Martin Luther King, Jr.
This week, we honor the legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr., and we invite you to use this Shalom piece to reflect on Dr. King’s call to seek justice through love in light of the SSND tradition.
Water
Wildfires in Australia have been blazing for months, burning up 26 million acres of land and taking the lives of 25 people and more than one billion animals. The fires are still going strong. A major concern now is that when rains come, the charred debris will be washed into freshwater sources, exterminating wildlife and polluting drinking water. Already, many watersheds – where rainfall begins its earthly journey into specific rivers, lakes, and dams – have been contaminated by the fire.
This not only endangers the biodiversity of the region and the animals who make their homes there, but it also has increased the concentration of things like mercury in fish that are subsequently eaten by human beings. Additionally, water production and treatment is already stretched thin in the region due to the current drought, and highly contaminated water will slow treatment down even further, potentially leading to “temporary but significant” shortages.
