Farhana Sultana, associate professor of geography at the Maxwell School, is passionate about one of the most basic and important resources on Earth: water.

It is through the lens of water by which she examines a multitude of social issues related to access to clean water, including health, education, environmental justice and gender equality. According to the United Nations, 783 million people do not have access to clean water and almost 2.5 billion do not have access to adequate sanitation. Six to eight million people die every year from the consequences of water-related diseases.

Due to her decades-long research into water access, Sultana was invited to speak at The Human Right to Water workshop hosted by the Pontifical Academy of Sciences in Vatican City on Feb. 23-24. She was one of several international researchers, humanitarian workers, government officials and corporate leaders invited to present and debate issues about water insecurity and ongoing global efforts to ensure access to clean water.

At the end of the two-day workshop, Sultana and the other participants were part of a small audience to hear Pope Francis speak about the issues of water insecurity and the human right to water. The Pontiff reinforced the importance of ensuring global access to clean safe water by working concertedly to implement the human right to water everywhere.

Read the full article and watch the video of her remarks here.