ONE DROP was one of the hundreds of foundations from all over the world that came together in Washington in May to shape the future of philanthropy.

Although water issues do not yet occupy a serious place on the agenda of foundations, it was heartening to realize that concern about this precious resource was expressed on several occasions during the annual conference of the Council on Foundations (CoF), Philanthropy’s Vision: A Leadership Summit.

Nobel Peace Prize winner Wangari Muta Maathai was among those who directly challenged foundations to sit up and take notice of the pressing need for action to protect the millions who suffer from lack of safe water. Water issues came up during a plenary session at which former Irish Prime Minister Mary Robinson and Civicus CEO Kumi Naidoo spoke eloquently about human rights. Water was also at the heart of the workshop titled From Climate Change to Poverty: How Indigenous Peoples are Tackling the Most Challenging Issues of Our Times, where presenters included Patricia Cochran, Chair of the Inuit Circumpolar Council, James Stauch, Program Manager of the Walter & Duncan Gordon Foundation, and Winona LaDuke, Executive Director of the Honor the Earth Fund. For more information on the CoF annual conference, visit www.cof.org.

Photo credit: Council on Foundations.jpg: www.cof.org