Water Watchers on Human Rights Day

Newsletter from the Canadian Blue Community ‘Water Watchers’:

What do we want for UN Human Rights Day? Water for all. Join us 💙

Today is International Human Rights Day and we want to make it the last one where Canadians go without access to clean drinking water.

About 1,000,000 people in Canada continue to lack water and sanitation access. From housing insecurity to water advisories, these folks struggle every day to access one of life’s most fundamental needs – water.

Canada has the power to invest in water access and we’ve teamed up with water protectors from across these lands to demand the government uphold its international commitments to the human right to water at home.

Take Action Here!

Canada doesn’t recognize the human right to water nationally, but we can change that.

Text reads "water is a human right, unless you
live in Canada" over a sunset water scene

Yes, that is the shocking truth. There is no legal basis for the human right to water in Canada. That means no matter where you live, your right to clean drinking water is not guaranteed.

Despite signing on to numerous international conventions and initiatives that explicitly state and support the human right to water, Canada refuses to honour this commitment at home.

This double standard has to change and there is any easy pathway forward: we have to legalize the human right to water in Canada.

You can help super charge our 2026 advocacy work.

Sign this petition to join Indigenous leaders, water advocates, and UN staff calling on the Canadian government to recognize the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation in the federal legal framework!

Sign the Petition Here!

💦 Announcing: The Mobile Drinking Water Unit Program! 💦

Mobile Drinking Water Unit Promo %282%29

Our dream to end bottled water means we need to explore proactive solutions to drinking water access. Water Watchers’ Mobile Drinking Water Unit Program will provide a practical, community-powered alternative to bottled water. Each mobile unit delivers clean, safe drinking water wherever it’s needed, supporting communities facing water access gaps, responding during emergencies, and reducing reliance on single-use plastic at public events. The program will strengthen water justice outcomes by ensuring people have direct, reliable access to drinking water while building awareness about protecting water at the source.

We have no core funding for this work, but we believe access to clean drinking water is a non-negotiable so we’re crowdfunding to launch this new program.

If you believe water is a human right, we invite you to support the mobile drinking water unit program. As a thank you for your support, we’ll add your name onto the water trailer so your inaugural contribution toward this water justice initiative is enshrined forever.

Help Make Our Dream Come True Here!

A generous donor is DOUBLING donations up to $5,000 for the mobile drinking water unit. Take advantage and support this initiative to DOUBLE your donation today!

“We believe in the power of people coming together at the grassroots level and demanding what’s right, such as universal access to water. When we unite our voices as one and call for the most basic of rights to be recognized, we can create the conditions for a future where water and sanitation are accessible to all and water is protected. We need more radical changes in how we relate to and govern water, but legally recognizing the human right to water and sanitation is an important step in the journey to water justice.”

– Arlene Slocombe, Executive Director @ Water Watchers

We know from experience it is possible to win on water justice when we all come together. This is an issue worth fighting for, worth uniting for, and worth sharing.

Water is for life, not profit. Water is life.

That’s why we have to guarantee the human right to water is enshrined into our federal legal framework for the people of today and the children of tomorrow, because everyone deserves clean water, always.

With Gratitude,
Water Watchers

PS – Need a tax receipt for your donation? You can donate to the ‘Water For Life’ project through our charitable partner Small Change Fund here!