It is a very moving and thought provoking presentation of how our life will be without water in Year 2070. I did a research on it and discovered that the original slide was translated into English by Rafael Engel from "My Blog World - a “CleanFuture” Project".
My Blog World is a blog with a variety of categories and a discussion Forum, emphasizing environmental issues based on the research done by the"CleanFuture" project.
According to Rafael, these are the original creators:
Slide Author: Ria Ellwanger in collaboration with: Lopez Chavez Ariel
Email: riaellw@globo.com, alainlopez909@hotmail.com
You can read its extract as follows:
This is the year 2070. I have just turned 50, but I look and feel 85.
I suffer from serious kidney problems, because I do not drink enough water. I'm afraid I do not have much time left to live. I am one of the oldest people in this society.
I remember when I was a child of 5. Everything was very different. There were lots of trees in the parks, houses with beautiful gardens, and I could enjoy having a shower for half an hour. Nowadays we use towels with mineral oil to clean our skin.
Before, women had beautiful hair. Now, we have to shave our heads to keep them clean without the use of water. Then, my father washed his car with water coming out of a hosepipe. Now, my son does not believe that water could be wasted that way.
I remember there were SAVE WATER warnings on outdoor posters, radio and TV, but nobody paid attention. We thought that water was to last forever. Now, all the rivers, lakes,dams and underground water beds are either dry or contaminated.
Industry came to a standstill, unemployment is sky high. Desalination plants are the main source of employment and workers receive part of their salary in drinkable water. Assaults on the streets for a can of water are very common.
Before, it was recommended an adult drinks 8 glasses a day. Nowadays, I am only allowed half a glass. We now have to wear disposable clothing,and this increases the amount of litter. We are using septic tanks, because the sewerage system does not work for lack of water.
All the people look horrible: wrinkled due to dehydration, full of sores caused by ultra violet radiation,as the ozone layer is almost gone. Skin cancer, gastrointestinal infections and of the urinary tracts are the main causes of death. Due to the excessive drying of the skin young people of 20 look like 40. Scientists have no solution to the problem.
Water cannot be produced, oxygen is not sufficient due to the lack of trees and vegetation, and the intellectual capacity of the younger generations is severely impaired.
The morphology of spermatozoa in many men has changed. As a consequence, babies are born with deficiencies, mutations and physical deformities. The average life expectancy is 35 years.
Water became a very coveted treasure. Any green zones crossed by rivers are guarded by armed soldiers. Where I live, there are no trees, because it seldom rains. If it does, it is acid rain.
We were warned to look after the environment, but nobody cared.
I tell my son about the green fields, the beautiful flowers, the rain, how we swam and fish in the rivers and dams, drinking all the water we could, and how healthy people were.
He asks, "Daddy! Why there is no water?"
Was I guilty? My generation destroyed the environment. We did not heed the warning signs. Now our children pay a very high price! Soon, I think, life on earth will not be possible, as the destruction of nature has reached an irreversible stage.
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A teacher has written to say that he would like to share it with his students. In my talk, "Recycling: A Business Opportunity for Women", at Institut Kefahaman Islam Malaysia on 13 June, I used it to appeal to women's sensitivity and provoke their emotions to consider recycling in their daily activities, if not as a consideration for starting a business, then for a greener environment for the future generation.
Share with me. How would you use it?
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