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The Threat to Sacred Waters and Ways of Life for California Indigenous Communities
By: Sophie Sparksworthy, WEA Intern “Indigenous peoples have the right to the conservation and protection of the environment and the productive capacity of their lands or territories and resources.” — Article 29, UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples The physical health and cultural well-being of Indigenous communities are threatened by increasing environmental…
The Ripple Effect Is Real
by Gemma Bulos Question: When would the equation 20 x 222 = 4588? Answer: When you train 20 women how to build rainwater harvesting systems. They train 222 of their colleagues (84% of which were women). And together they build 31 tanks supplying water to 4588 people in Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda. Help us amplify…
From our Allies: Indian People’s Action and the Tar Sands Megaloads
“[Tar sands oil] is not a future issue, it’s causing the land to be inhospitable, both on the reservations and for the surrounding area… There’s no way we’re going to change the surrounding area once it’s destroyed.” — Naomi Oderman, Media Liaison with Indian People’s Action (source) There are many equally important facets of the Keystone…
GWWI Partners with KIVA
By Bess Zewdie, Research Intern Global Women’s Water Initiative is thrilled to announce our new partnership with Kiva, the worlds largest – and highly successful – online micro-lending platform. Kiva allows contributors to fund loans in low socio-economic communities, where access to conventional means of financial support is not available. This is done through their…
The Long Arm of the Tar Sands: The Alberta Clipper Pipeline
By: Kahea Pacheco (Advocacy Network Coordinator) and Sophie Sparksworthy (WEA Intern) “[We recognize] that the tar sands in northern Alberta, Canada is one of the largest remaining deposits of unconventional oil in the world, containing approximately 2 trillion barrels, and there are plans for a massive expansion of development that would ultimately destroy an area…
Congress Passes Bi-Partisan Bill with $50 Million Increase for WASH
By Gemma Bulos, GWWI Director Last year, I was honored to present GWWI’s work at the historical launch of USAID’s Water and Sanitation Development Strategy alongside Senator Richard Durbin, Senator Chris Coons, Congressman Earl Blumenauer, Congressman Ted Poe and USAID Administrator Rajiv Shah and USAID Global Water Coordinator Chris Holmes. This was a significant milestone…
Recognizing Women’s Leadership to Mitigate Conflict & Climate Change
By: Rucha Chitnis, Director of Grantmaking (@ruchachitnis) Manipur, a state in India bordering Burma, is part of the “Seven Sisters” — seven contiguous states in Northeastern India, known for their rich ethnic diversity, bountiful natural resources, as well as political conflict and turmoil. For over 50 years now, Manipur has been bound by the controversial…
Phionah: From Sex-Worker to Water Champion
By Gemma Bulos, Global Women’s Water Initiative Director “I have been a sex worker for so many years, but when I met Godliver (GWWI Head Technology Trainer), I have withdrawn. She trained me on tanks, now I can make bricks, I can make a tank… I think I can almost be a technical engineer!” —…
The Winnemem Wintu and the fight for the McCloud River
By Kahea Pacheco (Advocacy Network Coordinator) and Molly Garritson (WEA General Intern) “The salmon are an integral part of our lifeway and of a healthy McCloud River watershed. We believe that when the last salmon is gone, humans will be gone too. Our fight to return the salmon to the McCloud River is no less…
Women leaders in Water, Sanitation and Hygiene
In Africa and across the developing world, it is common for women and girls to spend up to six hours daily collecting water, time they could spend in school or working. The result is perpetuated cycles of gender inequality and poverty. Water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) combine as global crisis that leaves 768 million without clean…