CLEAN WATER ACCESS

Thriving communities. Happy families. Healthy lives. It all starts with water.

The Problem

The sun isn’t up yet. But you are.

The well that provides water for several neighboring villages is a two-hour walk from your home—and fetching water for your family is just the first of the many chores you’ll have to get through before the day is done. Tired as you are, it’s important to keep a sharp lookout for the dangers that are an ever-present possibility along the way, including wild animals or people willing to attack someone travelling the path alone. And after all this effort, there’s no guarantee that the water you bring back will be safe for your family to drink.

  • The well’s been contaminated before. But since it’s the only semi-reliable water source for miles, you’ll just have to hope that today is a lucky day…

  • In parts of the world where basic water infrastructure is not yet in place, this is the hard reality faced by people in rural, remote  communities who rely on risky, time-consuming methods to get essential water for cooking, cleaning, and drinking.

  • Women and girls are often especially hard-hit by this problem, given that they are the ones usually called upon to make the long, hazardous journey to and from the local water source—sometimes making multiple trips every day.

  • For people in these communities—and for women and girls in particular—the time spent collecting water is a massive opportunity cost, robbing them of chances to earn income, pursue their education, and enjoy leisure time with their families. These long treks also put them at risk of injury, assault, and even death.

The Solution

A nearby, reliable source of clean water is a wellspring not only for human health and safety, but also for broader community development. When water becomes readily available, communities in general—and women and girls in particular—can spend less time simply trying to survive and begin to thrive. Parents can spend more time with their children; girls can attend school, possibly for the first time; the incidence of water-borne disease and illnesses is reduced; households spend less on health care; the local economy benefits.

  • As part of our ongoing effort to meet basic needs around the world, we’re helping communities in East Africa and the United States get sustainable, long-term access to safe, reliable drinking water in order to promote the health, safety, and prosperity it brings.

  • Our programs support the drilling of solar-powered wells at the community and residential level; creation of pipelines and water distribution points; installation of filtered water bottle filling stations in schools; and residential water delivery solutions. We are also promoting women’s leadership in the management of water resources and women’s entrepreneurship in local water-related ventures. We’ve reached more than 480,000 people to date—and we’re just getting started on our goal to reach 1 million.

Our Programs

Professional athletes, coaches, and sports fans team up to tackle thirst by bringing life-sustaining drinking water to communities in need.

Visit Waterboys

Conquering Kili logo

Support participating military veterans, athletes, and clean water advocates as they continue their commitment to service and push for the summit.

Visit Conquering Kili

Today in Africa, women will spend millions of hours collecting water. Time that could be spent learning, earning, and leading their communities.

Visit water4Her

Hometown H2O logo

In low-income, rural, and tribal communities, local water supplies are frequently contaminated with substances such as lead, arsenic, and nitrates, leaving kids especially at risk for health effects. In communities where water does meet federal and state requirements, children often do not use the drinking fountains in schools, parks, and other public places because they are either broken, dirty or unappealing.

Visit HometownH2O

Change Lives—One Drop a Time

By supporting the Chris Long Foundation, you can help us provide clean water access to communities in need—and dramatically improve hundreds of thousands of lives around the world. Donate today to help us share the gift of dependable water sources, or take part in a fundraiser to raise awareness of the vital importance of clean water access.

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Implementing Partners

Thank you to the many organizations who’ve supported our goal of providing

safe, accessible drinking water to 1 million people worldwide.