Can you imagine what our lives would be like if we had to walk several kilometers every day to get the water we need to live? The more than 150 participants in the Global 6K For Water race experienced it by running six kilometers along the Serralada de Marina in Tiana. Their goal was to raise awareness of the lack of access to water in the world and provide total sanitation to three schools in Indonesia to ensure schooling for girls and good hygiene practices for all students. 

In Nepal, only 15% of the rural population has access to a safe water source in their homes. The short film Homework, a finalist at the We Art Water Film Festival 5, shows how Sumnima, a village school student, cannot complete her homework because she has to fetch water for her family. All this in a country whose mountains make it the second most water-abundant country on Earth. Nepal is fighting to end this paradox.   

In many rural communities in El Salvador, poor governance, industrial overexploitation, and pollution leave them without access to water. The short film Private Waters, a finalist of the fifth edition of the We Art Water Film Festival, shows how the El Rodeo community has organized itself to guarantee its survival and health.

No path to sustainability is possible if women are not the focus of any actions. The Agenda 2030 will not be achieved without the participation of each and every woman in the world free from the injustices that oppress them. The access to water and sanitation reveals some of the most excruciating inequalities, which are often little known. We know that much remains to be done, but the path is becoming clearer: with them and for them. Here are some of the facts as of today.

The climate crisis is drying up many sources and forcing many to move in search of water. More than 110 million people worldwide use water directly from rivers, streams, ponds, or lakes, and four million die every year from drinking inadequate water. Droughts threaten to increase this figure. The drama of this scourge in Nigeria is described in the short film Hope is not enough, finalist at the We Art Water Film Festival 5.

The climate crisis is creating severe problems in Cameroon. Desertification and floods generate thousands of displaced people every year who end up in cities unable to provide drinking water for all. The short film Mami Wata, a micro-documentary finalist at the We Art Water Film Festival 5, provides a testimony of the vulnerability of millions of Cameroonians who survive in one of the most water-deficient African countries.

The terms describing sanitation facilities in relation to the objectives set out by the SDG 6 refer to the health guarantees they can provide for humans and their respect for the environment. From safely managed facilities, most of them present in rich countries, to open defecation, which affects the poorest, there is a degressive scale that provides food for thought.

Unifying the terminology established by the UN to define the SDG 6 targets better is a necessary step towards improving communication in international cooperation. Halfway to the completion of the Agenda 2030, the analysis of the meaning of current terms defining this goal clarifies the scale of the problem and shows the way to solutions.