Detox Your Clothes!
The Greenpeace Detox Catwalk is an interactive online platform to hold major clothing companies accountable to clean up their toxic habits. Companies are asked to sign the Detox Fashion Manifesto and...
View ArticleEthical Mining?
The Eagle Mine, near the southern shore of Lake Superior in the state of Michigan, will be a test of “citizen water quality testing” in a deal announced between Rio Tinto and a local environmental...
View ArticleWater Stewardship Standard Announced
On April 8, the Alliance for Water Stewardship (which is also represented on the Charter Steering Committee) released Version 2.0 of the Water Stewardship Standard. The occasion was the annual...
View ArticleOnward to a New Water Ethic!
On March 3-4 UNESCO hosted the inaugural meeting of the Steering Committee for the Water Ethics Charter Initiative. The Committee ratified the basic conception of the Charter process as laid out in a...
View ArticleEthics of Large Dams
A new article in the journal, Energy Policy has unleashed some strong reactions about dams. “Should we build more large dams? The actual costs of hydropower megaproject development,” by A. Ansar et al...
View ArticleIs a Healthy Environment a Human Right?
Some 60% of China’s underground water is polluted, according to this report from the Guardian. Among 4,778 testing spots in 203 cities, 44% had “relatively poor” underground water quality; and another...
View ArticleEthics of Open Defecation
A campaign to end open defecation has been launched by the UN with support from a who’s who of WASH partners. The program seeks to expand the supply of latrines, while changing attitudes about the...
View ArticleEthics of Water and Ag
Between 2/3 and 3/4 of the world’s freshwater consumption is in agriculture, but the ethical options for that water are rarely considered. How would you rate the following examples in terms of water...
View ArticleNew Water Footprint Tool
The Water Footprint Network has released a new version of their Footprint Assessment tool, plus a Briefing Paper to review it. The tool provides clear insight into how water is appropriated for human...
View ArticleThe UN Watercourses Convention
What does it mean that the Convention “entered into force” on 17 August? The International Water Law Project has posted a collection of thoughtful commentaries on the significance of this event.
View ArticleWater Ethics in Stockholm
Themes connected to water ethics were in prominent display at Stockholm World Water Week last month (31 Aug – 5 Sept), particularly in sessions about corporate water stewardship, water integrity, and...
View ArticleExpress Your Water Ethics with “Creative Placemaking”
Known more for car racing than for its riverscapes, Indianapolis is reviving its rivers and the surrounding neighborhoods through a process of “creative placemaking.” Part ecology, part art and part...
View ArticleHealth Impact Assessments
When the health of people is impacted by contaminated water, is it a water problem or a health problem? Health Impact Assessment is an approach that combines empirical research and stakeholder input...
View ArticleLarge Dams Not Worth the Cost
says Thayer Scudder, a senior figure in the large dam controversy who, though critical of the social impacts, used to see a positive value in their overall benefits. No longer, according to this New...
View ArticleKaren Bakker’s Global Water Crisis Course
Karen Bakker will teach an online course about innovative urban solutions to the global water crisis, covering the interconnections between water and other environmental security issues (the...
View ArticleEthics of Large Dams
A new article in the journal, Energy Policy has unleashed some strong reactions about dams. “Should we build more large dams? The actual costs of hydropower megaproject development,” by A. Ansar et al...
View ArticleHow Are We Doing? Corporate Water Stewardship and Reporting
Getting credit for good water ethics helps companies make a “business case” for doing the right thing. CDP’s Global Water Report 2014 (10 MB) was “written on behalf of 573 investors with US$60...
View ArticleFracking and Water Ethics
The Environmental Costs and Benefits of Fracking, by Robert Jackson et al. appears in the current issue of the Annual Review of Environmental Resources, Vol. 39: 327-362, 2014. Click here for a summary...
View ArticleThe Value of Cooperation
Transboundary water cooperation generates economic, social and environmental benefits, as well as spill-over effects of regional cooperation and peace-building. This was the theme of the workshop,...
View ArticleFracking and Ethics
Hydraulic Fracturing in Michigan Integrated Assessment Draft Report just released on 20 Feb. is open for public comment until 20 March. This is an opportunity to introduce an ethical perspective on...
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