The Global Quest for Safe Drinking Water in 2025
Imagine a fundamental resource so scarce that 1 in 4 people on Earth cannot reliably access it. This isn't a dystopian future—it's our present reality.
People lack access to safely managed drinking water 1
People lack safely managed sanitation 1
People lack basic hygiene services at home 1
As you read this, 2.1 billion people globally lack access to safely managed drinking water, including 106 million who must drink directly from untreated surface sources like rivers and ponds 1 . The crisis extends beyond drinking water alone; 3.4 billion people lack safely managed sanitation, and 1.7 billion lack basic hygiene services at home 1 . This triple threat creates a ripple effect across health, education, and economic development, making water scarcity one of the most pressing challenges of our time.
From the drying aquifers of North America to the water-stressed communities of sub-Saharan Africa, the availability of potable water is becoming increasingly uncertain. But even as traditional water sources diminish, human ingenuity is rising to the occasion with groundbreaking technologies that pull water from air, purify it with unprecedented efficiency, and promise hope for a thirstier world.
The statistics paint a sobering picture of inequality in water access. While many in developed nations take clean, running water for granted, nearly a quarter of humanity remains excluded from this basic human right.
38 percentage points lower in safely managed drinking water coverage 1
Spend >30 minutes daily collecting water in many regions 1
Diarrheal diseases claim millions of lives, predominantly children 9
Children miss school to fetch water, especially girls
Today's water crisis springs from multiple interconnected sources that compound the challenge:
Shifting weather patterns are causing prolonged droughts in some regions and severe flooding in others. Melting glaciers and snow packs threaten the freshwater supplies of downstream communities, while rising temperatures increase evaporation from already-stressed water bodies 9 . Climate change acts as a threat multiplier, exacerbating existing water vulnerabilities.
Our freshwater sources face an onslaught of industrial waste, agricultural pesticides and fertilizers, and untreated human wastewater 9 . Even groundwater—once considered relatively safe—is increasingly contaminated as pollutants leach into underground aquifers, making treatment more complex and costly.
Agriculture accounts for approximately 70% of global freshwater use, but much of this is wasted through leaky irrigation systems and inefficient application methods 9 . In many agricultural regions, farmers grow crops that are too thirsty for their local environment, creating unsustainable water demand.
Many regions lack the infrastructure to store, purify, and distribute water effectively. Aging systems in developed nations and absent systems in developing ones both contribute to the problem. Institutional fragmentation and inadequate governance further complicate water management, especially in transboundary river basins where cooperation is essential 4 .
As traditional water sources become increasingly stressed, scientists and engineers are developing an array of innovative solutions to secure our water future.
Using porous nature to absorb chemical impurities like chlorine, volatile organic compounds, and other substances that affect water's taste and odor 2 .
While chlorination remains cost-effective, newer approaches like ozonation use ozone gas—a more potent disinfectant that leaves no chemical residues 2 .
Perhaps the most revolutionary development in water sourcing comes from technologies that harvest water directly from the air. The Earth's atmosphere contains millions of billions of gallons of water in the form of vapor, representing an extensive, largely untapped reservoir .
Early attempts at atmospheric water harvesting required high energy inputs and worked only in humid conditions, but recent breakthroughs have changed this paradigm.
Wastewater reuse is gaining acceptance as technologies improve and water scarcity increases. Modern treatment systems can now purify wastewater to drinking water standards, though public acceptance remains a hurdle in some regions.
As traditional freshwater sources become less reliable, these unconventional sources will play an increasingly vital role in water security.
In 2025, a team of MIT engineers led by Professor Xuanhe Zhao achieved a remarkable feat: they developed a window-sized device that efficiently extracts drinking water from air, even in the extreme aridity of Death Valley, California—the driest region in North America .
Unlike previous atmospheric water harvesters that required external power sources, this device operates passively, without batteries, solar panels, or grid electricity, making it potentially transformative for resource-limited regions.
The heart of the innovation lies in its unique material composition and design. The team created a specialized hydrogel material infused with lithium-chloride salt and glycerol, enclosed in a glass chamber coated with a cooling layer .
The hydrogel's microstructure lacks nanoscale pores, which prevents salt leakage—a critical limitation of earlier designs. The material is molded into an array of small, dome-shaped structures that swell when absorbing water vapor and shrink during release, functioning like a microscopic origami system that maximizes surface area and water-capture capacity.
