Even though it’s easy to feel like you can’t have control over something as elusive as the global water supply, meaningfully supporting communities who need water-based relief is something you can do, no matter your global location.
1. Support impactful organizations on the ground.
With such a dire, widespread need, there are countless organizations working to broaden access to safe, clean water globally. But, as with any global issue, it’s important to ensure that the organization you're supporting is making a sustainable, culturally sensitive impact.
One telltale sign an organization is doing work you can trust: It lets communities in need define what would help on their own — and work to fill those needs with long-lasting, sustainable solutions.
Though certainly not an exhaustive list, the organizations below are some of the most well-respected and comprehensive in the realm of water access.
Cofounded by actor Matt Damon, Water.org works with local partners to help tailor its water-based services to the global communities it serves. By empowering communities to play a major part in the development of community water sources, Water.org creates long-standing and sustainable sources of water for those who are lacking access.
Nonprofit charity: water partners with local organizations providing "long-lasting water and sanitation services," funding its most successful initiatives and supporting efforts already in place to help global communities in need.
WaterAid is an international organization working with local partners to improve access to safe water, proper hygiene and adequate sanitation. With more than 30 years dedicated to the water crisis, WaterAid works to empower local communities and implement community-based solutions in 37 countries worldwide.
A nonprofit youth activism organization, The Thirst Project aims to get young adults invested and involved in the water crisis. The effort mobilizes youth through education and fundraising to help finance and build sustainable wells in developing nations, especially focusing on regions like Swaziland, India, Ethiopia and Uganda.
UNICEF works in more than 100 countries, providing clean water access and sanitation facilities to communities in need, with a special attention on the needs of children. Throughout March, UNICEF runs its Tap Project, an app-based campaign that provides one day's worth of clean water to global communities in need for every five minutes a phone goes untouched.
Water for People, an international nonprofit focused on water relief, works across nine countriesbuilding wells, installing toilets and setting up pumps. The organization does this work with heavy input and consulting from local communities, connecting with local community members, governments and business owners to empower them to define their own needs.
2. Support the development of clean water innovations.
Big issues require innovative solutions. When it comes to water access, inventors have been working for years to develop both simple and complex tools that address water quality needs of global communities.
Championing innovation is largely a spectator sport — not all of us, after all, can actually participate in the invention of complex water purification systems. Yet, some innovations accept donations to support research and development efforts, or production and distribution costs required to reach communities in need.
These innovations have the potential to improve water access worldwide — and accept contributions from individuals.
- WATERisLIFE’s Drinkable Book, a book printed on useable filter paper that educates on regional water safety, takes donations for research and development costs via the organization’s website. Each book has enough filter pages to provide a household with four years of clean, safe water.
3. Pay particular attention to those most impacted.
Women and children, especially girls, face most of the burden of water collection in regions that lack easily accessible water sources. Not only is this labor and time intensive work, but it’s also dangerous. Water access points — clean or not — are often located in isolated areas, where women face sexual harassment and assault while simply trying to fill a basic need.
Illnesses from contaminated water sources also become a burden heavily felt by women. Not only are women at risk of developing ailments themselves, but caregiving for ill family members often becomes the work of women and girls, too. In some communities, girls have to end their schooling just to take up the responsibility of water collection and family care.
Supporting communities at risk means supporting the populations that are most vulnerable. Solving issues of access by supporting organizations and innovations working to solve water inequality is one step toward a solution for women and girls.
But, to take more direct action, consider supporting efforts tailored to their needs:
- Global Women’s Water Initiative is a coalition of women who train other women to be water technicians and experts on water-based hygiene. Teaching women to assemble and repair sanitation facilities and water collection mechanisms, GWWI shifts women’s views of water from a time-consuming chore to a paying trade. Donate here.
- The Women for Water Partnership focuses on the policy side of the water crisis, empowering women to have their voices and perspectives heard in governmental settings. With a presence in 100 countries, WfWP works to make women a part of decision-making at all levels through outreach, advocacy and lobbying. Donate here.
4. Recognize access to clean water isn’t just an overseas problem.
With mass attention on the poisoning of the piped water supply in Flint, Michigan, it’s apparent now more than ever that safe water access is a domestic issue, too.
According to WaterAid, close to 1% of the U.S. population does not have access to a contaminate-free water supply. While the number may seem relatively small, that statistic indicates that 1 person in every 100 people lives with improper access, a reality that deserves to be addressed.
To examine water access in the U.S., start with your local community. Look into the state of water in your own town by contacting local offices and asking unchecked questions about your own supply. If you feel comfortable with the state of water in your own town, listen to others who aren’t pleased with the state of their supply in communities around the U.S. Meaningfully help Flint — and towns like Flint — by supporting national and local efforts working toward water security.
The National Resources Defense Council, for example, is an environmental action group that pays particular attention to water quality in the U.S. The organization lobbies for the preservation of water, promotes water efficiency and works to raise awareness of climate change’s impact on water. Donate to its efforts here.
