7.+Ensure+environmental+sustainability.

=The goals= Are we getting any closer to these goals in 2007? Have a look at this [|table]. = = =The Problem=
 * Integrate the principles of sustainable development into country policies and programmes; reverse loss of environmental resources
 * Reduce by half the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water
 * Achieve significant improvement in lives of at least 100 million slum dwellers, by 2020

The way we are using our Earth today is not sustainable. This means that if we continue to do it this way, we will mess it up. We will finish some resources like oil and clean fresh water. We will destroy some of the ecosystems on Earth which provide us with important services. For example, mangroves protect coastal areas from floods but we are cutting them down to make shrimp farms. Coral reefs provide baby fish with places to hide and grow before they swim out to the ocean where some fishermen may catch them for food. But global warming and other human activities are destroying coral reefs. This must change.

Water
Every human being needs clean drinking water. More than one billion people (1 000 000 000) have no access to clean water. Dirty water carries diseases, and can be polluted with chemicals which also make people sick. But most of the water in the world is saltwater, which we cannot drink!

Slums
The United Nations defines slums as areas of cities where the residents are missing some of the following: strong walls, a contract for their rent or ownership, a good living space and access to clean drinking water and toilets. More than 1 billion people in the world live in slums. The biggest slum in the world is called Dharavi, which is in Mumbai, India. It has 600 000 people living in one square mile.

= = =Links=

[|Global Water] [|Slums]

The Millenium Development Goals
1. Poverty 2. Education 3. Gender Inequality 4. Child Mortality 5. Maternal Health 6. Combat Disease 7. Sustainability 8. Global Partnership