Somewhere, a world exists where more people have access to smartphones than toilets. Oh, wait. That's us.

Today marks the 20th annual World Water Day, observed on March 22 since 1993 when the United Nations General Assembly declared a global effort to improve access to clean water. Today, hundreds of multinational brands, political figures, celebrities and NGO's are offering up innovative ways to participate. 

While Americans are drinking more water than ever before, the rest of the world's water crisis is becoming increasingly pressing, making it to the agenda of the 2012 World Economic Forum in Davos. That's when a report ranked water among the top five global factors equal in impact to systemic financial failure and fiscal imbalance, with 2.7 billion people affected by water shortages, compounded by climate change and a global population nearing 8 billion.

Two official meetings—in The Hague, The Netherlands and at the U.N. Headquarters in New York City—are taking place today to facilitate a global conversation on water cooperation, this year's theme, but hundreds of initiatives have launched across the globe in support of the effort.

In keeping with the theme of 2013 being the year of water cooperations, we've found some inspiring examples of the type of public-private partnerships spurring sustainable innovation to address the world's water crisis.Continue reading...

Matt Damon, looking for a way to “persuade people to give a shit about toilets,” staged a press conference in anticipation of World Water Day, March 22. The actor's latest move pushes the continuing efforts of his non-profit, water.org, which educates people about the lack of basic sanitation and clean water for 2.5 billion people around the world.

At the faux press conference, Damon announced that “in protest of this global tragedy … until everyone has access to clean water, I will not go to the bathroom,” and he’s asking everyone to join him at Strikewithme.org.

The aim of the tongue-in-cheek campaign is serious: to move people to click on a link enabling water.org to "occasionally" use their social media accounts such as Twitter and Facebook for six week (because physically relieving yourself is comparable to the mental relief felt after posting a status update?) 

Damon—who might consider refreshing the campaign for World Toilet Day—added that “Six billion people have cell phones, but only 4.5 billion have access to improved sanitation.”

"Welcome to the petri-dish," said Mike McCamon, water.org's chief community officer. "The idea is you sign in and give permission to us for a finite period." Content will be generic yet personal, "so it looks like you posted it."Continue reading...

In case it's not marked on your calendar, today is World Toilet Day — and it's no joking matter.

An estimated 2.5 billion people, 37% of the world's population, do not have access to a clean and safe toilet. One in three women worldwide risk shame, disease, harassment and even attack because they have nowhere safe to go to the toilet. Sanitation would make 1.25 billion women's lives safer and healthier, which is why people are being asked to petition governments to provide safe toilets and clean water for the world's poorest people.

As the Gates Foundation tweeted today, "The annual gain in economic productivity if everyone had a toilet is $225B." Putting things in perspective, Matt Damon, co-founder of Water.org, wants it to be known that more people have a mobile phone today than a toilet: “Six billion people have cell phones, but only 4.5 billion have access to improved sanitation.” Bill and Melinda Gates, in case you missed it, are putting serious funds toward reinventing the toilet as part of the foundation's water, sanitation and hygiene platform.

GE sponsored (as part of its Focus Forward three-minute short film series on world-changing ideas) the "Meet Mr. Toilet" documentary by Oscar-winning director Jessica Wu, which debuted this past January at the Sundance Festival earlier this year. It features the late Jim Sim (aka "Mr. Toilet"), who founded the World Toilet Organization and the annual World Toilet Day.

Named a TIME Hero of the Environment in 2008, Sim — who died in 2009 — was frank and enertaining about extolling the need for better sanitation and breaking the taboos about talking, well, shit. In fact, the former mayor of Suwon, South Korea, inspired a toilet museum in his former hometown, which opened earlier this year.Continue reading...

Today is the 20th International World Water Day, established by the United Nations in 1993 to focus attention on sustainable management of fresh water resources. Among the messages being promoted this day is the fact that close to one in eight people worldwide will not be able to find or drink one glass of safe water, and twice as many will not have access to the use of toilet (a very real crisis that gets its own global day of awareness every November).

The global water crisis is so pressing that it made the agenda at the recent World Economic Forum in Davos as a new report ranked water among the top five global factors equal in impact to systemic financial failure and fiscal imbalance reports Forbes, and globally, 2.7 billion people are affected by water shortages, compounded by climate change, and a population nearing 8 billion.

The good news, from major brands and businesses to non-profits, is that increasing attention is being paid.Continue reading...

Energy drinks are seemingly everywhere, particularly when it comes to marketing to younger audiences.

Industry leaders Red Bull, Monster Energy, and Rockstar have sunk some serious marketing dollars into the “international sports market, sponsoring athletes, events and video shoots in motorsports, surfing, snowboarding and skiing, mixed martial arts, and others,” according to the New York Times. Logos for the brands are appearing on athlete apparel and gear.

Two professional snowboarders had enough last year and started to make their own statement with a campaign, called "We Drink Water", against the energy-drink companies, including creating their own non-logo logo, “Drink Water,” on their boards. The slogan has taken off and now the two snowboarders, Bryan Fox and Austin Smith, have a website selling T-shirts ($30), sweatshirts ($60), jackets ($65), and sets of stickers and pins ($10).Continue reading...

Tough guy Mickey Rourke laughing at himself in Snickers ad is great, though it's no Steven Seagal for Mountain Dew commercial. (via)

Get the "real story" behind Apple's "Think Different" ad campaign.

Google is being lobbied to quit a lobbying group: the US Chamber of Commerce. To find out more, Google: "Google + quit + US Chamber of Commerce."

Parental SEO alert, from "12 Harsh Truths About the Internet": "If you want your kid to be Googleable, you'll have to give them a weird-ass name."Continue reading...

This week, coffee giant Starbucks announced that the free rides were over. Specifically, the rides on the brand's porcelain thrones.

Starbucks plans to convert its public restrooms to employee-only in New York City. A source told the New York Post that Starbucks is tired of being"the public bathroom in the city" as its own employees wait in long lines to use the facilities. So just as they're apparently getting tired of Wi-Fi sippers camping out for hours in their stores, they're taking away the amenities that make Starbucks a home away from home for many freelancers and job-seekers?

Turns out it's not true, as Starbucks subsequently denied the Post's report. The hullaba-loo came just days before World Toilet Day, a global day of recognition of people who lack adequate sanitation — and giddy writers in desperate need to relieve themselves of scatological puns.Continue reading...

Pollution, waste and poor management leaves one in eight people lacking access to safe water, according to the United Nations. PepsiCo finds that statistic unacceptable.

Its latest philanthropic initiative is targeting India, where PepsiCo achieved a "positive water balance" in 2009, giving back to communities more water than it consumed in its manufacturing processes, a significant milestone in its growing water stewardship by implementing sustainable water initiatives, reducing wasteful water use and recycling where possible, in addition to other measures.

Increasing that commitment, PepsiCo just announced an $8 million donation to Water.org, the non-profit co-founded by actor/activist Matt Damon, to be used for micro-loans with a goal of providing 800,000 Indian families safe water by 2016.Continue reading...