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Background

While water covers about 70 percent of the Earth’s surface, considerably less than one percent of it is fresh water available for human use. The average American uses about 100 gallons of water a day, substantially more than any other country, a factor that is contributing to the significant stress on our nation’s water resources. Current trends indicate that demands on the nation’s supplies are growing while the supply continues to be depleted at an unsustainable rate. Globally, we face monumental challenges in meeting the water demand of the current and projected population. Further compounding the problem is that the public remains largely unaware of the major issues confronting the globe’s limited water supply.

The Sustainable Water Challenge aims to educate schools and groups on the current issues in water sustainability and the steps we need to take to help conserve Earth’s most precious resource. Through GEF’s resources, K-12 students and educators will learn the basic properties of water, water pollution and depletion, as well as methods for  water conservation. The Sustainable Water Challenge provides information on a broad range of water topics for all grade levels. As students and educators become more aware and knowledgeable of the challenges facing Earth's water supply, we can work together and do our part to reduce water consumption. 

Consider These Statistics 

• The average American family of four uses around 400 gallons of water per day at home. Roughly 70 percent of this use occurs indoors.  
• Around 700 million people in 43 countries suffer today from water scarcity. 
• In the United States, nearly 7 billion gallons of water is devoted to outdoor water use every day
• At 1 drip per second, a faucet can leak 3,000 gallons per year.
• The water found at the Earth’s surface in lakes, rivers, streams, ponds, and swamps makes up only 0.3% of the world’s fresh water.
• 1 in 8 people world wide do not have access to safe and clean drinking water.