Known for having one of the largest oil reserves in the world, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) currently faces daunting issues with its water. Water availability and water quality in the United Arab Emirates are both areas of concern.
Because of the country’s extremely arid landscapes, water scarcity is a crucial issue, especially since the country has one of the highest rates of consumption of water per capita at 550 liters a day. The scarcity of groundwater coupled with the limited and expensive processing and treatment of existing water creates a challenging situation for the UAE. With so little water available in the area, water becomes a commodity that some predict will eventually become more expensive than oil.
The water crisis in the United Arab Emirates is a growing concern for government officials. One company even proposed a plan to bring icebergs all the way from Antarctica to the coast in order to deal with the water scarcity. Others focus on desalination plants as a solution, but desalination is an expensive and energy-intensive process. There are also risks of negative environmental impacts on the coast, and the water that these plants produce has a higher risk of oil pollution.
Two main sectors are responsible for most of the water consumption in the UAE: the private sector and the agricultural sector. The approach that these sectors take when dealing with water scarcity will be crucial to how the country deals with the water crisis.
The Private Sector
The private sector consumes about 24 percent of the UAE’s water. In such a brutally hot climate, much of the water used in private homes is because of air conditioning units, but the most important use of water is drinking water. Due to concerns about water quality in the United Arab Emirates, many people prefer to drink bottled water. Because it takes about three liters of water to make one liter of bottled water, the prevalence of bottled water greatly inflates water use on an individual level.
Contaminated water is not an imagined problem for UAE households, so it is understandable why so many choose to drink bottled water. Private water can be contaminated by old and rusty pipes filled with bacteria, and because water is often stored in tanks, there is a risk of contamination by foreign objects such as animals, insects, and metals. Since the UAE has no law to enforce the replacement of pipes or the cleaning of such tanks, water contamination is a possibility.
Despite these risks of water contamination, the water quality in the United Arab Emirates is adequate, and most experts maintain that this sort of contamination is very unlikely. In an effort to reduce unnecessary water use, many people advocate against the overuse of bottled water. They teach that bottled water and filtered tap water are almost exactly the same in quality and taste, yet there is a prevailing attitude that the water is dangerous to use or drink. The water quality is blamed for problems such as dry skin, premature aging and hair loss.
Advocates against the dependence on bottled water also warn that bottled water might have its own harmful consequences, such as the presence of fluoride, a substance still under scrutiny, and BPA, an industrial chemical that may have negative health effects on the brain and blood pressure. The environmental impact is important to consider as well since most people use the bottle once and throw it away, leading to a large amount of unnecessary and expensive waste. Even with these concerns in mind, many UAE citizens continue to rely on bottled water.
The Agricultural Sector
Though the private sector has a great deal of influence on the water availability crisis, the agricultural sector has the biggest impact and is the largest consumer of water. The agriculture sector consumes nearly two-thirds of the nation’s water. Due to the continually growing population of the UAE, there was a recent surge in demand for food, causing the UAE’s agricultural sector to have a higher demand than ever.
The agriculture industry is attempting to move away from water-intensive crops and introduce drip irrigation, and people continue to search for ways to reduce the excessive use of water in agriculture. Some have suggested an improved system of collecting and treating wastewater to use for agriculture. Wastewater processing plants are cheaper than desalination plants in part because they make use of the water already present in the system rather than relying on extracting water from the surrounding environment, but these solutions have yet to be put in place.
There are many possible ways for the UAE to address the water crisis, but along with the various proposed solutions, education about the crisis is an important step along the way. The water quality in the United Arab Emirates is only a part of the problem; the water crisis is a long-term problem that is likely to have profound impacts for decades to come. Therefore, the continued education about water scarcity and responsible water use is crucial to further efforts of reducing water consumption and working to end the water crisis.
– Rachael Lind
Photo: Flickr
IBM’s Science for Social Good Program is Helping Save the World
The Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies is one of the organizations IBM is working with. The Cary Institute’s mission is to research and address the problem of the Zika virus in Central and South America. When the Zika virus arrived in Brazil through mosquitos, it gave babies many life-threatening diseases, such as brain under-development. Without a widely distributed vaccine in countries where only high-class citizens have access to health care, many unborn children are at risk.
