"The world of water" By Snap® May 5, 2007 Via Flickr Creative Commons

Time for this funky monkey to fling for a cause. What cause you ask, well the chosen cause for this year’s Blog Action Day hosted by Change.org is water. A great cause that I caught on my RSS feed from Problogger.net, so I signed up to fling my concerns and the importance of water from a little bit of a different perspective than most. It could be that I’m shorter than you, or that I’m a monkey, either way you see it I see it as a chance to fling something liquefied….wait no that’s not right.

You humans seem to forget that we animals need and would like some clean water now and again as well. As our oceans become polluted and fresh water lakes and rivers become depleted we are being left with very few options. So why does this affect you? Well because in 1968 man and monkey worked together during the Planet of the Apes, and I say it’s about time we join forces again for change, for a better future and for that stuff that makes up beer!

Almost 71% of the earth is covered with a substance that many people die from a lack of or a safe drinkable form of it. In fact, 38,000 children die a week from unsafe drinking water. We often buy filtered or bottled water because of our distrust in what will come out of our faucet yet it safer and cleaner than what many will ever have access to. In a time when the internet has made us so interconnected it is possible for the farmer in Iowa to knowingly conserve water so that others across the world can have a resource that we assume is abundant, so why can’t you and I?

This isn’t a guilt trip post, we all should realize that we can do better but some of us don’t realize that our abuse of water goes far beyond that water saving toilet you bought last year. Did you realize that charging your phone uses up water? How did I make that jump from toilets to cell phones you ask? Well it is because more people have access to cell phones than toilets. (Blog Action Day Resources) We all can’t be flingers, and frankly you humans suck at it anyways.

BBC News Article: Map details global water stress Monday, 21 August 2006

So what can we do about it? Well simply by being a smarter traveler and thinking green we can take baby steps towards conserving and bettering the world we wish to explore. As a traveler we often are cautious of what we eat and drink because we are aware of the poor water conditions, yet rarely stop to think about those who drink that every day. How often do you drink bottled water, we all know that bottled water is causing more harm then good. Then factor in how many times you had to throw away your bottle of water as you went through the TSA security line at the airport. If we really think of it that are many things we could do at home or while abroad to make a little difference in the world of water.

How About Saving Money For A Cause

Wait are you telling me I can save money for my next trip and save water while I’m doing it? Count me in!

• Set up a rain barrel under your gutters to water your lawn and household plants. (just make sure you use a screen to prevent mosquito breeding)
• Shop at a thrift store or consignment shop to purchase second hand items from household items to clothing.
• “If it’s yellow let it mellow,” or you can do the monkey second half of that, “If it’s brown, throw it around.”
• Start composting.
• Keep a pitcher of water in the fridge to keep it cold instead of letting it run till it’s cold for each glass.
• Buy reusable products, such as batteries.
• Plant in the fall when conditions are cooler and rainfall is more plentiful.
• Check with your local car-wash to see if they recycle water, once you locate one use them!

And there are many more tips that can be found at WaterUseItWisely and H2OConserve.

What can you do other than these water saving tips, how do you act globally? Well you can sign a petition to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon or you can fundraise or donate. Good luck in your quest to make a change and save some change at the same time.

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Don’t forget to fling this post to others if you like what you see!