World Water Day 2023 - THAT GORILLA BRAND

World Water Day 2023

Water is the world’s most precious commodity, more important than gold, more valuable than oil. It is the lifeblood of this Earth, propelling into motion the perpetual cycle of life. Its abundance has the power to create and renew existence; its scarcity has the ability to destroy and extinguish. It is vital for good health, gender equality, dignity and prosperity in humans, is crucial for the well-being of Earth’s ecosystems, energy and food production, and climate adaptation, and is pivotal in the economic security of countries worldwide. And yet, a third of our world’s population lacks this fundamental essential.

This coming Wednesday, 22nd March, marks World Water Day (WWD), an annual day of observance fostered by the United Nations (UN) to shine a spotlight on the importance of clean water and to champion responsible ways of sustaining freshwater resources. WWD 2023 will centre around ways to accelerate change to achieve the UN’s goal of ensuring safe water and sanitation is accessible to all by 2030. There are currently almost three billion people without access to either, which presents a dire global crisis.

Water and sanitation are inextricably linked; without clean water, there can be no healthy sanitation, which disadvantages the people and entire nations. Unmet water needs lead to poor personal welfare and illness, leading to less national productivity and a low Gross Domestic Product (GDP), lessening a nation’s prosperity. Providing these fundamental human rights of clean, safe water and hygienic sanitation systems opens up job opportunities, increased income and access to better education which helps, overall, to increase a nation’s growth and progress. The dichotomy of the significance of water is stark; it is both the ultimate unifier and bringer of life as well as a hugely divisive element in the yawning chasm of segregation between the rich and the poor. 

Since the inception of our Adventures For A Cause, water has played an instrumental role in our community conservation efforts. We have initiated, and with the assistance of The Gorilla Organization, built and grown our Bwindi Community Water Project in the communities surrounding the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest in Uganda. Providing clean, accessible water to these local communities is a lifeline for the people - with more time available for work and school, families can lift themselves out of poverty, increase literacy and improve the health of future generations.

Water plays a key part in narrowing the chasm of inequality and opening the doors of opportunity, education, empowerment and freedom currently closed to the many children and families in the Bwindi region. Our initiative has seen the installation of rainwater harvesting systems to collect and purify water and pumping equipment to enable it for use. The next stage of this water cycle will be to help improve sanitation for these communities, and this will be our second That Gorilla Brand initiative, through Adventures For A Cause fundraising and donations.

Water affects us all. Every single life form relies on it to survive and thrive. The consequences of its abundance or absence are far-reaching - it is needed to hydrate bodies and keep them functioning, for cooking to provide sustenance, for irrigation of crops and nourishment of livestock to provide food, for building and maintaining clean sanitation systems to ensure health and prosperity to communities, and for absorbing carbon dioxide in the environment to support flourishing life- cycles in our ecosystems. As nature’s most important nutrient, investing in water and sanitation is central to transforming lives; as global citizens, we can all help to make these changes happen.