The path to progress

Before we begin, we need to take a step back.

The year is 1946 — a year that held the founding of the San Francisco 49ers, the birth of Dolly Parton, and the premiere of It’s a Wonderful Life. World War II had just ended, and the collective desire for lasting peace was strong. In response, representatives from 50 countries came together in San Francisco for nearly two months to draft and sign the United Nations Charter.

At first, the UN’s mission focused on preventing future wars. Over time, its vision has grown to include humanitarian aid and protecting basic human rights.

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, adopted by UN Member States in 2015, reflects this shift. At its heart are 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which guide governments, businesses, and nonprofits — including charity: water — as they work toward a more stable and equitable future for all.

“The Sustainable Development Goals provide a collective roadmap for the diverse actors working across international development,” Brian Hoyer, charity: water’s Chief Water Programs Officer, shared. “When engaging with partners, governments, donors, and local stakeholders, the SDGs help us ground our efforts in a common language with collective targets to ensure that water, sanitation, and hygiene — alongside consideration for gender, equity, partnership, and overall alleviation of poverty — are interwoven in key development outcomes.”

This September, as the UN focuses on the acceleration of the SDGs, we want to highlight how our work touches more than half of these goals, and how, together, we can keep moving forward.

Beyond SDG 6: How clean water impacts nine Sustainable Development Goals

GOAL 1: No poverty

End poverty in all its forms everywhere.

At first glance, the connection between clean water and poverty may not seem obvious. But the data tells a different story: A World Bank study found that poverty rates are 10-12% higher in areas with lower water tables than in places with easier access to groundwater.

This was the case for Mary. Before clean water reached her community in rural Malawi, she and others had to dig deep holes in a riverbed — sometimes up to 10 feet down — to find water. The process wasn’t just dangerous; it was incredibly time-consuming. A single trip to collect water could take five hours.

But with access to clean water from a piped system tap stand in her community, Mary suddenly had more time. She started growing and selling sesame seeds and used the income to buy a goat. Now, she plans to expand her herd and is building a new home for her family.

GOAL 2: Zero hunger

End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition, and promote sustainable agriculture.

Once, on a trip to Zimbabwe, we met a man named Joseph who’d devoted his nearly 20-year career to food security and sustainable agriculture. When asked about the connection between clean water and hunger, he told us, “If you have very good food without clean water, you’ll always be food insecure, because you’ll always be unhealthy.”

This rang true in a community just a few miles away. Before access to clean water made a community garden possible, Editor and other women in her community were walking 15 kilometers to get to the nearest garden. That’s more than nine miles! They made the trek several times a week, exhausting their bodies and their available free time.

Now, they’re able to pour time and energy into their own garden — and their own community. “We took it upon ourselves to help our community,” Editor told us. “The elderly are being taken care of. The orphans are being taken care of. We have that spirit of giving here.”

GOAL 3: Good health and well-being

Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages.

At its worst, a lack of clean water doesn’t just take time and health. It takes lives — especially those of children. Diseases from dirty water kill more people than all forms of violence, including war. Children under the age of five are 20 times more likely to die from illnesses linked to unsafe water and bad sanitation than from conflict.

That means mothers like Mamie live in fear. Until recently, she had no option but to give her son Augustine some of the worst water we’d ever seen. “If we have access to clean water,” Mamie shared, “my son will not be getting sick, even during the rainy season. And this will bring me relief.”

Thanks to generous charity: water donors, relief came with the arrival of a drilling rig in April 2023, bringing clean water and better health directly to Mamie, Augustine, and their entire community in Sierra Leone.

GOAL 4: Quality education

Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.

Too often, unsafe drinking water keeps children from the education they deserve. It’s not uncommon for kids to skip school because they have to collect water. In fact, children are 31% less likely to be absent when they have access to water, sanitation, and hygiene resources at school.

For Sarmila, who lives in Nepal, less time spent collecting water meant more time for school, an essential pathway to her dream of becoming a teacher. “I would tell younger girls that you have to study hard, because there’s nothing greater than education. If we work hard, we’ll definitely secure a bright future,” she proudly shared.

GOAL 5: Gender equality

Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls.

Every day, women and girls around the world spend an estimated 200 million hours collecting water. It makes sense, then, that when a community gets clean water, women and girls get their lives back. They start businesses, improve their homes, and take charge of their own futures.

