China, Tibet, and the strategic power of water

China, Tibet, and the strategic power of water

The Tibetan Plateau's vast reserves of glacial freshwater, which supply Asia's most populous regions, are both at risk and are emerging as a issue in the increasingly tense political and cultural strife between China and Tibet, scientists and experts say, according to a new report by Circle of Blue published Thursday.

"At least 500 million people in Asia and 250 million people in China are at risk from declining glacial flows on the Tibetan Plateau," said Rajendra K. Pachauri, chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and winner of the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize, in an interview with Circle of Blue. "This is one of the great concerns - a staggering number of people will be affected in the near future. There aren't too many researchers who have looked at this water situation and its far-reaching impacts."

Read more at Circle of Blue WaterNews.


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Circle of Blue | WaterNews

Recently, we launched the Circle of Blue news desk, WaterNews. It's the logical daily extension of our long-form journalistic and scientific coverage of the global water crisis and its solutions, in collaboration with the Pacific Institute. As it expands, WaterNews will serve as the go-to source for comprehensive, compelling and thought-provoking freshwater coverage, including original reporting on emerging trends and personal perspectives that are engaging, enlightening and timely.

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Reign of Sand
INNER MONGOLIA, CHINA - Sand from a dry lake bed streams through the hands of a nomadic herder in Inner Mongolia. Arxiaot Lake first went dry in 2003 and the resulting desert has doubled in size over the last four years. A new report from Circle of Blue says many of the conditions that produced the American Dust Bowl in the 1930s are now threatening China.
Photo: Palani Mohan/Getty Images for Circle of Blue


Circle of Blue was featured in November on National Public Radio's "On the Media". You can listen below right now, or click here for local listings and broadcast schedules. To visit Circle of Blue's pilot project: "Divining Destiny," click here.



 We've created a place for all matter of water materials: we call it Bucket. Using Bucket, you can upload, e-mail, submit, phone, or share via youtube anything you'd like us to think about as we explore. What do we want? What have you got? Videos, photos, stories, songs, artwork, questions, answers, memories, cultural aspects, cool science, problems, solutions, etc. Just throw it at us. We'll sort it out. Our goal is to bring water issues into the mainstream while societies still have options that are environmental, economic and equitable. We welcome your participation in the discovery process.


At the Clinton Global Initiative:
At the Clinton Global Initiative in New York as 1,000 world leaders convene to solve the planet's most urgent problems, Circle of Blue introduces its comprehensive three-year program of original multi-media journalism, research, and social organizing focused on solving the global freshwater crisis.

Read more here.



Clinton Initiative selects Circle of Blue
Circle of Blue has been selected to participate in the Clinton Global Initiative, the unparalleled meeting of international leaders in government, business, academia, and non-governmental organizations that's quickly earned a reputation as the Academy Awards of the global public interest community.

President Clinton founded the initiative in 2005 to convene non-traditional allies, and prompt them to commit to specific actions that accelerate solutions to four global challenges: Education, energy and climate, global health, and poverty. As an invitee this year, Circle of Blue is a component of the energy and climate program. For its role in the Clinton Global Initiative, Circle of Blue is recruiting innovative partners that are central to analyzing and acting upon the global freshwater crisis, and to support the project's communications, data and journalistic organizing infrastructure.



Water's future - a festival of ideas
An eclectic and electric mix of thinkers and leaders convened in the rarified Rocky Mountain air in July at the Aspen Ideas Festival. Scientists, artists, politicians, historians, educators and policy makers immersed themselves in some of the most vital and fascinating issues of our time, delving into topics from brain chemistry to global politics to the power of poetry.

The common denominator for these varied subjects is often subtle, but always fundamental: water. As Dr. Peter Gleick, president of the Pacific Institute (above), and J. Carl Ganter, Circle of Blue's director, noted in their session, "The Future of Water," freshwater is a factor in every global concern from health to economics to security to the environment.




Circle of Blue is funded by generous contributions, partnerships and individuals including Ford Foundation, The Coca-Cola Company, SymbioCycles Foundation, Edmund F. and Virginia B. Ball Foundation, Catto Charitable Foundation, Linden Family Trust, Herrington-Fitch Foundation and many others.


Circle of Blue is a non-profit affiliate of the Pacific Institute. © 2002 - 2007 Circle of Blue