Fresh Water Out of Reach for Many Worldwide

Saturday, March 22 is annual World Water Day, a tradition started by the United Nations in the early 1990s. This year's World Water Day will focus on sanitation issues, as part of a larger project headed by the UN.

"Every 20 seconds," says UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, "A child dies as a result of the abysmal sanitation conditions endured by some 2.6 billion people globally. That adds up to an unconscionable 1.5 million young lives cut short by a cause we know well how to prevent."

How will policies and attitudes need to shift to help provide needed clean water to growing populations worldwide?

Guests:

Lester Brown, founder and president of the Earth Policy Institute

Mark A. Shannon, professor and director of the Water Center of Advanced Materials for the Purification of Water with Systems, University of Illinois

Casey Brown, associate research scientist and water team leader, Hydroclimatology and Water Resources Management, International Research Institute for Climate and Society, Earth Institute, Columbia University

Paul Faeth, executive director, Global Water Challenge

Michael Hightower, member of the Energy Resources and Systems Analysis Center, Sandia National Laboratories