“Water, water, everywhere, nay any drop to drink.” This lament of Coleridge’s Ancient Mariner, stranded at sea, could well be Simi Kamal’s. One of Pakistan’s eminent geographers, the Cambridge educated Simi believes that water is everybody’s business and should not be politicised. Quoting oft-frightening figures, Kamal steers clear of the current debate on dams, focusing instead on what can be done to salvage the water situation in the country. Having devoted herself to the development sector, Kamal boasts an extensive resume which includes gender empowerment, social development and environment issues. She has collaborated with government and private sector organisations in her impressive career and is a member of the Stockholm-based Global Water Partnership Technical Committee, founder and chair of the think tank Hisaar Foundation and co-founder and co-chair of Pani Pakistan, among others. With her own development consultancy, Raasta, Kamal is determined to show Pakistan the way towards a future where we can make water, not war.
