Clean water for 3M people
For years, we referred to ourselves as a startup organization. But in 2012 we realized that wasn't entirely true. In 2012 alone, we raised $33 million and funded more than 2,000 water projects. We were able to give more than 700,000 people clean water around the world. And for the first time in our history, we began to feel like we weren't a startup anymore.
Every year, we set ambitious goals for ourselves. We know that the long hours spent working, and the money we raise translates into clean drinking water for thousands of people in need.
Bringing clean water to people looks different in each country. We fund a variety of water solutions depending on water sources, terrain and population. Here are some of the water solutions we funded in 2012:
A drilling team drills deep into the earth to reach fresh aquifers.
Gutters on rooftops direct the flow of rainfall into a sanitary holding tank.
Skilled laborers dig up to 15 meters by hand to reach aquifers below.
A system captures and safely stores pure water from a natural spring.
Layers of sand and microbacterial film filter out contaminants.
Networks of pipes supply water to different community tap stands.
Covered shelters provide safety and privacy for bathroom users.
A team repairs broken projects to restore clean water to a community.
In December, we announced a $5 million pilot project with Google to develop remote sensor technology that will tell us exactly how much water is flowing through our water points at any given time, anywhere in the world. Over the next few years, we’ll develop and install 4,000 low-cost remote sensors in our existing and new water projects in several different countries.
This will ensure that our water projects are being maintained and repaired when necessary, and that clean water keeps flowing.
Since day one, we’ve always believed in proving our work to our supporters. We track every dollar a campaigner raises and once the project they funded is finished, we send them a completion report with photos and GPS coordinates of their project.
Photos
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GPS
In July, 2011, a nine-year old girl named Rachel Beckwith died from a tragic car accident. Thousands of people around the world heard her story and began to donate to her 9th birthday wish campaign.
Once the projects were complete, we took Rachel’s mom, Samantha, to Ethiopia with us to see a few of the wells her daughter helped build. Take a look at the video:
We want to bring clean water to 100 million people by 2022. As part of that goal, we plan to serve 3 million people in 2015 and bring 100% coverage to massive communities in both Ethiopia and Rwanda.
Tigray, Ethiopia
In the last four years, with the help of our implementing partners REST and A Glimmer of Hope, we've funded over 2,100 water projects and served more than 830,000 people with clean water in Tigray. But there are still more than 3 million people without clean water here, and we're not stopping until we've served every one of them.
Rulindo, Rwanda
Our 2012 September Campaign funded seven large scale water systems in Rwanda. With the help of our implementing partner, Water for People, we will bring clean, safe water to everyone in Shyorongi and Ngoma sectors of Rulindo District. But Rulindo District is massive, and we're going to keep going until every sector has access to life's most basic need.
Our supporters donate online and mail in checks, volunteer at events, contribute to our staff salaries and operating costs, and even give up their birthdays to help us do what we do. charity: water wouldn't exist without them.
As we grow, our donor base continues to grow, too. We receive donations from people all around the world generously supporting our cause and making our work possible. Here’s some information about our 2012 donors:
90,057 Donated to clean water
$187.90 Average donation
In 2012, our online fundraising platform, mycharity: water, hit a huge milestone. In just over 3 years, it raised $20 million — 100% of the money going to clean water.
charity: water began with a birthday party, and since then, the idea of giving up your birthday for clean water has grown into a movement. Over half of campaigns on mycharity: water are birthday campaigns.
Most Raised$84,101
Adam Lambert Gave up his 30th Birthday
395 birthdays | 299 birthdays | 477 birthdays | 662 birthdays | 494 birthdays | 446 birthdays | 546 birthdays | 610 birthdays | 732 birthdays | 604 birthdays | 497 birthdays | 529 birthdays |
J | F | M | A | M | J | J | A | S | O | N | D |
Sarah51 birthdays
Michael38 birthdays
Our supporters didn’t stop at just birthdays. They came up with some very creative ways to fundraise for clean water.
