NonA Weekly: WATER, WATER EVERYWHERE
Image by @primerstories
Hi there!
Every living thing on Earth needs water to survive, but more than one hundred thousand species, including our own, need a special kind of water that can only be found in certain places and is in very rare supply: freshwater. Less than three percent of our planet’s water is freshwater, and less than half of that is available as a liquid; the rest is locked away as ice in polar caps and glaciers. For these reasons, freshwater ecosystems are a precious resource. This week we are exploring the sweet water ecosystem and the freshwater cycle.
1. FRESHWATER ECOSYSTEM
The world’s demand for freshwater is high, though there is a limited supply. How can we be more responsible for this crucial resource and its ecosystems? NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC SOCIETY breaks down the essentials on this matter in a detailed article.
2. THE FUNDAMENTALS OF THE WATER CYCLE
Earth’s water is always in movement, and the natural water cycle describes the continuous movement of water on, above, and below the surface of the Earth. WATER is always changing states between liquid, vapor, and ice, with these processes happening in the blink of an eye and over millions of years.
3. THREATS TO FRESHWATER BIODIVERSITY IN A CHANGING WORLD
Freshwaters cover <1 % of the Earth’s surface, yet host around 10 % of known animal species. This biodiversity is threatened by a combination of factors, exacerbated by the position of rivers and lakes as landscape “receivers.” Climate change will intensify COMPETITION for water with humans, causing further declines in freshwater biodiversity.
4. PEOPLE AND FRESHWATER ECOSYSTEMS
Freshwater ecosystems are central to the global water cycle, in local generation of freshwater flows, and the healthy functioning and resilience of other ecosystems. Freshwater security depends on healthy ecosystems. This PAPER examines responses to three pressures on freshwater ecosystems: declining ecosystem services, hydropower, and urban development.
5. THE WATER CYCLE
Viewed from space, one of the most striking features of our home planet is the water, in both liquid and frozen forms. WATER is the only common substance that can exist naturally as a gas, liquid, or solid at the relatively small range of temperatures and pressures found on the Earth’s surface.
6. HOW THE URBAN WATER CYCLE WORKS
The urban water cycle is different than the hydrologic cycle, which accounts for environmental condensation, precipitation, and evaporation. The URBAN WATER CYCLE is the engineered methods that bring clean water to each of us.
7. ARCHITECTURE AND DESIGN DOCUMENTARIES TO BINGE WHILE IN SELF-ISOLATION
With millions of people across the world in self-isolation or quarantine to slow the spread of coronavirus, content producer at DEZEEN Sebastian Jordahn has put together a list of DOCUMENTARIES on architecture and design to stave off isolation boredom.
Stay creative and see you all next week!
Daniela
