Water's Urgent Message at the World Economic Forum -- Huffington Post

[Demagitator]

DAVOS, Switzerland -- Water, water everywhere, so let us stop to think. The recent World Economic Forum at Davos put the substance that defines life (and economic bottom lines) at center stage, with at least seven sessions focused on water's varied challenges, business impacts, policy and future.

But despite the fact that human beings themselves are comprised mostly of water, we are, also, only too human. The major buzz at Davos was about the things that often grab and distract us from the "big picture" the forum seeks: a precipitous plunge on Wall Street and a $7 billion flaming financial scandal in France.

It's too easy to take water for granted, so kudos to U.N. Secretary General Ban-ki Moon, who put the put the bull's eye into the headlines. "Water," he announced, "is one of the most daunting challenges faced by the world today."

I'd like to propose an alteration to that wise pronouncement. It's true, our relationship to water will define our future in this century. But the challenge is not water itself, but the way we perceive it and ourselves. We have the technology. Many of the solutions are within reach. The necessities of long-term planning (read: climate, efficiency, cleaning up what we have) are clearer than ever to the business community. At the WEF, for example, both Pepsi and Coca-Cola announced funding for new initiatives to bring safe drinking water to children in Africa and other stressed areas in the developing world.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/j-carl-ganter/waters-urgent-message-at_b_88630.html