Kate Peabody, Net Impact member and communications strategist for the CH2M HILL Water Business Group shares how we can make the most of one of our most precious resources - water.

Most of us probably know the global statistics well: 1.2 billion people without access to improved water supply and 2.4 billion people without access to sanitation. Through the media, awareness has been raised on water and thousands of people have been working for centuries to improve water supply and sanitation - yet we are still falling short on key performance results.How can that be, when water reuse is a proven way to conserve the limited water resources on our planet? Why are water reuse rates still so low? (Global Water Intelligence reports only 14% of wastewater is reused in the US and China; 4% in Mexico; 11% in Spain; 15% in Australia; 35% in Singapore.)

Water reuse depends on connecting supply with demand

There is a clear gap in knowledge and understanding of the value of wastewater and how people connect to use this valuable resource. Even if people and companies want to participate in more water reuse efforts and use municipal effluent for their operations, they don't know who to contact or where to find that information easily, or even if water is available for potential use. No single database of that sort of information exists, and water generators and users generally don't interact, especially beyond a local level.WaterMatch, our grassroots goodwill initiative, bridges that knowledge gap. Water users can use the searchable WaterMatch Map to find wastewater treatment plants close to their operations and then use the social networking function to connect with individuals operating the plants. The website helps communities and companies meet and then take action on water, because we know it takes projects on the ground to promote progress. And we want to see that water reuse revolution in every community around the world.

Students are bridging the gap

That's where students and the WaterMatch Makers University Program come in. Through a few simple steps, students use social networking to connect people and promote water reuse, making a difference in how water is managed.Advocating for the CH2M HILL WaterMatch program has been one of the most informative, and insightful experiences of my collegiate career, shares Britany Phillips, a WaterMatch Maker at Texas State University who has helped add the data of more than 100 Canadian wastewater facilities to the map. Due to our involvement with the WaterMatch program, students have learned the significance of treating and reusing our wastewater in order to combat detrimental impacts.

Water is essential to life on earth, and the way we currently use it is unsustainable.

- Saad Ahmed

Saad Ahmed, a WaterMatch Maker at Arizona State University, located in a region acutely aware of water scarcity, explains that water is essential to life on earth, and the way we currently use it is unsustainable. Saad helped pilot the program with fellow student Rud Moe, adding more than 130 wastewater treatment plants to the matching map in Arizona and the U.S. Southwest through their efforts.The most interesting thing that I've learned about Arizona water reuse is how much is reused, says Rud. I think water reuse and the benefits of using WaterMatch really are important - it's only going to work if everyone does it.

Roll up your sleeves and get your hands wet

In addition to knowing they are making an impact, WaterMatch Makers get to network with interesting people in the fields of sustainability and natural resources, and gain important knowledge about water reuse and how mismanaged water resources affect business, society and the environment. But students also find that the program has been a great resume booster by demonstrating awareness of both the impact of resource constraints on business, and how to work with stakeholders to accomplish a measurable result.In fact, I recently heard from a leading firm that empowers investors to make sound long-term financial decisions who wanted to learn more about WaterMatch after a WaterMatch Maker had applied as an intern there. How cool is that? That is the power of social networks, both on and offline, changing what business as usual really means.

So join us, and help make matches happen. Because no water should be wasted.