News, Press & Perspectives

Find the latest news and press releases about our work in the water and sanitation sector below. 

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Get Blue_Press release header June 2026[87]
Water.org and Founding Partners Launch Get Blue™ to Bring Water Home™ Through Everyday Actions

June 9, 2026

Join Get Blue™, co-founded by Water.org’s Matt Damon and Gary White, and partners Gap Inc., Starbucks, Amazon, and Ecolab to shop, share, and donate to help end the global water crisis.

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The TODAY Show - Matt Damon, Gary White Talk Global Water Crisis and Solutions

June 9, 2026

Water.org co-founders Gary White and Matt Damon joined the TODAY Show to talk about Get Blue and why bringing safe water home for families around the world is within reach. "It's a massive problem but we have solutions," Damon says. Five dollars helps one person get lasting access to safe water or sanitation.

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TIME - Water Will Be the Defining Business Issue of the Decade

Jan. 23, 2026

Water shapes how people spend their time, the choices available to them, and their ability to participate in community and economic life. For the estimated 2.1 billion people who lack access to safe water and the 3.4 billion who lack access to safe sanitation, water dictates everything.

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TIME - Vedika Bhandarkar Believes We Can Solve the Water Crisis in Our Lifetime

May 1, 2025

TIME profiles Water.org President & COO Vedika Bhandarkar as part of Gold House’s A100 List, honoring the most impactful Asian Pacific leaders. Drawing on her 25-year career in finance, Vedika is helping unlock capital and scale smart solutions to accelerate access to safe water and sanitation, driving progress toward a world where everyone everywhere has the resources they need to thrive.

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NextBillion - The Keys to Successful Blue Bonds: How Peru’s Strong Local Lending Systems Are Expanding Water and Sanitation Access

May 26, 2026

For millions of families safe water solutions exist and are within reach — what's missing is affordable financing to pay for them. Water.org's Rocio Cavazos explains how two blue bond issuances are closing that gap for people in need in Peru, and what it took to build the lending systems that made them possible.

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A cyclist and a horse-cart carriage pass each other in a flooded area after heavy rain caused a river overflow, submerging scores of homes in Bandung, Indonesia on March 16, 2025. Timur Matahari—AFP/Getty Images
TIME - The Key to Solving the Global Water Crisis

March 22, 2025

The global water crisis is one of the most urgent and complex challenges facing humanity today. More than 2.2 billion people lack access to safe water, and 3.5 billion lack access to safely managed sanitation. This crisis undermines health and safety, education, and economic opportunity.

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National Geographic - Talking Toilets With Matt Damon

July 26, 2017

The actor is on a mission to bring sanitation and safe water to the entire planet.

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BusinessWeek - Matt Damon Receives Crystal Award

May 16, 2017

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The Guardian - Matt Damon: 'Children are drinking water so dirty it looks like chocolate milk'

April 24, 2017

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NPR - Matt Damon And Gary White On The World's Water Crisis

April 21, 2017

One topic at this week's World Bank Spring Meetings is water scarcity. David Greene speaks with the Co-founders of Water.org, actor Matt Damon and Gary White, about people who can't access clean water.

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CBS News World - On World Water Day, Matt Damon and Gary White talk access to safe water

March 22, 2017

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CBS This Morning - Matt Damon and Gary White on worldwide initiative for clean water

March 22, 2017

Oscar-winner Matt Damon is working to bring clean water to everyone worldwide. He co-founded Water.org with longtime water expert and engineer Gary White. Their goal is to help the more than 660 million people without access to safe water.

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Next Billion - How Water.org 'Took a Leap of Faith' into Social Impact Investing

March 22, 2017

Research and experience has shown that there is a $12 billion demand among families at the base of the economic pyramid (BoP) for access to affordable financing, such as small loans, to meet their water and sanitation needs

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Devex - Q&A: CEO of Water.org on bringing water to 5 million people through social impact investing

March 22, 2017

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Forbes - Water.org Cofounders Matt Damon & Gary White: Corporate Partnerships Are The Future Of Charity

Jan. 26, 2017

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Inside Philanthropy - Why is Matt Damon Encouraging Everyone to “Buy a Lady a Drink?”

Jan. 26, 2017

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World Economic Forum - An Insight, An Idea

Jan. 17, 2017

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Huffington Post - My Interview with Gary White, Co-founder, Water.org

Dec. 1, 2016

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