Connexions Resource Centre
Focus on Water, Oceans, Lakes, Rivers, Wetlands

Recent & Selected Articles

  1. This is a small sampling of articles related to education and children in the Connexions Online Library. For more articles, books, films, and other resources, check the Connexions Library Subject Index, especially under topics such as education, children, youth, post-secondary education, film, and schools.
  1. The privatization of rivers in Chile (January 22, 2020)
    The Chilean government has continued with the mercantile treatment of common goods, putting several rivers in the Bio Bio Region up for auction, despite ongoing social unrest.
  2. Saving the Nile (2020)
    For the 280 million people from 11 countries who live along the banks of the Nile, it symbolises life. For Ethiopia, a new dam holds the promise of much-needed electricity; for Egypt, the fear of a devastating water crisis.
  3. Undermining the watercycle (March 22, 2019)
    The mining industry is often overlooked as a cause of the global water crisis. This article examines recent history of mining disasters and how the industry PR greenwashes its image.
  4. Water as a Form of Social Control (January 1, 2019)
    Whether in Palestine or Detroit, restricting access to water is a tactic used to deprive populations of personal and social agency with dire consequences to health.
  5. Retired GM worker speaks on three years of the Flint water crisis (April 27, 2017)
    The poisoning of the city of Flint continues three long years after the decision was made by politicians and financial speculators to switch city residents to Flint River water. As the world now knows, the corrosive Flint River water leached lead from the antiquated piping system into the homes of residents. Lead is a deadly neurotoxin. Because next to nothing has yet been done to fix the city’s infrastructure, even after the switch back to Detroit water, there is no safe water supply for thousands of residents.
  6. Ocean 'dead zones' are spreading - and that spells disaster for fish (April 9, 2015)
    Oxygen levels in our oceans are falling, producing growing 'dead zones' where only the hardiest organisms can survive. The causes are simple: pollution with nutrient-rich wastes, and global warming. But the only solution is to stop it happening - or wait for 1,000 years.
  7. 'Water man of India' makes rivers flow again (April 8, 2015)
    The revival of traditional rainwater harvesting has restored flow to rivers in India's driest state, Rajasthan - thanks to the tireless efforts of Rajendra Singh, recent winner of a Stockholm water prize.
  8. Global water crisis causing failed harvests, hunger, war and terrorism (March 27, 2015)
    The world is already experiencing water scarcity driven by over-use, poor land management and climate change. If we fail to respond to the warnings before us, major food and power shortages will soon afflict large parts of the globe.
  9. Blue Betrayal (March 1, 2015)
    Canadians have long taken their water heritage for granted. This is largely due to the myth that there is an abundance of water. While it is true that compared to many other parts of the world Canada is blessed with water, it is false that there is water to waste or sell.
  10. Citizens worldwide mobilize against corporate water grabs (February 15, 2015)
    The US and other governments are pushing a failed model of water privatization, but water is a human right, not just a commodity to be traded for profit or monopolized by corporations. Citizens and communities are fighting back to reclaim their water commons.
  11. When Water is a Commodity Instead of a Human Right (August 17, 2014)
    The shutoff of water to thousands of Detroit residents, the proposed privatization of the water system and the diversion of the system’s revenue to banks are possible because the most basic human requirement, water, is becoming nothing more than a commodity.
  12. We Must Support Detroit's Fight for the Right to Water (July 4, 2014)
    Detroit is shutting off water to 40% of residents to prepare the water system for a corporate buyout. Residents are organizing to resist the water shuttoffs, anti-democratic rule and the demands of Wall Street - but they need our help.
  13. What Will the World Inherit From GE Salmon? (May 13, 2014)
    It’s true; about 50 percent of the fish we eat are farmed. There is good reason for this as, one by one, the world’s commercial fisheries collapse through overfishing. According to FAO (2010), 70% of the world’s large commercial fisheries have either failed or are not far from it.
  14. The Cochabamba Water War of 2000 in 2014 (April 9, 2014)
    Today's betrayers will not erase our memory: Fourteen years ago we won, today it seems like we lost, but we have to rise again to win, and we already know how to do it. From April 4 to 14 in the year 2000 the so-called "Final Battle" was waged in Cochabamba, Bolivia to prevent the privatization of our water. It was part of a strategy designed by the people of Cochabamba in the "Water War" that started on November 12, 1999. Today, after fourteen years of this historic struggle, the people's demands are still the same: democracy, transparency, participation and an economic model that allows us all to enjoy the riches that our Mother Earth generously provides for the benefit of all.
  15. Dismantling of Fishery Library 'Like a Book Burning,' Say Scientists (December 9, 2013)
    The Harper government has dismantled one of the world's top aquatic and fishery libraries as part of its agenda to reduce government as well as limit the role of environmental science in policy decision-making.
  16. The History Behind the Organizer of the Water War (June 3, 2013)
    Many know Oscar Olivera as the voice and the organizer of the water war in Cochabamba in 2000. Others remember his experience as a factory worker.
  17. Connexions Archive Case Statement (September 24, 2011)
    Working together to secure a future for the past
  18. Connexions Archive seeks a new home (November 18, 2009)
    The Connexions Archive, a Toronto-based library dedicated to preserving the history of grassroots movements for social change, needs a new home.
  19. The Humble Tuna (October 19, 2009)
    The humble tuna, "the chicken of the sea", is an unfortunate metaphor for all that is dysfunctional about our contemporary, western, capitalist world. The story of the Tuna is the story of our triumphant world, and provides a unified theory of its runaway excess
  20. Farmers vs Coca-Cola in Water Wars (October 1, 2009)
    As India faces its worst drought in four decades, a dispute over water resources between farmers in the Kala Dera area of western Rajasthan state and a Coca-Cola bottling plant located there has sharpened.
  21. A Request For More Effective Regulation of jet skis (April 28, 2009)
    Jet skis produce noise pollution, water pollution, adversely impact wildlife and aquatic plants, and pose serious safety risks.
  22. Privatizing Water, The New World War (January 1, 2004)
    Capitalism and corporate science have colluded to bring us the latest, most insidious crisis. According to the United Nations research, 1.3 billion people in the world today lack access to clean water and 2.5 billion do not have adequate sewage and sanitation. The human suffering and environmental damage that those figures represent is unspeakable.
  23. Contamination: The Poisonous Legacy of Ontario's Environmental Cutbacks (June 4, 2000)
    The story of Ontario's right-wing Harris government, which gutted health and environmental protection polices, leading to the Walkerton water disaster.
  24. Walkerton Water Tragedy -- Contamination: The Poisonous Legacy of Ontario's Environmental Cutbacks (2000)
    The story of how a right-way government which gutted health and environmental protection polices, leading to the Walkerton water disaster.
  25. Water Exports: The New Gold Rush? (March 21, 1991)
    Water shortages have become an top issue in the U.S., and it appears the nation will look north of the border for help. In Canada, opposition is growing.
  26. Canada's Water: Resource War #2 (March 16, 1991)
    Wars are usually fought over ideologies or natural resources. Canada should be concerned given its rich deposits of natural resources.
  27. Chemicals in your water: A little is too much (1984)
    There is reason to be concerned about the increasing amounts of chemicals in our water.
  28. 150 years of dirty water (1984)
    Toronto's water has been polluted pretty much since the city was founded - but that doesn't mean we should put up with it.

