water

Island Press | Photo by Edward Struzik

#ForewordFriday: Wildfire and Water Edition

By Katharine Sucher / On November 17th, 2017
From “California Wildfires Rip Through Parched Land,” to “Wildfires Force Thousands to Evacuate in Southern France,” to “Devastating Wildfire Can Be Seen from Space,” news headlines around the world reveal a new reality of devastating megafires. This summer, California’s Detwiler Fire burned over 80,000 acres and crept uncomfortably close to Yosemite National Park. In Canada, military aircrafts were called in to battle flames that ravaged British Columbia and forced the evacuation of nearly 40,000 people.

Busting the "Water Wars" Myth

By John Fleck / On October 16th, 2017
Oregon State University’s Aaron Wolf, in his studies of conflict and cooperation around international waterways, has found something both counter-intuitive and remarkable. Despite myths of “water wars,” cooperation is far more common than conflict when neighbors share a river and an aquifer, according to Wolf, author of the new Island Press book The Spirit of Dialogue.

#ForewordFriday: A Secure Water Future

By Katharine Sucher / On October 13th, 2017
In the words of Elizabeth Kolbert, "Nothing is more important to life than water, and no one knows water better than Sandra Postel." Postel's new book Replenish: The Virtuous Cycle of Water and Prosperity is a "clear-eyed treatise" (Booklist, Starred Review) that offers a hopeful vision of a secure water future. It shows how cities and farms around the world are finding relief from an unexpected source: a healthier water cycle.
Photo credit: Fountain by Flickr.com user Nicola

A New Water Story: In Conversation with Sandra Postel

By Katharine Sucher / On October 10th, 2017
If disasters related to droughts, floods, and other extreme weather seem more common globally, it’s because they are: nearly twice as many such disasters occur annually now as 25 years ago. These problems are not going away. Last year, the World Economic Forum declared water crises to be the top global risk to society over the next decade.

Rampant Wildfires Will Affect Our Drinking Water

By Edward Struzik / On October 2nd, 2017
In a world of bigger, hotter fires, it is time to think of forests as vital infrastructure, and to invest in preserving these resources for the future

Why the US Clean Water Rule Needs to Stay in Place

By Sandra Postel / On September 12th, 2017
We have many lessons to learn from the tragedies wrought by Hurricane Harvey, but among the most important is that a broken water cycle increases risks to our communities and economies.

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