Water. The source of all life in this world. It is vital for our existence, it sustains us. It makes up more than 50 percent of our bodies – in some adults, 65 percent. It covers around seven-tenths of the Earth’s surface, yet somehow we still suffer shortages. As Coleridge so poetically put it: “Water, water, everywhere / And all the boards did shrink / Water, water, everywhere / Nor any drop to drink.” He was talking about a ship full of mariners, stranded at sea for their hubris. That ship is our world, those mariners humanity, and soon we too may suffer for our recklessness, surrounded by water that we cannot drink.
Around 750 million people internationally lack access to safe water. That’s one in nine people. As of 2015, the dangerously low supply of usable water is the top global risk facing mankind, according to the World Economic Forum.
It’s a particularly big problem for a country like China, which has 20 percent of the global population but 7 percent of its fresh water. Pollution is a major concern, both from factory runoff and old pipes that contaminate water on its way from water treatment facilities to people’s homes. When you consider that tap water is actually held to higher standards than bottled water, it really starts to get you worried.
China’s problems are not China’s alone. Several South and Southeast Asian countries depend upon water sources that flow through China. Anything that affects the supply – including reported plans to construct dams, shoring up the Middle Kingdom’s H20 – has a knock-on effect on those nations downstream. There are fears that, as water becomes scarce everywhere, wars will erupt to safeguard supply, and all the pieces are in place for just such a situation to transpire in the PRC. Turn to p38 to read more.
If geopolitics and the environment sound a little too serious for your mood, turn to our Life & Style section, where we’ve got an interview with editor-in-chief of Vogue China Angelica Cheung (p22), an inside look at the iconic White Swan Hotel post-facelift (p28) and, for this month’s Daytripper, a traditional religious parade that’s been taking place in Shunde, Foshan, for more than 150 years (p28).
Have you been struck down with festival fever yet? Guangzhou is hosting its annual jazz festival (p36), while Shenzhen is gearing up for a massive electro bash in November. Did someone say Afrojack? Turn to p32 for a preview.
Don’t forget that voting for our annual Food and Drink Awards opens this month. You can visit vote.thatsmags.com/gzvote2015 or vote.thatsmags.com/szvote2015 to cast your ballot, or keep an eye out for our flash voting on WeChat (scan the QR code on the front of the magazine to sign up to our official account).
// Download the October Issue of That's PRD here, or view it on your browser with Issuu here. To download previous issues, click here.
0 User Comments