World Water Day - March 22, 2011

International World Water Day is an annual event designed to bring attention to the importance of freshwater and to advocate for sustainable management. The observance was recommended at the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED). The United Nations General Assembly designated March 22, 1993 as the first World Water Day.

Case's Engineers without Borders along with the American Medical Student Association, is sponsoring a campus event that day. For more information, seeEngineer's Without Borders, World Water Day.

What Does That Mean for Us?

For the 2010-2011 academic year, the Common Reading for first-year students will be Bottlemania by Elizabeth Royte. This book introduces the Year of Water, a series of events and programs focusing on issues related to water quality. Over the next several months, we will examine a number of important issues, including:

• bottling and selling water
• recycling plastic bottles
• public health issues
• water quality and tap water
• wise use of water
• watershed planning and management
• water conservation
• storm water run-off
• the politics and ethics of a scarce resource
• and other related topics

Nationally-recognized Speakers for the Year of Water

• Elizabeth Royte, author of Bottlemania
• Katie Spotz, the first American to row solo across the Atlantic, who successfully raised over $70,000 for fresh drinking water
• Peter Gleick, director of the Pacific Institute, and a MacArthur Fellow recognized for his work on water resources
• Howard Ernst, professor, researcher, and author with a national reputation for his work in the area of environmental policy and natural resource management

We Need Your Suggestions!

Do you have a comment about Bottlemania or a suggestion for the Year of Water website?

Post your comments on our Facebook site!

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