Editorial Klaus Toepfer, United Nations Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director, UNEP Action for tomorrow Roh Moo-hyun, President of the Republic of Korea Turning words into action Børge Brende, Minister of the Environment, Norway, and Chair of the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development, says that plans agreed at the World Summit on Sustainable Development are the key to managing the world’s most precious resource One hand washes the other Ronnie Kasrils, Minister of Water Affairs and Forestry, the Republic of South Africa, describes how partnership and participatory democracy in his country are exceeding targets for providing safe water and sanitation, and combating water scarcity and conflict People Fragile resource Kwak Kyul-ho, Minister of Environment, Republic of Korea, describes how his country has learned a hard lesson from rapid industrialization and is setting out to restore the balance between nature and human desire Realizing the dream Poul Nielson, EU Commissioner for Development and Humanitarian Aid, and Chief Executive Officer for the EuropeAid Co-operation Office, describes practical steps towards halving the proportion of the world’s people lacking safe water and sanitation Washing away poverty Eveline Herfkens, United Nations Secretary-General’s Executive Coordinator for the Millennium Development Goals Campaign, says that water and sanitation can provide the path to meeting the Millennium Development Goals At a glance: Water and sanitation

Music makes magic The Benin-born singer-songwriter Angélique Kidjo talks about her concerns for the future Targeting sanitation Cees van de Guchte, Senior Project Officer, UNEP/GPA Coordination Office, The Hague, Netherlands, and Veerle Vandeweerd, Coordinator, GPA, Head, Regional Seas Programme and Deputy Director, Division of Environmental Policy Implementation, UNEP, address the environmental aspects and costs of meeting the World Summit on Sustainable Development target on improved sanitation, and describe the growing global consensus on alternative low-cost technologies In a city like Mumbai Kalpana Sharma, Deputy Editor of The Hindu, Mumbai, describes what it is like to live without adequate water supplies and sanitation in one of the world’s most populous cities Flowing from the bottom up Gourisankar Ghosh, Executive Director of the Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council, Geneva, calls for integrated management of water – of the people, for the people and by the people Books & products Watering a thirsty land Luis Cáceres Villanueva, Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering, University of Antofagasta, Chile, describes how wastewater can be used to green cities, even in difficult circumstances, and outlines how to treat and manage it Peace through parks Gerardo Budowski, Professor Emeritus, Department of Natural Resources and Peace, University for Peace, Costa Rica, describes the advantages of peace parks and suggests ways in which they could be extended Reaching the unheard Suvecha Pant, coordinator of the science page and journalist at The Kathmandu Post, Nepal, and a journalist and English newsreader at national radio station Kantipur FM96.1