Science for Social Good is assisting The Cary Institute in “applying machine learning and data science tools to identify primate species that could become animal reservoirs for Zika” in order to contain and combat the disease. In a short period of time, IBM technology helped pinpoint areas where Zika is most prevalent. Then, they created through mobile phone apps that map out these locations, allowing citizens to stay more informed and cautious. This technology also identified primate species that carry the disease in the wild.
In addition to The Cary Institute, IBM is assisting the emergency food service St. John’s Bread and Life. IBM will create an artificial intelligence supply chain model of emergency food operations and share it with cloud computing technology. Thus, Bread and Life can share its most advanced practices with other organizations to better help those in need. The digitization of new organizations would make both education on hunger issues and providing aid to the needy much easier.
“Science for Social Good is built on the premise that applied science and technology can solve the world’s toughest problems,” reads IBM’s research page. With companies like these beginning to take a more globalized approach to problem-solving, we may see more research projects like Science for Social Good in the future.
– Vicente Vera
Photo: Flickr
10 Facts About Marshall Islands Refugees
Springdale, Northwest Arkansas, is just a few thousand miles from the Marshall Islands. Springdale has become a prominent relocation center for Marshall Islands refugees. As the “poultry capital of the world,” Springdale has offered Marshallese refugees employment through Tyson, a frozen food company.
The Marshall Islands is a small coastal republic consisting of a few main islands and coral atolls. Rising sea levels, intense tropical storms and droughts have disrupted life in the Marshall Islands. Climate change is at the root of these issues. Here are 10 facts about Marshall Islands refugees.
10 Facts About Marshall Islands Refugees
Despite the disastrous effects of global warming, the Marshallese are making headway on slowing its path until they can find permanent solutions.
– Mackenzie Fielder
Photo: Flickr
How to Lobby for a Cause
Lobbying for a cause is an important part of the political process and a key way all citizens can impact government decisions. There are many ways to advocate for a cause. Here are seven important points to consider when regarding how to lobby for a cause important to you.
7 Ways to Lobby for a Cause
Learning how to lobby for a cause takes time and often requires one to re-evaluate their strategies in order to convey their message most effectively. Remaining persistent and listening to all sides of an issue are crucial aspects of lobbying for a cause, and over time can lead to successful results.
– Nicole Toomey
Photo: Flickr
Fighting Common Diseases in Guatemala
In certain areas of Guatemala, malaria rates are higher than in other countries. In 2015, there were 6,834 cases of the disease. Since 2005, the government has been fighting the disease with additional funding from the Global Fund. The goal is to nationally eliminate malaria by 2020. In order to avoid bacterial diarrhea, doctors advise individuals to practice good hygiene when using the restroom, maintain clean water, and properly clean food.
Lastly, Guatemala created a comprehensive sexual education plan to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases. However, a survey in 2015 showed that only 7 percent of students learned all of the intended points in the program. Another issue with this program is that out of classrooms that taught students about condom usage, 43 percent did so incorrectly. Since STDs and STIs are a common problem in Guatemala, people are pushing for improvement of the sexual education program through better instructor training or a complete reconstruction.
These are a few of the most common diseases in Guatemala. Travelers are warned against malaria and bacterial diarrhea. Additionally, HIV ranks number nine in the top 10 causes of death in Guatemala. Through better education and prevention, the prevalence of these common diseases in Guatemala can significantly drop and the well-being of the people will improve.
– Helen Barker
Photo: Flickr
How to Improve the Economy by Reducing Global Poverty
In addition to the moral reasons for reducing global poverty, more investment in foreign assistance benefits both domestic and international economies. To understand how to improve the economy by reducing global poverty, some particular factors must be considered. These are access to education, infrastructure and finance. All of these factors stimulate an economy.
Global poverty reduction boosts the global economy. Education plays a substantial role in this by closing the gap between the world’s rich and poor. According to Brookings, studies show that “the education gap between kids from poor and rich families has increased substantially, making it difficult for children from poor families to close the income gap between themselves and children from rich families.” It is becoming more and more apparent that education bridges these divides and helps accelerate economic growth.
