There's a high cost involved in the commercialization of drinking water, especially in under-developed countries. 

                                                                                                                                                            Irena Salina is the director of FLOW (For Love Of Water), which was produced by Steven Starr. 

Six years in the making, FLOW  debuted at the prestigious Sundance Festival almost a year ago, but Starr notes that it was still timely then and remains so now.
 

Watch the trailer for FLOW here:

You can also add your name to the petition to add access to fresh water as Article 31 of the United Nations' Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Companies that sell bottled water in this country are now looking to make expanded use of agricultural water rights, Starr says, an approach that may require redefining the scale of those rights.

Building on the information contained in the film, Starr has begun a web-based networking site called FreeFlo to enable water rights activists to share ideas and information collaboratively. 

freeflo.org

Mission Statement

FreeFlo is a communication network designed to strengthen the global water activist community, to challenge the privatization of water, to promote solidarity and water justice for all. FreeFlo illuminates issues impacting water ecosystems and individual access to water, and supports local, community-controlled solutions for sustainable water use. Find out more about FreeFlo here.

The incoming Obama administration gives a Sonoma State sociologist hope that the 1996 federal welfare reform policy will itself get some overdue reforms.

Dr. Shelia Katz studies the ways in which women who are receiving federal assistance can access higher education, and how that affects their lives and incomes thereafter.

Katz is also advocating that provisions for job training be included in any large public works jobs legislation that the new Obama administration promotes.

The holidays are a peak travel time for the airlines, so knowing your rights as a passenger can help ensure a more satisfactory travel experience.

Former realtor Kate Hanni is the founder and president of the Napa-based Coalition for an Airline Passengers Bill of Rights. Her Organization maintains a tool-free telephone number for travelers to report standings and other problems, which she says are promptly verified and compiled into a national database.

Flyersrights Hotline: 877-FLYERS6 (877-359-3776)

The Coalition has also prepared a  Stranded Flyer's Survival Guide with a combination of practical and somewhat tongue-in-cheek items to use if you should happen to wind up on a grounded plane.

The New York state legislature was the first in the country to adopt a flyers bill of rights in August, 2007. But the measure was struck down by the U.S. Court of Appeals which ruled it interferred with federal regulatory authority over the airlines.

Northern California representative Mike Thompson has been a leader in the effort to win Congressional passage of a nationwide airline Passengers Bill of Rights. You can read the draft bill here.

The USDA is preparing to adopt standards defnining exactly what can be labeled organically farmed fish. Not surprisingly, that's prompted a big debate behind the scenes.

 A typical "open pen" at a commercial salmon farm. These pens are usually arranged in larger groupings (such as the one shown in the photo below), linked by walkways that are used by the staff.

This commercial salmon fishing operation is in a deepwater cove off Lucas Bay, Alaska. Most of the world's salmon farming is done in the cold northern Pacific and Atlantic waters off North America.

Urvashi Rangun (right)  is a senior scientist and policy analyst for Consumer's Union, which is advocating for rigorous new standards for farmed seafood to be labled "organic."

Mixed news on the health care front:  stem cell research is spurring advances in what's being called regenerative medicine, but California's budget crisis threatens the ability of community clinics to provide many basic services.

Dr. David Greenberg, Vice President of Special Research Projects for the Buck Institute for Age Research in Novato.

In addition to embryonic stem cells, Dr. Greenberg says current research is also studying adult stem cells.

Beatrice Bostick, Executive Director of Clinic Ole in  Napa County warns that reducing health care coverage through Medi-Cal will inevitably result in greater demands for hospital emergency rooms, with no funds available for that care.

stem cells