www.solidarites.org

World Water Day 2022: Art for Access to Clean Water

Published on Thursday 10 March 2022

World Water Day will be celebrated on 22 March. To mark the occasion, SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL, as a major player in the fight for access to drinking water for all, is joining forces with the artist Jordane Saget to propose an original awareness-raising action on the Place de la République in Paris. By means of a monumental fountain fed by a tanker containing drinking water supplied by Eau de Paris, the NGO and the street artist are showing how difficult it is for certain populations to access drinking water.

In regions of the world affected by conflict or natural disasters, access to drinking water is particularly complicated, and many people have no choice but to consume contaminated water. To reduce the risk of spreading diseases linked to the ingestion of unsafe water, SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL brings clean water to the most vulnerable populations as quickly as possible. Often we have to use tankers carrying several thousand litres of water, which is the fastest and most efficient solution,” explains Kevin Goldberg, CEO of SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL.

Lines that create links between art and solidarity

 The fountain and the tanker symbolise SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL’s action on the ground. It will be exhibited on 22 March at the Place de la République in Paris.

It was created by Jordane Saget, a leading figure in Parisian street art, known for his elegant works composed of a trio of harmoniously assembled lines. Acutely aware of the issue of access to drinking water, Jordane Saget wanted to use his talent to help SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL.

Despite what we might think, water does not fall from the sky, at least not always. We must never forget that without water, we are nothing,” says the artist.

SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL’s fight for water

Every year, the NGO enables hundreds of thousands of people to drink clean water, whether through emergency solutions – transporting drinking water by truck or boat, chlorinating the water to make it drinkable – or through more sustainable actions, such as the (re)construction and development of boreholes, wells and water networks.

The emergency operation launched a few days after the start of the Russia-Ukraine war is a good illustration of this. SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL teams are helping to meet the vital needs of displaced people in transit in the city of Lviv and on the Moldovan border and to provide emergency drinking water to those who do not have access to any safe water point.

This fight for access to water continues outside the field: our organisation has made it its duty to take part in and influence national and international discussions in order to ensure that political decision-makers give proper consideration to the devastating impact of unhealthy water.

But this advocacy work requires the support of a large number of people. The organisation therefore uses World Water Day as an opportunity to run an annual awareness-raising campaign.

The fight for access to clean water for all is a collective fight: the more people involved, the faster we can make it a reality,” says Kevin Goldberg.

This year’s World Water Day will be very special: 2022 will be marked by the 9th World Water Forum. SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL will be participating in the forum, which is expected to provide concrete answers to the chronic suffering of millions of people.

In order to send a strong signal to the international community, join us on 22 March at the Place de la République and add your voice to ours: water is not something to be earned; water is a right!” concludes Kevin Goldberg.

© Vincent Ghilione

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