Why can't we see Water in the Air?

What we know reflects the questions we formulate which, in turn, limit the scope of the answers we get. These answers then tell us what we can do and, maybe, why.
Asking the right question about air we breathe!

Glass half full of water
Source - en.wikipwedia.org

Puddle
Source - roywater.com

When we look at freshwater we see it as something that exists in bulk, like a glass half full of water, a huge lake that we can jump into, a puddle that can wet our shoes.
From these experiences we jump to the conclusion, and remember it as knowledge, that when we cannot "see" any water it's because there is no water there.
This knowledge, based solely on experience, also makes us typically unaware of the air that surrounds us. Only when we have difficulty breathing, or breathe in something that we choke on, do we realize that the air exists and is bad.
Water we cannot see because it's bulk is so small

Water on a leaf
Source - savethepark.org

Water exists in the air as groups of molecules in gaseous or vapor form.
Liquid water molecules can combine into large enough bodies visible to the human eye, for example, in fog.
 These sets of molecules have body when compared to the molecules of air's other ingredients (Nitrogen, carbon-dioxide and other gases).
But these water molecule groups are so tiny when compared with drops of water that we can clearly see, for example, on plant leaves.
primarily dependent on temperature.

Just because we cannot see the water in the air around us , in the same air we breathe, it does not imply that air is devoid of moisture of any kind!

Where On Earth Is the Water?

Ocean-water dependent species and ecosystems have two luxuries that freshwater-dependent species and ecosystems lack:
- Ocean-water exists in one BIG connected mass distributed all over the world. Freshwater exists in multiple locations all over the world
- Ocean-water exists mostly in just one form: as a liquid; Freshwater, however, exists in vapor (e.g. as a gas), liquid and solid (e.g. as ice) form

Global Distribution of Water
Water covers much of the Earth's surface:
- Ocean-water is the predominant (97.5% of the total) variety.
- Just 2.5% of the total water on Earth is freshwater. 
Freshwater Locations
Ignoring movement of freshwater between various deposits of freshwater on Earth, Freshwater exists in 8 locations:
- In glaciers as ice and in liquid form
- As groundwater in underground aquifers
- In Freshwater lakes
- In wetlands
- Dissolved in soil
- Suspended in the atmosphere
- In flowing rivers, and
- In plants and animals
Historical Sources of Freshwater
There are two types of sources that humankind has tapped for its freshwater needs:
A. Freshwater Bodies
Freshwater lakes, wetlands and rivers were humankind's earliest sources of water. These sources are still major sources of freshwater because they are continuously replenished. We may choose to extract freshwater at rates greater than the replenishment rate, but that is another subject.
Plants were probably a major source of freshwater for humanity, because all food contains freshwater. With the harnessing of agriculture (about 10,000 years ago) and the resulting improvement in diet, humans get a lot of their required freshwater from the food they eat and digest.
B. Water moving between bodies of freshwater
While all water is always in continuous motion, Evaporation and condensation are the primary ways freshwater moves between different freshwater bodies. 
Tapping New Sources of Freshwater
Of the 8 freshwater bodies, the single ocean-water body and the ways water moves between these bodies, there are only 6 possible new sources of freshwater:
1. The freshwater in the atmosphere is nearly 5 times MORE than the freshwater in all the rivers on Earth.
2. The freshwater in soil is nearly 6.6 times MORE than the freshwater in all the rivers
3. The freshwater in plants and animals
4. Artificially converting seawater into freshwater i.e. desalination.
5. Making freshwater from scratch - our bodies make between 300 and 400 ml of freshwater per day through the biological process of metabolism - hence our name for this water is "metabolic water"
6. Catching freshwater as it moves from one source to another - Rainfall is the predominant such source.
Increasing Freshwater Supplies
In addition to the above 6 choices, there exists, of course, the option to use less water by recycling used water, increasing water use efficiency and reducing the amount of water that is wasted.
The Task Before Us
Which of the above 6 "new sources" of freshwater and using less water should we focus on and why?

How Long is the Future? - When Water Is the Topic!

We each have a different idea of the time period we are looking at when we talk about the future! So how do we get the global community of people and nations to work together on freshwater scarcity from which only a few are immune?
How Long is the Future?

Source - blog.enerdynamics.com

An interesting description of the question comes from Eric Schmidt, Executive Chairman of Google: "Based on their professions, people have different answers to the question “How long is the future?” If you are a political leader it is 2 years, 4 tears or 6 years. If you are a government worker it is 2 weeks or even 1 week because the budget has not even been approved. If you are in a company where your bonus is paid out at the end of the year and that is a majority of your compensation, then that's your future. If you are a long term owner who is largely prevented from selling any of your shares, the owner has a very different definition of the future? Politicians, for example, see the future in increments of a few years, while those who have long-term equity in a company see the future differently."

Freshwater's Role

Source - en.wikipedia.org

Freshwater is at the HEART of everything artificial and many many natural creations on Earth.
Included in the artificial creations are not only physical things and what we call 'stuff' but also political, economic and social stability, each of which also depends upon how long a freshwater-secure future we seek or envision.

The "Future" in Development: NGOs, GOs and others
Unfortunately, each organization's definition of "Future" differs in the development community. Some may be looking till the end of their latest funded project; others may be working within the funding cycles of their benefactors; still others may simply be waiting for their funding to run out; other's still may be run out of a location by factors they simply cannot influence. The "future" is different for each entity. So how do we reconcile these different definitions of the future when we talk about safe drinking water?

Is how we define Innovation, the key?

Source - fotolia.com

Any discussion of innovation is also never independent of time. Are we innovating to get through this winter? Are we innovating till the benefiting community moves to a new physical location? Are we seeking a better future for our children? 
All the questions include a presumption of a set time period in them.
The huge objects we have created (like dams, aqueducts, levees etc) were supposed to last for a very very long time and they have done so, sometimes to our regret because of unforeseen negative impacts on nature's creations and balance.

Our Freshwater Future: 10 years or less?

Source - vimeo.com

The earliest forecast date when we encounter dire water scarcity for many is the one that says: By 2025, as many as one-third of the human population (2.8 billion people) could be experiencing severe water shortages! And the vast majority of these people will be in the underdeveloped and developing world!

The period from the start of 2013 till the end of of 2024 consists of just 12 years. So, 

1. We have 12 years to make a lasting difference for 2.8 billion people.

2. The difference we make should last at least their lifetime i.e. our innovation should prevail over water shortages through a lifetime of 65 years (a fair global measure of life expectancy) at a minimum.

How many of our current efforts are good for at least 65 years?

But we have a decade to get it done!

Are we in the water development community working the plan to prevail throughout the 21st century and everywhere in the world , rather than enduring safe drinking water scarcity or severe water stress ?