news media advisory August 12, 2005
Contact: Heather Emmons, DRI PIO, heather.emmons@dri.edu, Reno
(775) 673-7313 (w), (702) 743-3435 (c)
Kim Dixon, dominion3 public relations, kim@dominion3.com,
(323) 466-3393
All DRI News Releases and higher resolution map available at: http://news.dri.edu/
Reporters and Editors, Please Note: DRI hosts Nevada premier
of water crisis documentary "Running Dry"
WHAT: Hosting the Nevada premier of "Running Dry," a compelling documentary
that issues an urgent call to save millions of people around the world imperiled
by the lack of access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation
WHERE: Desert Research Institute, Elizabeth West Stout Conference Center, 2215
Raggio Parkway, Reno, Nev. 89512
WHEN: Tuesday, Aug. 16 at 6:30 p.m.
HOW:
Drinks and hors d'oeuvres will be served at 6:30 p.m., followed by the premier
at 7:00 p.m. A panel discussion about solutions to water issues will follow the
premier, led by Patricia Mulroy, general manager of the Southern Nevada Water
Authority, who appears in the film, and Dr. John Warwick, executive director
of DRI's division of hydrologic sciences.
Jim Thebaut, Patricia Simon, Patricia Mulroy, Dr. John Warwick and members of
the panel will be available to media for interviews.
ABOUT RUNNING DRY: "Running Dry" was inspired by the late Senator
Paul Simon’s
powerful book "Tapped Out." Jim Thebaut, the film's producer and director, had
been developing the project in association with Simon until his recent death.
Simon's widow, Patricia Simon, has continued her husband's legacy by working
with Thebaut and will be present at the premier. Award-winning actress Jane Seymour
narrates as the film takes viewers on a journey that explores the impending severity
of the global water crisis throughout specific regions in southern Asia, northern
China, the Middle East, Africa and the American southwest. Various experts and
world leaders, including former Soviet Union leader Mikhail Gorbachev, are interviewed
throughout the documentary stating their concerns, not only about their own regions,
but also about the challenges that exist throughout the world.
Every day an average of 9,500 children die due to the lack of water or because
of disease caused by polluted water. "Running Dry" promotes and reinforces the
message that water is a precious global resource, while also presenting a variety
of solutions that are available to solve the crisis. The "Running Dry" project
is designed to be a comprehensive public information education project concerning
the evolving water crisis.
The "Running Dry" documentary was fully funded and made possible by a grant from
American Water, as well as a substantial grant provided by Carnegie Corporation
of New York. Other public and private entities have also contributed to the evolution
of the project. For more information about the film and the Running Dry Project
please go to the website http://www.runningdry.org