The International Day of Action Against Dams and For Rivers, Water, and Life was inspired and mandated by the participants of the First International Meeting of People Affected by Dams that took place in March, 1997 in Curitiba, Brazil. Representatives from twenty countries decided that the International Day of Action would fall on 14 March, Brazil’s Day of Action Against Large Dams. One of the goals for the Day of Action is to build and strengthen regional and international networks within the international anti-dam movement.