In Bangladesh, a trio of friends are laser-focused on their big dreams to become a judge, a doctor, and a pilot — “Because my friends are going places. Someone needs to take them!”

But it wasn’t all that long ago when entire school days were lost to waterborne diseases and a lack of menstrual hygiene facilities. Now, thanks to a rainwater harvesting system and gleaming new bathrooms, attendance and energy levels are on the rise — as are their ambitions.

GOAL 6: Clean water and sanitation

Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all.

Globally, more people own a mobile phone than have access to a toilet. It’s a major barrier to good health, since many benefits of clean water rely on equal access to sanitation and hygiene resources. One community in Zimbabwe, however, is leading the way.

Soon after clean water came to her community in rural Zimbabwe, Fungai was inspired to build a toilet. At first, only a few families followed her example, but that quickly changed. Today, with support from our local partner and Fungai’s leadership as the community health club leader, all 49 households have their own toilets.

The best news? What started here is expanding every day. After watching Fungai and the changes they’ve seen in her village, surrounding communities are now building their own toilets and adopting healthy habits. Fungai told us, “People talk about what is happening here. Whenever people gather, we say, ‘This is the awesome activity happening in our community.’ We spread the gospel of sanitation and hygiene.”

GOAL 8: Decent work and economic growth

Promote sustained, inclusive, and sustainable economic growth; full and productive employment; and decent work for all.

Like many women we meet, Honorine’s life revolved around getting water for her family — and then managing illness when the water made them sick. Understandably, she didn’t have time for much else.

But when her community in Madagascar received clean water, everything changed. Honorine was able to start her own business, a successful restaurant that has become a social hub in the community — and the best place to get a fresh donut.

As with most progress, one step forward often leads to another. After seeing what Honorine was able to accomplish, other local women told us that they were inspired to start their own businesses as well.

GOAL 10: Reduced inequalities

Reduce inequality within and among countries.

Nearly all of the 703 million people who don’t have access to clean water live in fragile circumstances that make them particularly vulnerable to the negative effects of a changing climate — a significant and quickly advancing source of inequality.

While this issue is highly nuanced, one thing is certain: A reliable source of clean water is a key defense against destructive weather patterns, especially in rural communities. Clean water helps people in crisis maintain their health, their hygiene, and their ability to recover when disaster strikes.

Together with our global network of local partners, we’re adapting our model with climate resilience in mind. In areas prone to drought, for example, extra deep boreholes or rainwater harvesting systems are what’s required. In areas at risk of flooding, water points need to be reinforced to withstand potential damage. We are carefully considering these factors and many others as we work to reduce inequalities through reliable access to clean water.

GOAL 11: Sustainable cities and communities

Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable.

Before clean water, Helen would wake up before dawn and walk a mile and a half to the nearest water point, where she would wait in line with crowds of women. Hours later, she’d return home with 10 gallons of water for her family. It was never enough.

Everything changed in 2009. Finally, with access to clean water, Helen’s family could take care of all their needs: drinking, cooking, cleaning, gardening, laundry. But the full impact of clean water stretched far beyond her own life, and even that of her family.

With sustained access to clean water for over a decade, Helen’s community transformed. What was once a rural home to hundreds is now a vibrant center of commerce, complete with new businesses, electricity, paved roads, and bigger dreams.

Richard, a lifelong resident, shared, “The water point came. Building and construction followed. Then electricity came. And now businesses continue to boom.”

One donation, nine goals: Give water to support global progress

We believe in making smart investments that create lasting change. It’s the approach we take with the water projects we fund, putting 100% of your donations to the best use possible.

And it’s also the approach you take when you choose to support clean water. You’re not just pushing one goal forward — SDG 6, clean and safe water for all — you’re advancing eight other sustainable goals at the same time. Clean water accelerates progress on them all.

“The SDGs are ambitious, much like charity: water’s mission to end the global water crisis,” Chief Water Programs Officer Brian Hoyer reminds us. “This shared vision and collective commitment to a comprehensive plan for improving lives can help us to more effectively plan, coordinate, and measure successes alongside partners as we deliver clean water to communities around the globe.”

We’re proud to join the global effort for a more equitable and sustainable future, and resolute in our commitment: We won’t stop until everyone, everywhere has access to the clean and safe water they deserve.

Let’s keep going.