July 26, 2021
Softys Water Challenge was selected among the United Nations SDG Good Practices, an initiative that seeks to reward the progress and success stories that are contributing to the 2030 Agenda and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals.
The Softys project, which brought together entrepreneurs from around the world, is in the implementation phase and includes the installation of drinking water solutions in four communities in Latin America, which today do not have this basic resource, located in Chile, Peru and Brazil.
The first of these takes place in the Chiloé Archipelago, specifically on Calcahué Island, where the solutions of the Mexican startup Isla Urbana will be installed, benefiting the 16 families that make up this community.
Softys Water Challenge, a social investment project by the hygiene and personal care company Softys, received significant international recognition. After a lengthy period of analysis and evaluation, the initiative was selected as one of the United Nations SDG Good Practices, an initiative that recognizes progress and success stories contributing to the 2030 Agenda and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals set by the international organization.
On this occasion, Softys Water Challenge, a project that aims to respond to and solve water scarcity in Latin America by promoting innovative ideas, was recognized for its ability to leverage SDG No. 6 “Clean Water and Sanitation” and SDG No. 17 “Partnerships for the Goals”.
Nicole Sansone, Softys' Corporate Sustainability Manager, notes that “we are very proud to receive this recognition for our Softys Water Challenge project, which is directly aligned with our goal of empowering the development of local communities through hygiene and health, a commitment that is part of our 2020-2023 Sustainability Strategy. Furthermore, it is an initiative that connects with the efforts we are making in our own water efficiency processes, water-related risk management, and work with the supply chain, among others.”
The implementation
The recognition of Softys Water Challenge comes just as the initiative is in the implementation phase in Latin America, after a competition was held in 2020 in partnership with the UC Innovation Center and the Amulén Foundation, which aimed to find ventures dedicated to water innovation that improve access to this basic resource in the most disadvantaged communities in the region.
In 2020, the competition managed to attract more than 500 solutions from around the world, accelerate the 19 best projects with the support of the Innovation Center of the Catholic University, and award the three best initiatives: Isla Urbana, Remote Water and Watergen.
Initially, the initiative envisioned installing the winning solution in one Latin American community. However, given the success and quality of the award-winning projects, Softys decided to expand its reach. Therefore, the project will now be implemented in four communities across the region, located in Chile, Peru, and Brazil.
The first of these, whose implementation took place during the months of May and June of this year, was carried out on Caucahué Island, located in the Chiloé archipelago, near the town of Quemchi, where the field work was led by the Amulén Foundation.
“At Fundación Amulén, we work every day to improve the living conditions of vulnerable communities through access to water. We are very excited about the implementation of these innovative technologies that allow us to address the access problem quickly, sustainably, and effectively, as many communities have been waiting for a solution for years. We are delighted to be able to contribute to the community of Isla Caucahué and, in doing so, fulfill such a basic and important dream for the people,” says Antonia Rivera, Project Director of Fundación Amulén.
It corresponds to a community made up of 16 families, which until the completion of this project did not have drinking water, despite being a place where the problem was not related to water scarcity, but rather to isolation and lack of infrastructure, which affects the continuity of this resource for the community.
In Isla Caucahué, the solutions of the Mexican startup Isla Urbana were installed, which allow obtaining drinking water through the collection and treatment of rainwater, and which was very well suited to the characteristics of the area.
The other Softys Water Challenge implementation in Chile is taking place in the town of Lumaco, in the Araucanía Region, benefiting 19 families in the area with the same Isla Urbana solution.
In the coming months, solutions will also be developed in communities near Softys' operations in other countries. This is the case in Caieiras, in the state of São Paulo, Brazil, through the same rainwater harvesting solution. In the province of Cañete, located near Lima, Peru, the Remote Waters solution will be implemented. This startup provides technology for purifying seawater or groundwater, transforming it into clean, safe drinking water. It consists of an easy-to-operate and portable purifier that treats contaminated or saltwater.