A New Approach to Solving Clean Water in the Developing World

WaterHealth International – a FOR-PROFIT company - based in Lake Forest, CA, has a bold and noble vision:

To be the leading company providing innovative and affordable potable water solutions to meet the needs of all people worldwide, including the poorest of the poor.
WaterHealth video

WaterHealth has some innovative proprietary technology that uses UV light to purify water, but the most innovative part is the low maintenance, simplicity and low cost of the units. The systems need very little power and coupled with solar power they become entirely self-sufficient.

For about $2/day, consumers in developing countries can have access to fresh water, helped by the micro crediting techniques pioneered by Nobel Peace Laureate, Muhammad Yunus.

Describing their product…

Our product offerings for underserved and difficult-to-reach communities are based on the concept of decentralized and modular turn-key systems. Our systems are designed for rapid deployment, and are engineered to be easily and sustainably maintained.

Decentralized water solutions are really working for people in developing communities because this enables scaleable solutions for a variety of project sizes. WaterHealth has a true bottom-up approach because they have learned that you have to see this from all perspectives, most noteable the end user. Currently, WaterHealth’s systems supply almost 1 million people in over 500 communities with clean water in India, the Philippines, and Ghana.

WaterHealth’s approach is what’s referred to as a world-centric business model, which means that they are involved in the entire water supply and purification process from end-to-end, including design, product manufacturing, financing, servicing, and hiring locals to operate the company’s systems. This means jobs in the community, empowerment, and even entrepreneurship opportunities for the locals. And when the loan is paid off, the community can start raising money from the water units.

I want to stress, and WaterHealth is not shy to say, that this is a different approach for two reasons:

1. it’s for profit
2. the world-centric approach

Most non-profits have trouble in the long-run because of capital costs and maintenance.

This should be inspiration to us all. To see an amazing vision like this attempting to conquer one of the humanity’s greatest problems, reveals a simple plan to approach an extremely complex problem. How can WE learn from this innovative approach to solve some of our potentially simpler – in terms of non-life threatening – problems?