World Water Day 2012

Hi guys! Sorry its been awhile since I've wrote but I've been so busy! I wanted to write a post yesterday on World Water Day on March 22, but didn't have a minute until today. But its still not to late to bring awareness to the cause. 

Water has always been and will always be a precious resource. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations coordinates world Water Day 2012 on March 22 and every year, a specific aspect of freshwater is highlighted according to the UN-Water website. This year the theme is Water and Food Security: The World is Thirsty Because We are Hungry. The theme this year focuses on the impact industrial-scale agriculture has on the world’s fresh water supplies. It take a lot of water to produce food, and FOOD WASTED = WATER WASTED.

Here is the manifesto:

There are 7 billion people to feed on the planet today and another 2 billion are expected to join by 2050. Statistics say that each of us drinks from 2 to 4 litres of water every day, however most of the water we ‘drink’ is embedded in the food we eat: producing 1 kilo of beef for example consumes 15,000 litres of water while 1 kilo of wheat ’drinks up’ 1,500 litres.

1. What can we do?

I am not here to tell you to not eat beef, and become a vegan. But I am saying there's certain things that we all can do more to help the cause. these are things I personally do, and you can do easily also. Just getting into the mindset of conserving water is a start. Here are some things we can do around the house that will go a long way. 

• Follow a healthier, sustainable diet
• Reduce food wastage! 30% of the food produced worldwide is never eaten and the water used to produce it is definitively lost! 
• If you have own a dishwasher or washing machine, only run them for full loads.
• Turn the water off while you wash dishes or vegetables. Soak/wash the vegetables in a pot.
• Use a re-fillable BPA-free plastic or glass bottle. Invest in a Brita filter and not buy water bottles! They drive me crazy.
• Take shorter showers. An American taking a five-minute shower uses more water than a typical person in a developing country slum uses in a whole day. 
• On that note, don't leave the shower running before you jump in it.
• Turn the tap off while you brush your teeth or shave.
• Check pipes for leaks regularly.
• Avoid the garburator by using a compost bucket, especially if you own a house.
• Use common sense! Any time you are running water to wash or water something water is being wasted. Fill a bucket, fill a sink, fill a bottle and use only what you need.

2. Donate

A few years ago, I met someone who worked for a company called Charity: Water. When they spoke of their company, they seemed so passionate about it and I'll never forget that intensity. Charity:Water is a non-profit organization bringing clean and safe drinking water to people in developing nations. 100% of public donations directly fund water projects. A donation as little as $20 gives one person clean water for 20 years. Theyre such a transparant company, you can see every project they've done on google maps and their offices are always open to visitors.  Learn more or donate.

3. Volunteer

I've signed up to be a Charity Water volunteer and you can too. If you live in NYC, you can come to the monthly volunteer night to help out in our office and hang with other charity: water supporters. Sign up here.

4. Spread the Word

Don't have an extra buck? Just pass the message along. Spreading awareness is one way we can help combat the water crisis. This is what World Water Day is all about, awareness. 

Websites:

I think we as a society sometimes forgets how fortunate we are that we don't have to hike 20 miles for clean water, and I think if we could just conserve a little more, I think it will make a difference. Check out Water.org for facts and Charity: water to read up and learn about ways to get involved. 

A boy drinks water from a public tap in Agartala on Wednesday on the eve of the World Water Day. PTI 

Villagers carry pitchers filled with drinking water after visiting a well at Meni village, Gujarat. Reuters 

People gather to get water from a huge well in the village of Natwarghad, Gujarat. Reuters 

A starving Somali child is given water in Baidoa, Somalia. Reuters 

See more thirsty Photos here: 

Just Because I LOVE Puppies

Happy Friday! Here's your daily dosage of happiness. How cute are they!!

Happy International Women's Day!

Google.com doodle today for International Women's Day

There is so much going on today! The weather is GORGEOUS here in New York City. It is almost 70 degrees and the spirit of Spring is alive with full force! The flowers are blooming and warmth is in the air. This Sunday, March 11, we set our clocks one hour for the Spring forward and the Spring Equinox is right around the corner on March 20. And tonight is a full moon! To get our mind and spirit in proper alignment, let's be advocates to help end world hunger.

