1.

Advance Community-Led Solutions by deploying proven WASH* strategies to ensure that every American has clean, running water forever.

2.

Develop an Evidence Base by collecting, sharing and leveraging domestic WASH data to inform our progress toward universal access.

3.

Mobilize America by empowering young people to solve this problem in their lifetimes.

4.

Build an Ecosystem of Change by facilitating high-impact collaboration to lead a diverse, sustainable movement.

*WASH (or WaSH) is an acronym that stands for "water, sanitation and hygiene". Universal, affordable and sustainable access to WASH is a key public health and equity issue and is the focus of UN Sustainable Development Goal 6.

OUR VISION

We believe that by working together, every American family can achieve clean, running water in our lifetimes, and that by learning to better care for our water resources, we can make them last for future generations.

Our water access work began on the Navajo Nation - ground zero for America's water crisis. 40% of people living there still don't have a tap or a toilet.

Our community-led projects have brought clean, hot-and-cold running water to hundreds of homes across 9 towns in New Mexico. We're developing new approaches on Navajo that can be scaled across other parts of the country.

Hello, Utah

The Navajo Water Project now serves hundreds of families across 9 towns in New Mexico. But there’s more to do – so in 2018 we moved into Utah and Arizona, too.

Clean water for St. Michael's School

We brought clean, running water to the only special needs school on the Navajo Nation. Before we got there, nearly 120 people were using bottled water for cooking, cleaning, drinking and bathing.

Still Truckin'

We deployed two new water trucks in 2018. On #GivingTuesday 998 people gave $165,311 in a single day (with a match from the HDR and Tortuga Foundations!) to buy a new water truck for Navajo Mountain.

A growing family

Team DigDeep doubled in size, adding expertise in plumbing, electrical, research and operations.

We're developing national datasets that pinpoint where Americans still live without water and sanitation access and how we can respond.

Our quantitative and qualitative research is providing a clear picture of our nation's water crisis and setting a baseline to measure our progress.

Search party

Millions of Americans still don't have a tap or a toilet at home, but we don't know much about them. So DigDeep embedded researchers in 6 water access "hotspots" around the country to study the issue in partnership with the U.S. Water Alliance and Michigan State University.

DigDeep is a community of Americans helping Americans. We're educating our neighbors on this surprising challenge and inspiring them to take action in their classrooms, clubs, churches and homes.

1,823 Students

Nearly two thousand students used our #4Liters Challenge and Curriculum across 47 US cities and 15 countries through partnerships with non-profit Grades of Green and ed-tech platform Belouga.

EDUCATION PARTNERS

Rotarians to the rescue

Rotary Clubs are some of the world's most powerful champions for water, investing hundreds of millions of dollars every year in WASH projects abroad. Now clubs from Mexico, India and the Southwest are helping DigDeep build water projects in the U.S. too.

Gilbert, AZ
Tempe, South
Tempe Kyrene Corridor
Phoenix 100
District 5510
JdC (MEX)

District 5490
District 5570
Val Verde, AZ
Moore, OK
Prescott Frontier
Hermosillo Milenio (MEX)

Kingman Rt. 66
E-Club Southwest
San Andres, Cholula (MEX)
Tierra Blanca (MEX)
Tehuacan (MEX)
Cuernavaca AC (MEX)

District 4185
Rajkot Midtown (India)
District 3060 (India)
Boca del Rio (MEX)
Puebla Industrial (MEX)
Pue Campestre (MEX)

Frances Fogle, scrap collector

After seeing our work on CBS Sunday Morning, Frances Fogle knew she had to act. So Frances and and her friends at Calvary UMC in Swansea, NC collected and recycled over 51,266 pounds of scrap metal, using the proceeds to bring clean water to three Navajo families.

A night at the museum

We kicked-off our new project in Navajo Mountain, UT with a second gala at the Eiteljorg Museum of Native American Art in Indianapolis. Our needs auction raised over $140,000 in a single night.

PRESS COVERAGE

Our work earned incredible press coverage in 2018. Here are a few of our favorites.

DigDeep is the first and only WASH organization working in the U.S., but we can't do this alone. So we're building a coalition of policy makers, businesses, foundations and civil society groups with the skills and resources to solve this challenge in our lifetime.

A workforce for good

We're working with the International Association of Plumbing and Mechanical Officials (IAPMO), Navajo Technical University, and industry partners to recruit union mentors and establish a plumbing certificate program on Navajo Nation.

Community Plumbing Challenge

With our partner IWSH, we built a team of volunteer plumbers, pipefitters, unions, and manufacturers from all over the United States. Together, we installed clean, running water in 10 Navajo homes in just a week.

We won the U.S. Water Prize

DigDeep was awarded the U.S. water prize, the nation's highest honor for water innovation, taking our spot among other winners like Kohler, Intel and American Water.

DigDeep grew substantially in 2018. With the support of our incredible grassroots donorbase and some new philanthropic partners, we achieved 62% revenue growth over 2017.

Foundations

Philanthropic support grew from less than 5% of revenue in 2017 to more than 25% in 2018, as institutional donors made investments in water projects, research and operations.

The Water Council

The Water Council is a small group of donors who pledge significant annual gifts to cover our operating costs, so that 100% of public donations can support water projects. This year we debuted a new look and feel for the Water Council, a print quarterly, and additional membership benefits like dedicated field trips.

Board of Directors

David Hayes, Wharton Smith Inc.
Joni Abdalla, Wee Believers
Bradley Brown, KKR
Marin Babb, NBC-Universal
Flip Croft Caderao, Infinite Agency
Laurie Peter, MSW
George McGraw, Founder