Blue Planet Run : the race to provide safe drinking water to the world

From the creators of the highly acclaimed New York Times best-selling Day in the Life and America 24/7 series, Rick Smolan and Jennifer Erwitt, Blue Planet Run provides readers with a fascinating and thought-provoking look at the water problems facing humanity on every continent, as well as some of the hopeful solutions and courageous “water heroes” focused on alleviating this crisis. The large-format volume features more than 250 photographs by the world’s top photojournalists, illustrations by leading infographic artist Nigel Holmes, and provocative essays by Diane Ackerman (A Natural History of the Senses), environmental leaders Paul Hawken and Bill McKibben, journalists Michael Specter and Jeffrey Rothfeder, Emmy Award-winning TV broadcaster Mike Cerre, Michael Malone, of ABC News and inventor Dean Kamen (the Segway scooter). Advisors and staff include Phillip Moffitt, former editor and owner of Esquire magazine and Stephen Petranek, former editor-in-chief of Discover magazine.Blue Planet Run highlights the vital contributions of nonprofits around the world, including the groundbreaking work of the Blue Planet Run Foundation, which seeks to provide safe drinking water to 200 million people by 2027. The book includes coverage of the 2007 Blue Planet Run, an unprecedented, non-stop, around-the-world relay race designed as a wake-up call to the world. Twenty-one runners, representing 13 countries, began the race on June 1, 2007, at the United Nations and concluded in New York City on September 4, 2007, having circled the Earth in just 95 days while running over 15,000 miles across 16 countries in Europe, Asia and North America. The Blue Planet Run Volume Represents Two Extraordinary Projects. The First Is The Result Of A Worldwide Search For Images And Stories To Capture The Human Face Of The Global Water Crisis. For One Month, 40 Talented Photojournalists Crossed The Globe Taking Photographs To Show The Extent Of The Problem. At The Same Time, A Team Of Researchers Contacted Photographers On Every Continent To Identify Existing Bodies Of Work Focused On This Crucial Issue. Simultaneously, 20 Runners Representing 13 Nationalities Embarked On A 95-day Nonstop Relay Race Around The Globe, Serving As Messengers To Raise Awareness Of The Severity Of The Water Crisis. The Book Also Features Original Essays From An Extraordinary Range Of Noted Writers, Environmentalists, Inventors And Journalists Including Diane Ackerman, Fred Pearce, Dean Kamen, Michael Malone, Bill Mckibben Jeffrey Rothfeder, Michael Specter, Paul Hawken And Mike Cerre.--jacket. Drinking Dinosaur Water / Diane Ackerman -- Poisoning The Well / Bill Mckibben -- Water 2.0 / Michael Malone -- We're All Downstream / Michael Specter -- Water: The New Oil / Jeffrey Rothfeder -- A Billion Slingshots / Dean Kamen -- Blue Planet Run / Paul Hawken And Mike Cerre. Foreword By Robert Redford ; Introduction By Fred Pearce ; Essays By Diane Ackerman [and Others] ; Created By Rick Smolan & Jennifer Erwitt. Made Possible By A Generous Grant From The Blue Planet Run Foundation--page [1]. Blue Planet Run provides readers with an extraordinary look at the water problems facing humanity and some of the hopeful solutions being pursued by large and small companies, but entrepreneurs and activists, and by nongovernmental organizations and foundations. By the end of the book, readers are left to form their own conclusions as to whether or how the human race is capable of taking the steps necessary to solve this global crisis before it's too late. Blue Planet Run is two books in First, it is about an extraordinary 15,000-mile relay race - the longest relay race in human history - in which 20 athletes spent 95 days running around the globe to spread awareness of the world's water crisis. Secondly, it is a showcase of powerful, inspiring, disturbing and hopeful images captured by leading photojournalists around the world who documented the human face of the crisis and its possible solutions. The result of these two parallel projects is the book you hold in your hands. One hundred percent of the royalties from this book will be used to provide clean water to people around the world who desperately need it.