Take Action

Join the journey towards a world with drinkable rivers: step by step.

Step 1. Thank water before you use it

We all need to become more aware of the value of water. We need water everyday and without it, everything stops. So, let’s make it a daily ritual to thank water for keeping us alive. That’s the least we can do.

Step 2. Rethink what it means to (be) clean

Most of us start our day in the bathroom: we go to the loo, take a shower and brush our teeth. We clean ourselves, but we often pollute our waters with a toxic mix of microplastics, parabens and chemical substances. Let’s take a serious look at what products we are using in the bathroom and change to products that clean ourselves and keep our waters clean too.

Step 3. Dress up, buy less

The fashion industry is using 4% of all freshwater globally and an estimated 80 to 90% of wastewater is returned to the environment untreated. The dying process releases a cocktail of toxic chemicals and the washing of clothes releases microplastics in. Think about that when buying (new) clothes or when throwing them away. In short, buy less. In case you do need something else to wear: buy second-hand, buy organic and buy stuff that lasts for generations.

Step 4. Go plant-based

Intensive livestock farming takes up almost a quarter of all our scarce freshwater resources and causes serious water pollution. At the same time, 4 million people suffer from severe water scarcity at least one month per year. Let’s connect the dots and take a major, personal step towards drinkable rivers by changing to a plant-based diet.

Step 5. Save and re-use water

Water is a scarce resource, so we need to start treating it that way. If you are lucky enough to have a garden, you can start to harvest rainwater and use it to water the plants in your garden and, with some inventiveness, to flush the toilet. If you do not have a garden, you can also use greywater to flush your toilet. Isn’t it bizarre that we think it’s normal to flush our toilets with tap water?

Step 6. Do forget your pills

Medicine use is going up around the world. As a result, the amount of medicine residues that end up in our waters has increased significantly. These medicine residues consist of a wide variety of chemical substances. A good rule of thumb is to use as few medicines as possible. Ask your doctor for possible alternatives.

Step 7. Remind yourself

Everyone is needed everyday to make our rivers drinkable again. So remind yourself of the impact of your actions and ask yourself that ultimate question: does my choice contribute to drinkable rivers or not?

Step 8. Sign the Lifeline

Make a commitment to contribute to drinkable rivers and sign the lifeline.

Sign the Lifeline

Scout Your River

Wherever you are around the world, you can scout your freshwater body. We made a selection of our Citizen Science measurements into a module called ‘Scout your River’ for which you don’t need a toolkit. If you get the taste for this, you can always upgrade and become one of our Citizen Science hubs. Please watch our video below, follow our steps and start scouting your river.

Manual River scouting

Let’s create a world map of our rivers!

Download the manual by filling in your detaills on the right, and start scouting your river.