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CORPORATE ACCOUNTABILITY INTERNATIONAL INVITES COMMUNITIES TO PARTICIPATE IN WORLD WATER CHALLENGE Statement by Associate Campaigns Director Gigi Kellett For Immediate Release: Contact: BOSTON--"Hundreds of community members from cities across the country are gathering today to participate in the World Water Challenge. The event is part of Corporate Accountability International's Think Outside the Bottle campaign and coincides with the United Nations' World Water Day. The event aims to raise awareness about the world's water crisis and to take action to defend water as a human right. According to experts, problems of water scarcity and access loom larger as a profit driven industry increasingly controls our water supply. "The United Nations projects 2 out of 3 people won't have enough water by 2025. Increasing water scarcity has made the $420 billion water business increasingly attractive to corporations. "Our members around the country believe water is a precious resource that should not be bought or sold. We're deeply concerned that corporations like Coke, Nestlé and Pepsi are undermining people's confidence in tap water, at a time when support for public water systems is critical. Adding insult to injury, leading brands like Coke's Dasani and Pepsi's Aquafina use tap water as their source. "These corporations are changing the way people think about water and fueling a gross misallocation of resources. It would require only a fraction of what we spend on bottled water to meet the United Nations' goal to have the number of people without access to water by 2015. Instead, the world is on track to do the opposite. The U.N.'s efforts are under funded, and within twenty years, most people will not have access to water. "Globally, corporations promote water privatization under the guise of efficiency. But whether it's Coke bottling our tap water, Nestlé draining groundwater, or Suez taking over municipal water systems, none of these corporations pay the full costs of the public infrastructure they use, the environmental damage they cause or the health problems of the people they hurt. There is no substitute for public water. Water is a human right, not a privilege." # # # Corporate Accountability International, formerly Infact, is a membership organization that protects people by waging and winning campaigns challenging irresponsible and dangerous corporate actions around the world. For 30 years, we've forced corporations--like Nestlé, General Electric and Philip Morris/Altria--to stop abusive actions. For more information visitwww.stopcorporateabuse.org.
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