WaterLog

While riding into work this morning, a short NPR story on the UN building renovation project just got to me and I had to respond.  My commentary won’t change their plans, and I’m not about to go to New York City and stand in front of the bulldozers, but I feel better having said it and hopefully my letter will be read on the air.

Listen to the NPR story here.

Here’s what I sent:
“I’m sorry, but I don’t have much sympathy for the 4,000 UN workers who will be inconvenienced during the $2 billion makeover of the UN headquarters in New York City.  July 2007 was the midpoint in the agreed timescale for achieving the UN’s Millennium Development Goals, and the UN in its own status report said the world was failing in the battles to cut infant mortality and put every child in school. How is it that we have money to spend on remodeling when half of the world doesn’t even have a simple toilet? The UN anti-poverty declaration adopted in 2000 said that we would ’spare no effort’ to eradicate extreme poverty in our world. I guess that statement doesn’t apply to new air conditioning systems for the world’s wealthiest.”

Yesterday the Seattle Times ran a front page story on the Gates Foundation’s work to develop a malaria vaccine.  People in poor nations have many needs, and it’s difficult to question the work of an organization that says it is committed to ending a disease that kills children. 

However, towards the end of the article, William Muraskin, a health historian at City University of New York at City University of New York offers a criticism of the Gates Foundation’s approach. ”The Gates Foundation wants a big, showy breakthrough that saves lives.  . . Who wouldn’t want that?” But, he asks, “where’s the benefit in saving a child from malaria, only to have her die from drinking dirty water?”  Other critics say that they’d rather see the funding go into strengthening public health systems and improving water and sanitation services for the poor.

Read the full article here.