Water quality is an issue that has been plaguing developing countries, rendering even natural resources unusable. Living in America, it may seem like an irrelevant issue, but the reality is that the water quality in the United States can be compromised by problems such as outdated plumbing and chemicals leaking into water supplies. As a youth, there are a number of different actions you can take to improve water quality in the area where you live.
For example, you could raise awareness about imminent water pollution threats and advocate for federal protections, such as the Clean Water Act. This is an accessible and convenient option for those who are unable to take direct action, since social media can be used to raise awareness. Students at George Mason University attempted this very thing while partnering with the Izaak Walton League in order to engage Gen Z to support federal protections for water quality and spread the word of water pollution threats. The students used research-based messaging tailored to Gen Z engagement styles and social media outreach with political advocacy framing in order to achieve results. At the end of the campaign, results showed that a majority of Gen Z was concerned about water quality and were interested in learning more about the cause.
Another way to spread awareness about the cause is to engineer a solution. There are many different ways of engineering a solution, like taking advantage of 3D printing skills or of programming skills, but one way this was achieved was through engineering a water filter, made by Guilherme Rizzo. A native Brazilian, Rizzo moved to the United States when he was young and decided to connect with his roots by volunteering at Brazil's largest nonprofit. Through his work, he met a boy named Juan, who told him all about the water quality where he lived. It was described as smelling bad, looking brown, and being heavily contaminated, as people often got sick from drinking it.
Rizzo was inspired by this and the fact that 50% of hospital cases in Sao Paulo could have been prevented if people had clean water at home, and thus, decided to make a water filter that was inexpensive but highly functional. Rizzo reached out to Acquaalive, a water filter company, and asked about creating a recyclable filter that was easy to build and easy to function, that specifically only needed gravity to work. Once the filters were designed, Rizzo launched a GoFundMe campaign to raise money in order to distribute the water filters to Juan's community.
You don't have to choose one and stick to it, since both approaches working together can help the most. This is what students in Flint, Michigan, are doing after their water crisis. The Flint water crisis began in 2014 when the city changed its water source and failed to treat it properly, exposing thousands of people to lead. Even now, after the water has been declared safe to drink, many residents in the city don't trust the water from their taps. Instead of waiting around for adults to fix the problem, students in the cities are helping their communities by testing water, handing out filters, sharing important safety information through word of mouth, and raising awareness and money through social media.
Whether you are starting an instagram account to campaign for better water quality, building a real solution to the problem, or both, every student has the ability to help solve this problem. You don't have to wait to be older or have a degree to start making a difference. Researching about your area or ones close to you that are dealing with the same issues can help you find a starting point to eventually start helping out that community.