by JJ Rusch

Created on: March 10, 2009   Last Updated: March 22, 2009

Loud voices get media; unfortunately, the water crisis speaks in whispers. It also doesn't help that water issues are currently not as politically hip, socially trendy or marketable as other environmental topics.

Awareness is, as Awareness does

The United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) created an international observance called World Water Day. That was 16 years ago, yet most Americans are unaware of this annual March initiative to promote water crisis awareness.

World Water Day is not listed on the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) website but World Water Monitoring Day is. The EPA started this campaign in 2003 "to broaden environmental awareness" in partnership with America's Clean Water Foundation and the International Water Association. (It is also probably safe to say that most Americans have never heard of World Water Monitoring Day either.) Conversely, Earth Day has several dedicated portals on the government and EPA websites.

In 2006,The EPA created Water Sense, a water efficiency program launched to "raise awareness about the importance of water efficiency, ensure the performance of water-efficient products and provide good consumer information." Their logo is used on labels of products and services that "perform at least 20 percent more efficiently than their less efficient counterparts." Water Sense is also sponsoring Fix a Leak Week, to "remind Americans to check their plumbing fixtures and irrigation systems for leaks", March 16-20.

Who knew...any of this stuff?

If isn't green, it won't be seen

A Google search on "water crisis" will return over 28 million hits; "green" kicks out more than 800 million. Synonymous to the environment, green is more fashionable, marketable and bankable.

Reusable grocery totes, hybrid cars, organics, clean products, and a host of other goods and services are marketed with environmental initiatives in mind. Green PR is big business; press releases routinely flood the media, Earth Day pitches return annually, but promos on the water crisis are rarely seen. Wal Mart even added "Personal Sustainability Projects" to their internal health and wellness programs to encourage employees to recycle and use "environmentally friendly products in their homes".

The corporate love affair with green marketing isn't limited to manufacturing and retail giants either. When a major broadcast network decided to go green in 2007, eco-creative went into overdrive. Green story lines were written into prime time scripts, local news stations

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