The researchers fabricated a half-square-meter panel of this advanced hydrogel and mounted it vertically in Death Valley for rigorous real-world testing. The device operated on a simple day-night cycle: during cooler nights with higher relative humidity, the hydrogel absorbed water vapor from the air; during sunlit days, solar heating evaporated the captured water from the gel, causing it to condense on the cooled glass surface and trickle down for collection .
| Condition | Result | Significance |
|---|---|---|
| Lowest Humidity (21%) | 57 mL/day | Proved functionality in extreme aridity |
| Highest Humidity (88%) | 161.5 mL/day | Demonstrated scaling with humidity |
| Salt Content in Water | Below drinking standards | Eliminated need for additional filtration |
| Power Source | Entirely passive | Suitable for resource-limited areas |
"We have built a meter-scale device that we hope to deploy in resource-limited regions, where even a solar cell is not very accessible. It's a test of feasibility in scaling up this water harvesting technology."
This experiment represents a crucial step in scaling atmospheric water harvesting from laboratory curiosity to practical solution. As Professor Zhao noted, this technology offers hope for deployment in regions where even basic electricity infrastructure is lacking.
The quest for safe drinking water relies on an evolving arsenal of materials, chemicals, and technologies.
| Tool/Technology | Primary Function | Key Applications |
|---|---|---|
| Hydrogel-based Adsorbents | Absorb atmospheric water vapor | Passive water harvesting in arid regions |
| Membrane Filtration Systems | Remove pathogens and contaminants based on size | Municipal water treatment, household filters |
| Activated Carbon Filters | Adsorb chemical contaminants and improve taste | Point-of-use filters, final treatment stage |
| Advanced Oxidation Processes | Degrade persistent organic pollutants | Industrial wastewater treatment, pharmaceutical removal |
| Chlorination & Ozonation | Disinfect water by destroying pathogens | Primary disinfection in municipal treatment |
| Sensor Networks & AI Analytics | Monitor water quality in real time | Smart water grids, early contamination detection |
This toolkit continues to expand as research advances. For instance, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Drinking Water Treatability Database provides referenced information on controlling over 160 contaminants through 35 different treatment processes, including 76 types of PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) 6 .
Such resources help water utilities select the most effective technologies for their specific challenges.
Meanwhile, artificial intelligence is revolutionizing water management. AI algorithms can now analyze sensor data to predict pipe failures before they occur, optimize flow and pressure management in distribution networks, and even assist in material selection and pipeline planning 8 .
These digital tools are making water systems smarter, more efficient, and more resilient.
Technology alone cannot solve the global water crisis. Success requires an integrated approach that combines innovation with thoughtful policy, sustainable governance, and community engagement.
Research demonstrates that institutional innovations, such as well-designed water trading systems, can significantly enhance economic efficiency and adaptive capacity during droughts 4 .
The 2030 targets for universal access to basic water, sanitation, and hygiene services will require accelerated effort, as current progress remains insufficient 1 .
Continued research and development of innovative water harvesting, purification, and distribution technologies.
Implementation of effective water management policies, regulations, and transboundary cooperation frameworks.
Strategic investment in water infrastructure, including maintenance of existing systems and deployment of new technologies.
Involving local communities in water management decisions and building capacity for sustainable water practices.
Global collaboration on water research, technology transfer, and addressing transboundary water challenges.
As individuals, we also have roles to play—from conserving water in daily activities to supporting organizations working on water projects and advocating for sensible water policies. The journey to water security will require collaboration across sectors and disciplines, combining the expertise of engineers, policymakers, economists, and community leaders.
The global water crisis presents one of the most complex challenges of our era, yet within this challenge lies an opportunity to reimagine our relationship with water.
From the Death Valley demonstration that pulls drinking water from desert air to the AI-powered networks that detect leaks before they waste precious resources, human ingenuity is rising to meet the water needs of a growing world.
While the statistics can feel overwhelming, they also represent millions of individual lives waiting for relief—children who could be in school instead of fetching water, communities freed from waterborne disease, and ecosystems restored to health. As Dr. Ruediger Krech of WHO reminds us, "Water, sanitation and hygiene are not privileges, they are basic human rights" 1 . The technologies and strategies now emerging give us reason for optimism that we can fulfill this right for every person on the planet.
The path forward won't be easy, but with continued innovation, strategic investment, and collaborative action, we can turn the tide on water scarcity. In the quest for potable water, science is not just providing answers—it's offering hope that every community, everywhere, might one day drink deeply from a well that never runs dry.