The Great Lakes Futures Project

Abstract

The Great Lakes community is focusing global attention on the importance of freshwater and advocating sustainable management for its freshwater resources. The Great Lakes–St. Lawrence River basin alone holds 21% of the world's surface supply of freshwater. There are serious issues at the interface between two conflicting societal pressures: increasing water need, both by a growing population and more intensive enterprises to support this population and a decreasing and deteriorating water supply. Yet many people still deal with the Great Lakes basin as a limitless water resource. For the sake of future generations, the Great Lakes community cannot afford to be naive or complacent. Haphazard decision-making and ill-conceived governance can destabilize our use of these shared resources, placing our personal and economic health at risk. We need eyes on the waters of our Great Lakes basin. They don't make Great Lakes anymore.