Thursday, October 18, 2007

Water for Life: Zaragoza put on the map (of United Nations)

Under the United Nations Charter all humans are guaranteed the right to life (and as water is necessary for life…) however in practice this is an empty right for….1.200 million people. This is nothing new. But something is moving in Zaragoza. A brand new United Nations office to support the International Decade for Action “Water for Life” 2005-2015 just opened there on the 5th of October 2007.







But why in Zaragoza? The main reasons put forward by Spain in support of Zaragoza’s candidacy were:- The commitment of the Spanish government to environmentally-friendly water policies, both within Spain and internationally. - The strong links between Aragón and Zaragoza and the issue of water, for historical, institutional, economic and social reasons. - The constant promotion by Aragón’s regional government of the proper use of water, with innovative policies achieving impressive results. - The reliable record of Aragonese social groups in this area. - The enormous possibilities offered by Expo 2008 to ensure that the Decade of Water’s objectives are properly promoted at international level

The office will be managed by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (http://www.un.org/esa/desa/ ) and if I understood well has 2 main goals:
-to facilitate the coordinated implementation of UN-Water’s work on water and sanitation, especially in the areas of communication and advocacy to raise awareness of the challenges and opportunities to solve global water and sanitation issues.
-to promote greater interaction between governments, UN agencies and non-UN partners to deliver a coordinated response; mobilizing resources, partners and other stakeholders; promoting and encouraging partnerships at all levels; and ensuring coherence between the implementation of the water and sanitation agenda and other development goals.
Carlos Fernandez-Jauregui born in Bolivia (see on the above photo at beautiful Casa Solans: the interim premises of the UN office till it is moved to the Expo Zaragoza 2008 premises) will be coordinating the UN office in Zaragoza. All my best whishes to him!

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Hope this new office has somethimg to control these sassie Canadians. Thet have been playing games with the pays basques ever since they went to the new world and engaged in Huron Iroquois games. Pelts are more important than people over there.

The situation is cursed and getting worse. Mr. Brian Maged runs a militant group opposed to power dams and other damaging means of procuring energy, but it is to no avail. The faschist parties that be have their primitive ideas based on Rene-Levesque visions of an independent and wealthy Quebec peoples. The Americans who are not even participating in Zaragoza seem to comply and even push sovereignty. Discusting approach to water and the environment.

They should be held accountable. My good cousin who is the outstanding Canadian scientist of the year for her site work has a father who has never been properly treated by Ontario authorities. Perhaps he could be called to play at the Expo 2008. He was the youngest musician ever in the guild in 1940, he spoke to rocket scientist Warner Von Braun and founded the Canadian rocket society in 1942. This man has never been properly appreciated on the international stage. His teachings include peace education for kids.

I first began anti-water pollution demonstrations and writings in 1968 as part of a group organized by a great Montreal woman Marcie Hirsch. I would like to propose that she be memorialized in an event on 8/8/2008 to mark the founding of the Mother Earth temple. Great women would be remembered in Hebrew Zaragoza, Quebec and around the world!