A Note from CEO Jon Kaufman Ahead of Election Day

As we approach Election Day, I’m reminded that we tend to be echo-chambered and tunnel-visioned as Americans. We aren’t the only nation severely divided in opinion, perspective and approach. Dozens of countries, some developed and some impoverished also suffer from the slings and arrows hurling between neighbors, family and the general citizenries.  

One thing that might unite the warring parties is the aspiration that we are all better off with equal opportunities and access to capital, work, healthcare, good nutrition and education. Perhaps the only thing that truly divides us is the noise. This surround-sound static that surmises that if I give you a sandwich, you will in some small way take away my sandwich someday. That its a zero-sum game, this thing we call existence on Earth. That we need to throttle our power like a resources budget for the coming apocalypse, sitting atop our stockpiles with shotguns laid over our laps. 

Last month, we kicked off Global Water First. The narrative is that safe drinking water is only the triage. You can’t have life without water, so water comes first.  It’s the ICU of care, and it can be fixed with the right technology. Water is also the one element that we can’t “move away” from, like we can move away from fossil fuels. Water is NOT renewable. We’re working with the same number of molecules of hydrogen and oxygen atoms as we had since the Big Bang. Nature gives us opportunities for reclamation, distribution and storage. Humans provide ways to disrupt the cycles and deplete our easy availability to water.  

Global Water First, as implied in the name, asks what is most essential need after you’ve solved a community’s water issues? We say electric power. You probably thought I would say food. Sure, but follow my logic here. Access to opportunity, technology, production capability and commercial advancement starts with the provision of reliable power. Smart Water & Power Hubs, designed by the smartest companies on the planet and deployed by Global Water First and our investors is how you help foster generational independence.  

So, on this eve of our election, at a time where we are our most vulnerable and raw, I have a prayer to offer to our collective soul: May we empower the poor with opportunity, not charity… lift them with a gift of access to technology to create clean water, establish a business, care for their families and instill regenerative ethics in all we do for our shared planet.