March 22 is World Water Day!
This year’s World Water Day is about accelerating change to solve the water and sanitation crisis globally. And accelerating change is something we can all be a part of.
We’ve collected the best good news about and for water — we hope it inspires you to take action this World Water Day and beyond to protect and advocate for access to clean water.
Good News for World Water Day
Arguing the legal rights of nature, five bodies of water threatened by development are suing the state of Florida as well as a developer.
In November 2020, voters in Orange County, Florida approved a charter amendment to protect the “rights of nature” by a margin of nearly 90 percent. Along with the human right to have clean water, it granted nature four rights: the right to exist, to flow, to be protected against pollution, and to maintain a healthy ecosystem.
And in approving the “earth law,” they’re taking a page from the playbook of Indigenous peoples all over the planet. They passed similar laws protecting the rights of nature in places like Ecuador and New Zealand.
Now, a group of five bodies of water in Florida are testing the new amendment. Threatened by a development that would destroy more than wetlands and streams by filling and polluting them, the bodies of water are suing the state and developer.
Why is this good news?
Wetlands and waterways are critical to both local ecosystems and the planet’s (and by extension, human) health overall — we can’t keep destroying them. Right now, nature is viewed as property, and when you buy property you can do whatever you want with it. Laws like this prevent unsustainable development.
The UN is hosting a Water Conference this week for the first time in nearly 50 years.
It comes at a critical time, as billions of people worldwide still live without safely managed drinking water and sanitation, a long-established human right.
A nonprofit is empowering kids to take action for clean water — and many of them are growing up to become activists.
Collectively, charity: water’s Tiny Heroes program brought clean water to 45,000 people and counting.
Water dispensers are bringing cheap, clean water to one of Nairobi’s largest slums.
Previously, residents had no option but to buy polluted water from informal vendors charging hugely inflated prices.
Looking for even more good news about water? Explore our entire collection of water-related good news stories.
Good Quote for World Water Day
“We need leaders that have a heart and care about everyone and not just the interests of big business and the top 10 percent. We need to protect dreamers, we need to protect kids in the most vulnerable areas, we need love and for people to care about their communities.”
— Mari Copeny (a.k.a. “Little Miss Flint”)
→ More teen activists who inspire us to do good
Good Bits for World Water Day
💧 After all that good news, we’re ready to join in and take action.
🌊 From plastic pollution to coral conservation, learn more about the issues facing our precious oceans.
💦 If you want to be a friend to water, you likely need to look no further than your front yard.
🚰 We’d be remiss to not remind you to learn about and support the ultimate protectors of clean water today.
Some of these good bits may include affiliate links, which means if you buy anything, we may get something in return at no extra cost to you. (Thanks for your support!)
P.S. Need a good water news refill?
If you care about protecting clean water (in your community and around the world), and learning more about the ways people are taking good action for water — we made an entire issue of the Goodnewspaper filled (pun intended) to the brim with good news about and for water!