More than 1,800 people joined us as we hosted our 7th annual charity: ball gala at the 69th Regiment Armory in NYC. Seth Meyers of Saturday Night Live hosted the evening as we raised over $3 million in one night.
A sincere thank you to all of you who made it out to NYC and celebrated with us.
The Well is a group of donors who support the operating costs of charity: water. They cover everything from staff salaries and supplies, to office rent and flights to the field. Without their support, we couldn’t raise money for water projects or run the organization.
Our Well Members also happen to be some of the most creative, inspiring and successful people we know. Take a look at some of the brands they lead:
Our team consists of incredibly talented and passionate people who are proud to make a difference in the world by doing work that they love every day.
In 2012, our staff more than doubled in size!
23 New staff hires in 2012
45 total employees (We’re still hiring!)
We might be from all over, but we’re all proud to be New Yorkers.
They show up early and stay late, parade down the streets of New York City holding Jerry Cans, post photos to Instagram and Facebook, and write thousands of thank you cards. Our volunteers are our most dedicated supporters.
charity: water is overseen by a board of talent and influence. Our board governs major charity: water decisions, approves all water programs and offers input and guidance for organizational decisions.
Michael Wilkerson (Chairman), Brant Cryder, Brook Hazelton (Secretary), Gian-Carlo Ochoa, Ph.D. (Treasurer), Gordon Pennington, Scott Harrison, Valerie Donati
We began the year in our strongest financial position to date. As a result, we were able to invest in the most talented people, some of the best technology, as well as inspire new funding for innovative solutions like remote monitoring. We continued to build on that strength throughout 2012.
100% Model.
When we started charity: water, we made a bold promise — 100% of public donations would go directly to the field to fund water projects. We’d depend on private donors to cover our staff and operating costs. Six years in, we’re still keeping that promise!
$22M raised
for water
$11M raised
for operations
Donated goods & services$1.5 million
In 2012, we sent $18,292,119 to the field to fund 2,034 water projects in 14 developing countries. That’s 100% of every dollar raised by the public. Here’s where the money went:
Ethiopia (37%) | $6,843,764 | |
Rwanda (10%) | $1,780,037 | |
India (9%) | $1,588,906 | |
Malawi (8%) | $1,400,000 | |
Cambodia (7%) | $1,353,811 | |
D.R.C. (6%) | $1,008,357 | |
Tanzania (4%) | $807,211 | |
Kenya (4%) | $695,339 | |
C.A.R. (3%) | $635,150 | |
Burkina Faso (3%) | $502,071 | |
Nepal (3%) | $490,854 | |
Bangladesh (2%) | $405,283 | |
Cote d’Ivoire (2%) | $454,258 | |
Liberia (2%) | $327,078 |
In just six years, we’ve invested more than $55 million in water projects.
In 2012, we invested $4,764,543 of private donations in our own infrastructure, including competitive staff salaries and benefits, water program development, technologies, trips to the field, special events and office operations. Here’s where the money went:
Payroll (68%) | $3,237,189 | |
Professional Fees (13%) | $607,101 | |
Travel (7%) | $326,665 | |
Office Equipment & Supplies (4%) | $205,322 | |
Shipping, Printing, & Postage (3%) | $121,167 | |
Events (2%) | $90,201 | |
Rent & Utilities (2%) | $110,584 | |
Credit Card Fees (1%) | $57,394 | |
Marketing (0%) | $8,920 |
It costs charity: water just 5¢ to raise $1.
KPMG. We moved to a Big 4 Accounting Firm, where we’re now working with global leaders in audit and tax services.
Charity Navigator. We received another 4-star rating for financial accountability and transparency.
401K. We established our first employee savings plan, where charity: water matches staff contributions up to 4%.
Thank you for another unbelievable year. We appreciate your support, the faith you put in our staff and partners around the world, and the passion you have for helping bring clean water to people in need. And most importantly, we appreciate that you made it through our entire Annual Report. Here's to another great year!
— the charity: water team