World Water Day took place on March 22. The day has been recognized since 1993, after it was created by the United Nations to raise awareness of the more than two billion people worldwide who live without access to safe water. The 2026 campaign took place under the theme, “Where water flows, equality grows,” with a focus on “safe water and sanitation as human rights and critical enablers of gender equality.”
According to the UN, more than 1 billion women – or more than 27 per cent of all women – do not have access to safely managed drinking water. This is down from more than 39 per cent in 2000; however, 380 million women and girls, or just under 10 per cent of the world’s female population, live with high water stress. This number is expected to increase to 674 million across 33 countries by 2050.
In Canada, there are First Nations communities that continue to face challenges accessing clean drinking water. In a statement recognizing World Water Day, Minister of Indigenous Services Mandy Gull-Masty noted that World Water Day is a reminder of why it is so important “to work together to support access to safe drinking water for communities today and for future generations.”
And it’s not just a developing world issue. A prime example of people rallying to protect water resources took place in Huntingdon on March 22, where members of the Protect our Water Source citizens’ group and other conservation and environmental organizations led a demonstration to call attention to local water issues. A new bottling plant has many people concerned that even here, our access to clean, fresh water can be threatened.
Most Canadians consider water to be our greatest natural resource. We are lucky to have so much, but we can’t keep taking it for granted.
Sarah Rennie