Education is in the best interest of countries giving foreign aid. Education-based programs can give children the skills they need to complete degrees for well-paying jobs later in life. The comprehensive skill level of a labor force is a leading element of local job and wage growth. Growth in job numbers helps an economy to prosper. A generation with access to education will likely become a group of entrepreneurs more likely to practice equitable governance and improve not only their own country’s economy but the worldwide economy. Furthermore, advances in human development promote economic growth.
It is in the best interest of first world countries to use their foreign aid budget to help lessen the growing worldwide gap between rich and poor. An influx of foreign aid helps promote a strong and stable economy for all. As more people in developing countries are given the opportunity to lift themselves out of poverty, it creates new consumers of U.S. products. The U.S. already benefits from an about one percent investment in foreign aid from the federal budget, as more than half of U.S. exports now go to developing countries. Every prosperous countries should consider how to improve the economy by reducing global poverty.
Even with trillions of dollars being spent on programs, there is still a long way to go in order to get the entirety of the global population above the poverty line, which is $1.90 per day. More than 700 million people are living at or below this level. Increasing not only work rates, but the amount of schooling completed is thought to be a successful approach. There are solutions to these emerging problems; education and an influx of jobs are what is going to create the most change and prosperity.
– Lucy Voegeli
Photo: Flickr
9 Facts About Hunger in Ireland
Food poverty is classified as the inability to afford an adequate and nutritious diet. The phrase has been used before to refer to hunger in Ireland, but resurfaced in 2012 with the global recession and continues to plague the country. Here are nine facts about hunger in Ireland.
9 Facts About Hunger in Ireland
While food poverty in Ireland is improving, it is still not eradicated. Because food poverty involves many aspects and policies, an aligned front must be formed in order to continue to move in the right direction.
– Madeline Boeding
Photo: Flickr
Water Quality in the United Arab Emirates
Known for having one of the largest oil reserves in the world, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) currently faces daunting issues with its water. Water availability and water quality in the United Arab Emirates are both areas of concern.
Because of the country’s extremely arid landscapes, water scarcity is a crucial issue, especially since the country has one of the highest rates of consumption of water per capita at 550 liters a day. The scarcity of groundwater coupled with the limited and expensive processing and treatment of existing water creates a challenging situation for the UAE. With so little water available in the area, water becomes a commodity that some predict will eventually become more expensive than oil.
The water crisis in the United Arab Emirates is a growing concern for government officials. One company even proposed a plan to bring icebergs all the way from Antarctica to the coast in order to deal with the water scarcity. Others focus on desalination plants as a solution, but desalination is an expensive and energy-intensive process. There are also risks of negative environmental impacts on the coast, and the water that these plants produce has a higher risk of oil pollution.
Two main sectors are responsible for most of the water consumption in the UAE: the private sector and the agricultural sector. The approach that these sectors take when dealing with water scarcity will be crucial to how the country deals with the water crisis.
The Private Sector
The private sector consumes about 24 percent of the UAE’s water. In such a brutally hot climate, much of the water used in private homes is because of air conditioning units, but the most important use of water is drinking water. Due to concerns about water quality in the United Arab Emirates, many people prefer to drink bottled water. Because it takes about three liters of water to make one liter of bottled water, the prevalence of bottled water greatly inflates water use on an individual level.
Contaminated water is not an imagined problem for UAE households, so it is understandable why so many choose to drink bottled water. Private water can be contaminated by old and rusty pipes filled with bacteria, and because water is often stored in tanks, there is a risk of contamination by foreign objects such as animals, insects, and metals. Since the UAE has no law to enforce the replacement of pipes or the cleaning of such tanks, water contamination is a possibility.
Despite these risks of water contamination, the water quality in the United Arab Emirates is adequate, and most experts maintain that this sort of contamination is very unlikely. In an effort to reduce unnecessary water use, many people advocate against the overuse of bottled water. They teach that bottled water and filtered tap water are almost exactly the same in quality and taste, yet there is a prevailing attitude that the water is dangerous to use or drink. The water quality is blamed for problems such as dry skin, premature aging and hair loss.
Advocates against the dependence on bottled water also warn that bottled water might have its own harmful consequences, such as the presence of fluoride, a substance still under scrutiny, and BPA, an industrial chemical that may have negative health effects on the brain and blood pressure. The environmental impact is important to consider as well since most people use the bottle once and throw it away, leading to a large amount of unnecessary and expensive waste. Even with these concerns in mind, many UAE citizens continue to rely on bottled water.
