Meet Four Communities Where The Coca‑Cola Foundation is Expanding Access to Safe Water

What does it take to bring safe drinking water to a village where the nearest water source is miles away?

From the Navajo Nation in the United States to rural Uzbekistan, The Coca‑Cola Foundation supports trusted organizations working in last-mile communities to expand rural water access. This includes strengthening local Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) systems and backing long-term infrastructure investments designed to outlast any single grant.

“Water is the foundation of resilient communities,” said Carlos Pagoaga, President, The Coca‑Cola Foundation. “We work with organizations that can go where markets and public infrastructure haven’t yet reached and stay long enough to help turn safe water at home from an aspiration into a reality.”

TCCF community-focused grants deliver safe water directly to families, while water replenishment work across the Coca‑Cola system supports The Coca‑Cola Company’s aim to return more than 100% of the water used in finished products globally to nature and communities.

The four projects below show what that goal looks like on the ground.

With a grant provided by TCCF, charity: water is helping bring access to safe water closer to home for communities in rural India. Through investments in water infrastructure and community training, the initiative is expected to benefit thousands of people, helping reduce the time and effort spent collecting water – especially for women and children. To help ensure lasting impact, local community members are trained to manage and maintain the systems, supported by ongoing engagement and remote monitoring that helps keep water flowing for years to come.

“Clean water changes everything – health, education, opportunity,” said Brian Hoyer, Chief Program Officer at charity: water. “With The Coca‑Cola Foundation’s support, we’re investing in long-term systems, remote sensors and local partnerships that keep water flowing for a decade or more after the ribbon is cut.”

From the Navajo Nation to rural Appalachia and along the Texas-Mexico border, DigDeep is helping close America’s hidden water gap, an often-overlooked challenge that leaves nearly 2 million people¹ in the United States without running water or sanitation at home. Since 2023, TCCF has awarded more than $1 million to support DigDeep solutions that bring safe, reliable water access closer to families and communities in need.

Over the past two years, the collective efforts of DigDeep, communities, funders and local partners have reached 38 Navajo Nation Chapters, six counties in West Virginia and Kentucky, and two counties along the Texas-Mexico border – delivering more than 2.7 million gallons of safe water and helping approximately 4,200 people experience something many Americans take for granted: turning on the faucet or flushing a toilet at home.²

In the Aral Sea region of Uzbekistan, water can become contaminated and unsafe for consumption by the time it reaches rural communities. Since 2011, UNDP Uzbekistan and The Coca‑Cola Foundation have helped restore clean drinking water to communities across the region, reaching the most remote communities.

In the Khilol community, this pro

ject brought clean drinking water to all 3,011 residents, including the Sabirova family depicted below, for the first time.

In some of the world’s most water-stressed regions, WaterAid pairs safe drinking water infrastructure with hygiene education, sanitation upgrades and long-term system strengthening led by local governments and the communities themselves.

With support from TCCF, WaterAid is helping ensure that a safe tap is a permanent reality, not a privilege that ends when a project closes. In Ward 8 of Godawari Municipality, one of Nepal’s most water-deprived wards, TCCF-funded work implemented by WaterAid Nepal and the Center for Integrated Urban Development delivered safe drinking water to nearly 700 households under the national “One House, One Tap” approach.

From Appalachian hollows to Indian villages, TCCF supports organizations expanding water access and delivering safe drinking water to communities. The volume of any single household connection may be small, but the human impact can be significant.