A Thirst for Change

By Graham Breitbarth News & Multimedia Editor

There’s almost no doubt you can remember the last time you drank clean, uncontaminated water without having to do much except turn a faucet. More than likely, it didn’t even process through your head to worry that the water could’ve been dirty or contaminated.

The global water crisis is an issue that plagues millions, according to the UN in 2019 just over two billion people lack access to “safely managed drinking services,” which was roughly 28% of the global population at the time.

Thirst Project is a charity that aims to end that crisis and for the last 15 years, they’ve been in the good fight to provide over 500,000 people with safe drinking water.

However, let’s go back 15 years to the summer of 2008. The origin of the Thirst Project. Seth Maxwell, the founder of Thirst Project was a 19-year-old college student in Los Angeles. After learning about the global water crisis and just how many people it affected. Maxwell gathered seven of his closest friends and hit the streets, handing out bottles of water for free to get people to talk to them on Hollywood Boulevard. In just three days from learning about the crisis to talking to strangers on the street in LA. Maxwell had managed to turn those three days into 15 years of Thirst Project changing lives.

Maxwell and his friends thought they were finished after those three days. People gave back for the bottles they took and they managed to make $1,700 to fund rehabilitation for a freshwater well. In the days after their success on Hollywood Boulevard people started calling them, asking them to come speak at various schools about the water crisis.

Thirst Project was born from one single moment that changed Maxwell’s life. In the 15 years since, the organization has changed hundreds of thousands of lives. They’ve held active projects in 13 different countries and are currently active in four.

The global water crisis deprives those who suffer from it more than just their health. It takes away their lives, education and so much more. Thirst Project has documented thousands of stories over the years of women and children who have to walk nearly four miles to nearby water sources only to bring back contaminated water. In the hours it can take to retrieve water for their families women and children miss out on opportunities for education better jobs, and even better lives.

Think about the last time you took a four-mile hike or the last time you walked from your house to the other side of your town. Imagine having to do that walk every day to obtain a basic human need that might not even be safe to use. It’s hard to imagine that being your reality, but the truth is that for millions of people, that is their reality.

Fixing the global water crisis is a daunting task, but not an impossible one. Thirst Project isn’t tackling this issue alone. Throughout their work, they’ve learned that students are a driving power in changing the world. After talking to over half a million students about the crisis they’ve seen one of the most powerful waves of change makers in their lives. Their goal is to end the water crisis with this generation of students and create a better tomorrow.

In response to an inquiry by The Skyline View, VP of Marketing and Partnerships Luke Romick stated that “Inspiring, empowering & activating young people is core to our missions at Thirst Project & Legacy Youth Leadership. We truly believe that you have everything you need, right this moment to make a difference on any issue that you care about and we’re living proof of it. Led by an extremely young staff, supported by an army of student ambassadors and ripe with passion for helping every generation leave this planet better than they found it.”

Romick shows a drive and passion for Thirst Project that’s only rivaled by his colleagues and the generations of students they’ve empowered for change.

What does Thirst Project mean to the staff?

Vice President of Marketing and Partnerships Luke Romick

“Over a decade ago, our Founder Seth Maxwell spoke at my High School in the middle of rural Ohio and my life was changed - truly. To be made aware of such a massive global issue that didn’t get a second of nightly news yet was so easy to solve - I pretty much dedicated my time & summers at college and my entire professional career thus far to supporting our mission of bringing safe, clean water to those who need it most. I couldn’t be prouder to be living proof of the inspiring work that young people across globe are doing to end the water crisis with Thirst Project.”

Director of School Programs Abby Wolfe

“As a 16 year old high school student who didn’t think I had the power to make a significant difference in this world, Thirst Project quickly taught me otherwise. Now, at 22, I have the ability to mentor students in their fundraising efforts to help end the water crisis and teach them the same lesson I once learned. Being a part of a movement of young people working together to help provide clean water to those who don’t have access to it will continue to inspire me each and every day.”

Vice President of Student Activation Evan Wesley

“It’s the highest calling, the greatest responsibility, and the ultimate privilege. Working to provide access to a basic human right that sustains lif, in a world where 700 million people lack access, there aren’t many other ways to better invest my time.”

In light of their work with students, Thirst Project set off to create a generation of world changers. They’ve inspired students to start their own movements and not just tackle the water crisis, but issues that meant the world to them as well. In 2016, a movement started behind the scenes of the Thirst Project. That movement would later be known as Thirst Projects’ sister charity Legacy Youth Leadership, a nonprofit student activism organization designed to uplift students into creating their own change in the world. It officially launched in 2020 and to date has engaged with over two million students across the world.

Legacy Youth Leadership has helped students both online and in their schools through their programs. They offer online courses designed to help students improve their skills and turn their dreams of change into a reality. It’s a reminder that although the world may seem troubled and dark at times, there are people wanting to fight to make it a better place.

Thirst Project and Legacy Youth Leadership may be different organizations, but their end goal is the same. The goal of making a better tomorrow, of creating a generation of world changers. The story of both charities is inspirational and it’s a legacy to create a better world for the future. It’s an encouragement to chase your dreams and change the world the way you want to. After all, Seth Maxwell was no older than you when he learned about the water crisis. His determination started a movement that has affected millions. If he can do that, what’s stopping you?

Whether your passion is solving the global water crisis, ending discrimination, or any other matter of things. The fact of the matter is this, you’re living in a generation that will not take no for an answer. We’re in a world where the youth will no longer sit and wait to be pushed around. They’re here to take action, to solve the problems of the past. Thirst Project and Legacy Youth Leadership are standing with us as they change the world. If you ever think you can’t or need help, see what they have to offer and what they have to say. They may just believe in you even if no one else will.

2014: Thirst Project raises more than $1,000,000 in a single year for the first time

2019: 10th Annual Thirst Gala raises more than $400K for the first time while celebrating Thirst Projects 10th anniversary

2019: Thirst Project teams up with cast of Mean Girls to raise funds for a clean water project resulting in over 800 donors

2020: Legacy Youth Leadership is officially created and begins helping students world wide

2023: To date Thirst Project has raised over $14M funding over 3,400 clean water projects for over 500K people