It’s a staggering statistic: One in 10 people around the world still doesn’t have access to clean drinking water. Most of those affected by this water poverty live in rural areas in developing countries. Many such areas lack basic sanitation, which makes what water is available a source of disease. Every day, millions of people, predominantly women and children, spend hours traveling to water sources, waiting to collect water and returning again. This prevents them from earning an income or receiving an education, creating a cycle of poverty and inequality.  

The challenge is huge, but the answer, at least, is clear. The moment a community is granted easy access to clean water, health and quality of life can improve. This is why the non-profit organization charity: water has made it their mission to help bring clean, safe water to every person on the planet. But providing the right water solution for each community requires a nuanced approach. 

“No two communities are the same, and neither are their water solutions,” explains Makena Cunningham of charity: water. That’s why it's important to take factors like geography, water availability, and culture into account before proposing the right solution.” 

One of the countries where the impacts of the water crisis are known painfully well, and where charity: water is most active, is Cambodia. 

According to charity: water, nearly 80% of Cambodia’s population lives in rural areas. In those areas, 35% of the population lack basic access to water and 39% lack basic access to sanitation facilities. In many communities, open surface ponds and rivers are the only accessible source of water. Water polluted by human waste and microbial contamination. To make matters worse, if the few available wells break, communities have to resort to drawing water from said contaminated sources.

In these circumstances, one of the best solutions is one of the simplest: a BioSand Filter.

To highlight the impact of this solution, Makena told us about one of the recipients of a household BSF system, Khloeum (pictured right) and her family. 

“Khloeum told our partners at Clear Cambodia that her family used to drink from an unprotected well that made them sick. So sick that her sons often missed school, and Khloeum and her husband struggled to maintain their vegetable garden — their primary source of income.”

“When they opted into Clear Cambodia’s BioSand Filter program, their health returned, along with their energy for work and school. The family is now saving money every month, which Khloeum hopes to use to open a grocery shop and send her oldest son to university.”

To help accelerate access to the life-changing benefits of clean water, On launched the clean water Strava challenge. Taking place from late March, the challenge was timed with the launch of the new Cloudsurfer, which is colored using dope-dyeing, which uses 90% less water than standard techniques. Together with charity: water, we called on runners around the world to run in support of charity: water’s work in Cambodia. For every kilometer logged via Strava, On donated the equivalent of 10 liters of water to charity: water (or more specifically, the infrastructure systems to deliver it). In under two weeks, the On community put in an incredible effort to hit the target of 10 million kilometers, representing over 100 million liters of clean water. Well, at least before we decided to bump that number up to 110 million.  

This will be achieved by installing four water and sanitation systems in rural Cambodian schools. The students will also profit from education about hygiene and sanitation habits, knowledge that will support good health for a lifetime. In addition, 10 BioSand filters will be installed in affected communities – providing safe drinking water at a rate of 16 gallons (60 liters) per hour. This infrastructure will secure a lasting supply of clean drinking water and a healthier life for an estimated 4,320 people. 

How you can make a difference

If you’d like to go one step further, there are countless ways of saving water in our everyday lives. Using less water not only benefits our local ecosystems, it also saves energy because less energy is needed in wastewater treatment plants. Here are some ways you can make a difference:

Turn off the tap and choose the shower over a bath

Sometimes, we just don’t need to keep the water running. It’s comfortable, but the amount of water you can save by turning it off is worth it. Also, consider trading a hot bath for a quick shower to save even more water. According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, taking a bath can require almost three times the amount of water compared to a shower – as long as you don’t spend enough time in the shower to sing a whole album, that is.

Be mindful of your diet

There are certain foods that we don’t want to go a day without. However, opting for a regional, seasonal diet ensures that water is being used efficiently. It also cuts down on CO2-emissions as transport journeys get significantly shorter. Dairy and meat products are especially water-intensive. To save water, try eating fewer of them, or switch to a vegetarian or vegan diet completely.

Choose water-saving products

Everyday items like your shoes offer a great opportunity to save water – for example during their coloration process. There’s a set of different alternatives, for example choosing shoes and gear that feature undyed materials, which skip the dyeing process altogether. 

If you want to add a splash of color to your outfit with less associated water use, dope-dyed shoes do just that.

“With dope dye, the color pigments are injected into the yarn as it’s being spun,” explains Eva-Maria Beer, Color & Material Design Lead at On. 

“The pigments are trapped inside the yarn before it becomes a finished fabric and, with that, give it the desired hue. This drastically reduces the water consumption during the coloration process. And since this is the step that requires the most water in the production of a shoe, it gives us the best opportunity to save water.”

The all-new Cloudsurfer is our first shoe to use dope dyeing, but it won’t be the last. With each pair, the dope dye process saves 2.61 liters of water. That’s a 90% decrease compared with standard dyeing techniques. 

To learn more about the global water crisis the work of charity: water, visit charitywater.org.

The Cloudsurfer is a prime example of how we aim to create high-performance products, with the lowest possible footprint. And a key milestone as we strive to reduce our impact. But this is only the beginning. Read more about our sustainability efforts and how we strive to be part of a better future.