Synapse

I am so impressed with the folk at the National Film Board (of Canada). They just keep pumping out top-notch content. First their amazing free iPhone / iPod Touch app (that allows you to screen entire films), and now WaterLife.

Their latest initiative is an interactive site centred on the idea that our Great Lakes (and waterways in general) are changing – not for the better. The idea of water as a limited resource, is of course, nothing new. Potable water all the more so. Here in Canada we don’t think about it much, because we’re under the impression there’s plenty of it. Wrong. We just happen to have more of it than most other nations, but by no means enough to be dismissive in its use. Just talk to an Aussie. They think us blazingly wasteful. A couple of years ago, I co-produced a segment for DiscoveryChannel.ca that highlighted this difference.

I spent the first decade of my life by a major river, and my summers by the sea. I’m fortunate enough to live in a place that’s surrounded not only by the Great Lakes, but numerous smaller ones. Whenever near water, I’m keenly attuned to its rhythms. It transforms me. It teems with life. In fact, there’s likely more life underwater on Earth than on land. And if you think about it, Planet Earth is kind of a misnomer.  All the more reason our very existence depends on the health of our water systems. This is perhaps why I feel so passionately that amidst all the “Green” initiatives, we don’t leave out the Blue. They are one and the same.

If you’re curious to find out more, CBC’s The Current ran a great radio series last year called “Watershed”. I also recommend reading Alana Mitchell’s “Sea Sick”.

WaterLife was brought to my attention by ad girl Lava Nosenkis.