The Agricultural Sector
Though the private sector has a great deal of influence on the water availability crisis, the agricultural sector has the biggest impact and is the largest consumer of water. The agriculture sector consumes nearly two-thirds of the nation’s water. Due to the continually growing population of the UAE, there was a recent surge in demand for food, causing the UAE’s agricultural sector to have a higher demand than ever.
The agriculture industry is attempting to move away from water-intensive crops and introduce drip irrigation, and people continue to search for ways to reduce the excessive use of water in agriculture. Some have suggested an improved system of collecting and treating wastewater to use for agriculture. Wastewater processing plants are cheaper than desalination plants in part because they make use of the water already present in the system rather than relying on extracting water from the surrounding environment, but these solutions have yet to be put in place.
There are many possible ways for the UAE to address the water crisis, but along with the various proposed solutions, education about the crisis is an important step along the way. The water quality in the United Arab Emirates is only a part of the problem; the water crisis is a long-term problem that is likely to have profound impacts for decades to come. Therefore, the continued education about water scarcity and responsible water use is crucial to further efforts of reducing water consumption and working to end the water crisis.
– Rachael Lind
Photo: Flickr
10 Facts About Bulgaria Refugees
Connecting Turkey with continental Europe, Bulgaria has been a passageway for millions of refugees seeking to reach wealthier countries such as Germany and France. This increase in migrants has posed difficulties at the borders and for the people and economy of Bulgaria. Here are 10 facts about Bulgaria refugees.
10 Facts About Bulgaria Refugees
The migrant situation in Bulgaria has had sensitive social implications with many Bulgarians unhappy about the influx of refugees. These factors have created tension and difficulty for refugees, as gaining entry to Bulgaria has become increasingly challenging.
– Sophie Casimes
Photo: Flickr
10 Facts About Rocinha, Brazil
Just outside Rio de Janeiro are some of the largest urban slums in Latin America, filled with people and rich culture that makes up some of the unique parts of the country. One of these many slums is Rocinha, the country’s largest favela. Here are 10 facts about Rocinha, Brazil.
10 Facts About Rocinha, Brazil
These 10 facts about Rocinha, Brazil are a brief look into the favela. While the city has experienced hardships throughout its history, those who see all that the city has to offer to continue to make the city better for the generations that follow.
– Olivia Hayes
Photo: Flickr
Decreasing the Rate of Poverty in Belize
Belize, located south of Mexico in Central America, was the center of the Mayan civilization thousands of years ago. Since then, Belize has developed into an independent, democratic country with English as its official language. The Belizean economy remains small, depending mainly on agriculture, merchandising and tourism. The sugar and banana industries make up two of the biggest sources of economic production. The developing nation has become an attractive travel destination for people around the world, but the rate of poverty in Belize remains very high.
As of September 2016, the rate of poverty in Belize stood at 41.3 percent, which meant that 380,010 people lived in conditions below the poverty line. People living in rural areas suffer more from poverty than those living in Belize City. This occurs because federal revenue is distributed to all the districts disproportionately.
When compared to other countries in the Caribbean, the rate of poverty in Belize ranks second-highest after Haiti. Reducing this statistic has proven to be a challenge for the Belizean government, as poverty in Belize often results from many factors, including lack of access to education, sanitary drinking water and medical attention.
While poverty in Belize cannot be eradicated overnight, the government of Belize has made significant steps in recent years. Belizean politicians have pursued legislation and programs to tackle the challenges faced by the people living below the poverty rate. The Belize Social Investment Fund, established in 1996, assists groups within communities in their efforts to help the poor.
The National Integrated Water Resources Act, approved by the government in 2010, will eventually result in access to clean water. When safe drinking water is brought in, communities see increased economic growth without fail, and Belize has been no exception.
Other pushes towards a decrease in poverty include the Quality School Initiative, resulting in increased school enrollment. Gender equality has also increased, with access to education, literacy rates and employment rates rising over the past 10 years. In 2015, the infant mortality rate had decreased by two-thirds. With increased efforts to attack the roots of poverty in Belize, the nation is sure to see a decrease in the poverty rate.
– Julia McCartney
Photo: Flickr