First off - Happy International Women's Day!  In many countries, it is an occasion to honor, respect, appreciate and praise women for their accomplishments. It also is a celebration for women's economic, political and social achievements. The UN theme for International Women’s Day 2012 is "Empower Women – End Hunger and Poverty." With that said, there is a website I discovered awhile ago called Free Rice.  Its a website where you answer trivia questions and for every answer you get right, 10 grains of rice is donated to the United Nations World Food Program.  Okay, now lets really sit and and think about this one... How many hours... I repeat - HOURS... do we spend playing trivia, Bejeweled, Scramble, Angry Birds, Temple Run, Plants vs. Zombies, etc on our smart phones? Why not actually play a game that you can actually contribute to an amazing global cause... and get smarter! The first step is that you create a log-in or connect through Facebook. You must do this step in order for your score to count. (Don't worry, they don't spam you). Once logged in, you simply play and answer questions like the one below: 

Shut means:
- Hear
- Donate
- Say
- Close

It starts off easy and then it gets really hard! You can change your trivia subject to English, Chemistry, Language, Math, Geography, Science, Humanities and much more.  When I have down-time, I actually play this and it tells me how much free rice I've donated to UN Food Program. Its an amazing website and a cause. Today and everyday I strongly suggest you to sign up, but especially today on this occasion. 

WARNING: This game may make you smarter. It may improve your speaking, writing, thinking, grades, job performance.

Facts about Free Rice

1 right = 10 grains of rice donated

5 right = 50 grains of rice donated

Overall, 9105560 grains of rice was donated yesterday. 

Over 91 billion grains have been donated to date (as of 3/8/2012)

The rice is paid for sponsors shown on the website

Here are some more facts about women to think about:

• If you are a woman in Malawi, you will spend 9 hours a day fetching water and wood (more time than you spend sleeping).
  
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• If you are a woman in Gabon, you will do 90% of the farm work but still go hungry.
  
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• And if you are a pregnant woman in a developing country, you will be iron deficient, leaving you exhausted and more likely to die during childbirth.
  
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Words to Live By

I just talked to a good friend of mine who has recently been suffering some hardships recently, such as loss of steady employment. But not only was I glad that we were able to connect, but I was thrilled to hear some great things happening in his life. He's now a full-time manager again and is surrounded by loving and supportive relationships. The conversation just made me feel appreciative and blessed with even what little I have. Because I love inspirational words, here's a few below I like to live by. 


Love, Sandy. 

 

and no matter what happens, Always remember that...

Happy New Year!

Even though New Years was only last month, I can't help but feel nostalgic about it. If I may speak for the majority, every year on Jan 1st, we establish these resolutions and are so DRIVEN to achieve them but do we ever really accomplish them? Well a whole 5 weeks later... I have to ask myself, am I on track on keeping my resolutions?...

Well let's start off by listing some that I am achieving: 

1) Blog more - yes! I am on track

2) Cook more - yes! 

3) Travel to a international destination - Italy next week - yay!

4) Read more books - this is my resolution from last year, and yes, I am hooked on books!

So far so good... But here are some that I have not achieved yet, but will work towards:

5) Volunteering more - I'd like to set a goal of once a month.

6) Stretch and exercise more - its winter...So in my head, I still have time! 

7) Re-learn Spanish - I just got Rosetta Stone so I will be working on this! 

And here are some I am continually working on:

8) Spend more time with family

9) Stop impulsive (and compulsive) shopping. Don't buy things you don't need!

10) Be more positive and optimistic - Can't overdose on either.

And here are some goals of mine... 

See 1 Broadway Show this year

See 1 game of each professional sport (NBA, NFL, MLB, NHL)

See 3 Live Concerts

Go to a music festival

Train to run a 5k race

Next month, I'm going to revisit this list and I hope to be on track! We shall see... Cheers to a happy and healthy 2012!