Let There Be Water Lib/E: Israel's Solution for a Water-Starved World

As every day brings urgent reports of growing water shortages around the world, there is no time to lose in the search for solutions. The United States government predicts that forty of our fifty states--and 60 percent of the earth's land surface--will soon face alarming gaps between available water and the growing demand for it. Without action, food prices will rise, economic growth will slow, and political instability is likely to follow. Let There Be Water illustrates how Israel can serve as a model for the United States and countries everywhere by showing how to blunt the worst of the coming water calamities. Even with 60 percent of its country made of desert, Israel has not only solved its water problem; it also has an abundance of water. Israel even supplies water to its neighbors--the Palestinians and the Kingdom of Jordan--every day. Based on meticulous research and hundreds of interviews, Let There Be Water reveals the methods and techniques of the often offbeat inventors who enabled Israel to lead the world in cutting-edge water technology. Let There Be Water also tells unknown stories of how cooperation on water systems can forge diplomatic ties and promote unity. Remarkably, not long ago, now-hostile Iran relied on Israel to manage its water systems, and access to Israel's water know-how helped to warm China's frosty relations with Israel. Beautifully written, Let There Be Water is and inspiring account of the vision and sacrifice by a nation and people that have long made water security a top priority. Despite scant natural water resources, a rapidly growing population and economy, and often hostile neighbors, Israel has consistently jumped ahead of the water innovation curve to assure a dynamic, vital future for itself. Every town, every country, and every listener can benefit from learning what Israel did to overcome daunting challenges and transform itself from a parched land into a water superpower.

About the Author :
Seth M. Siegel is a lawyer, activist, writer, and successful serial entrepreneur. His essays on water and other policy issues have appeared in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Los Angeles Times, and in leading publications in Europe and Asia. He has spoken on water policy hundreds of times around the world and in Congress, the United Nations, the World Bank, and at dozens of leading universities. Malcolm Hillgartner is an accomplished actor, writer, and musician. Named an AudioFile Best Voice of 2013 and the recipient of several Earphones Awards, he has narrated over 250 audiobooks.

Review :
"Let There Be Water is the expertly and movingly told story of how Israeli specialists and NGOs greatly helped many Africans gain access to clean water. Seth Siegel shows how Israel uses its water skills both to help developing nations and as a tool of diplomacy. We all have so much to learn from this superb book." -- "Ruhakana Rugunda, Prime Minister of Uganda" "A really interesting account of the possibilities for technology to solve one of the greatest and underestimated challenges of our age." -- "Tony Blair" "Fascinating account...A major contribution to this hotly debated issue and to broader questions of environmental policy." -- "Kirkus Reviews (starred review)" "From the arid front lines of the freshwater scarcity crisis, Siegel provides an eye-opening account how Israel turned adversity into opportunity to become an innovative pioneer in the global quest for a new water paradigm." -- "Steven Solomon, author, Water: The Epic Struggle for Wealth, Power, and Civilization" "If you are worried about global water shortages-and you should be-read this book. Seth Siegel brings an urgent message of how the world can save itself using remarkable techniques and technology developed in Israel. Let There Be Water is essential reading. I highly recommend it." -- "Michael Bloomberg" "In the last fifty years, one place has taken water scarcity and turned it into water abundance--Israel. The Israelis did it with science, skill, and by thinking fifty years ahead. Seth M. Siegel's book Let There Be Water pieces together the surprising story of how Israel made itself into a 'water superpower' with clarity, with verve, and most important, with a sense of hope for everyone else facing water problems." -- "Charles Fishman, New York Times bestselling author" "Insightful...an instructive reminder that climate and geography don't control a state's destiny. Nature, as it turns out, is not as important as government nurture." -- "Wall Street Journal" "With current drought conditions across Western North America, this hard-won water wisdom should be of interest to concerned readers." -- "Library Journal" "With global water shortages generating political, military and humanitarian crises across the globe, Israel's astonishing ingenuity for wresting abundance from drought is an inspiring and instructive blueprint for the planet." -- "Robert F. Kennedy Jr."