Caterpillar Foundation Launches Value of Water Campaign

To raise awareness of the value of water and the impact of the global water crisis on community health, education and economics, the Caterpillar Foundation, together with its global partners, today launched the Value of Water campaign.

Currently, about 844 million people worldwide still lack access to clean and safe water.

“As the company and its customers work to build traditional infrastructure, the Caterpillar Foundation is focused on building human infrastructure, and ultimately, a better world,” said Caterpillar Foundation President Michele Sullivan. “Water is a fundamental human need – it is a basic building block necessary to pursue opportunities such as education and economic growth, and place people on a path to prosperity,” Sullivan continued.

To address the various aspects of the global water crisis, the Caterpillar Foundation will work alongside several partners, including charity: water, Ducks Unlimited, Global Citizen, Living Lands & Waters, Opportunity International, The Nature Conservancy, and Water.org in support of their efforts to:

• Bring clean water to rural communities in Africa through the construction of new wells and innovative pipe systems
• Restore critical wetland habitats that provide flood protection and water filtration
• Reduce river pollution throughout the United States
• Strengthen the health of the world’s vital rivers
• Deliver running water to homes in Africa, Asia and South America through microcredit loans.

The Caterpillar Foundation recently invested $1.4 million with the American Red Cross to help communities prepare, respond to and recover from disasters, which includes critical needs such as providing access to safe water and sanitation.

“We’re so grateful for our partnership with the Caterpillar Foundation as we work together to help create communities that are more resilient and better prepared to respond to disasters,” said Jono Anzalone, vice president of International Services at the American Red Cross. “These locally-managed water, sanitation and hygiene promotion projects can create a domino effect between communities, with one generation teaching the next. ”