Drip, drip, drip...

For those who may not know, I work for an NGO which is committed to being eco-friendly in its interventions. As such I'm now more informed than I've ever been about the state of Pakistan's environment. For example, did you know that 1 in 3 people's livelihoods will be affected by water scarcity in the next 20 years? And that Pakistan is one of the most water stressed countries in the world?

The wastage of water and energy have been two issues close to my heart for the longest time. Having lived in a city which is always having an energy & water shortage crisis have made me very sensitive to the importance of these two commodities. It is what makes me unable to reconcile with the needless waste that many people in this world are guilty off. I mean, do you really need that Jeep in the middle of a city? Or to leave taps running needlessly?

But the kicker of this story comes in the most unlikely of places. After all, it is understandable for anyone who has plenty of some utility to use it without thinking right? But what about the villagers whom I work with? they live in an extremely water-scarce part of Pakistan; the coast...ironic isn't it. I mean drinking water of course, there's plenty of sea water around. The villagers have to buy water at exorbitant rate since they are off the beaten track and yet they seem to have few, if any, conservation habits. For example, I've seen people fill a glass with water, drink half of it and toss the rest away onto the ground. Why? Couldn't they just have drunk it later, its an extremely precious resource for them after all.You know, I've racked my brains trying to figure it out. Are they lazy, is it because they're used to getting things for free (lots of people living in Karachi will send money or food to the area for distribution), or something else entirely? Which moves my conversation away to something else, I don't understand the lack of drive that I see in these villages. They know they're poor but aren't interested in making an effort to alleviate their poverty. Has apathy settled in their bones?

I'm stumped on both counts...its going to take a lot more observation before I have an answer to either.

In the meanwhile, jump out of that shower five minutes earlier and remember, you can always walk if its a nice day!