Selected Websites and Organizations

  1. This is a small sampling of organizations and websites concerned with education and children in the Connexions Directory. For more organizations and websites, check the Connexions Directory Subject Index, especially under topics such as education, children, youth, post-secondary education, film, and schools.

    Other Links & Resources

    • DHMO.org
      Dihydrogen Monoxide (DHMO) is a colorless and odorless chemical compound. DHMO is a constituent of many known toxic substances, diseases and disease-causing agents, environmental hazards and can even be lethal to humans in quantities as small as a thimbleful. It is also known as H20.


    Books, Films and Periodicals

    1. This is a small sampling of books related to education and children in the Connexions Online Library. For more books and other resources, check the Connexions Library Subject Index, especially under topics such as education, children, youth, post-secondary education, film, and schools.


    1. At the Water's Edge
      Nature Study in Lakes, Streams, and Ponds
      Author: Cvancara, Alan M.
      A first-rate nature book that guides the reader out into the world of ponds, stream, brooks, rills, and lakes.
    2. The Cost of Living
      Author: Roy, Arundhati
      Roy takes on two of the great illusions of India's progress: the massive dam projects that have displaced millions, and the development of India's nuclear weapons. Roy peels away the mask of democracy and prosperity to show the true costs hidden beneath.
    3. Fishers and Plunderers
      Theft, Slavery and Violence at Sea
      Author: Couper, Alastair, Smith, Hance D., and Ciceri, Bruno
      Fishers and Plunderers focuses on the exploitation of fish and fishers alike in a global industry that gives little consideration to either conservation or human rights. In a business characterized by overprovisioned vessels and shortages of fish, young men are routinely trafficked from poor areas onto fishing boats to work under conditions of virtual slavery. Poverty and debt push many towards piracy and drugs -- although the criminality linked to the industry extends far beyond any individual worker, vessel, or fleet. Fishers and Plunderers provides strong evidence of industry-wide crimes and injustices and argues for regulations that protect the rights of fishers across the board.
    4. Fresh Water Seas
      Saving the Great Lakes
      Author: Weller, Phil
      Weller takes readers on a tour of the Great Lakes region, tracing its natural history from the time before human habitation. He describes how the region has been affected by uncontrolled development to the point where it now contains one of the planet's most intensive concentrations of industrial and agricultural activity.
    5. The No-Nonsense Guide to Water
      Author: Black, Maggie
    6. State of the World's Oceans
      New Internationalist January/February 2007
      A look at the how the world's ocean is being destroyed and its effects on the earth.


    Learning from our History

    Coming soon





    Resources for Activists

    The Connexions Calendar - An event calendar for activists. Submit your events for free here.

    Media Names & Numbers - A comprehensive directory of Canada’s print and broadcast media. .

    Sources - A membership-based service that enables journalists to find spokespersons and story ideas, and which simultaneously enables organizations to raise their profile by reaching the media and the public with their message.

    Organizing Resources Page - Change requires organizing. Power gives way only when it is challenged by a movement for change, and movements grow out of organizing. Organizing is qualitatively different from simple “activism”. Organizing means sustained long-term conscious effort to bring people together to work for common goals. This page features a selection of articles, books, and other resources related to organizing.

    Publicity and Media Relations - A short introduction to media relations strategies.

    Grassroots Media Relations - A media relations guide for activist groups.

    Socialism gateway - A gateway to resources about socialism, socialist history, and socialist ideas.

    Marxism gateway - A gateway to resources about Marxism.