Kayapó women bathe their children in the waters of the Xingu. Photo by Glenn Switkes.
In many parts of the world, women and girls bear a large burden of the domestic work providing water to their families and communities – collecting and carting it from wells and tanks to do the washing, cooking, cleaning, watering of animals, and growing fruits and vegetables.
Yet when it comes to decision-making around water resources, women are seldom at the table. In remote boardrooms and government offices, decision-makers are usually male, and they make development decisions that can drastically alter the lives of thousands of people. Women typically have little or no say over these decisions.
But rather than simply accepting this situation, women all over the world are stepping into community leadership roles.
They’re standing up for water and their rights, and challenging powerful government and corporate interests. From Brazil to Uganda, women are leading the charge to protect our freshwater resources.
Meet three women who are standing up for their rivers. We are proud to call these women […]
Full article: Saluting Women Water Warriors
More about women and water around the world:
- Water and women: we need to know more
- Jordan’s Water Wise Women
- Kenya’s Water Women
- Women’s Day: Access to water crucial to emancipating women – AWWASHNet
- The women fighting a pipeline that could destroy precious wildlife
Water Warriors and Other People Stories
- From sewage to oasis: Female duo create Johannesburg green corridor
- Six girls from Assam develop biodegradable yoga mat, may save lakes from water hyacinth menace
- A military veteran’s new mission is to restore a stream and help people heal
- ‘Everything is drying up’: As springs on Hopi land decline, a sacred connection is threatened
- ‘Water is sacred’: 10 visual artists reflect on the human right to water
- Government is Scaling Back Water Quality Protections. Surfers are Picking up the Slack.
