In our interconnected world, effective communication is much like water: essential, transformative, and capable of breaking barriers. As we navigate an era marked by unprecedented challenges and opportunities in the water sector, learning how to effectively communicate—whether among peers, community members, or elected officials—has never been more critical. At the US Water Alliance, we believe strategic communications play a significant role in shaping an equitable, sustainable, and resilient One Water future—and the more we understand how to engage with one another around key issues, the better equipped we’ll be to advance that vision.
To help our members and the broader field take action on key topics in the movement, we study how to strategically have conversations about the opportunities and challenges we face and find the most effective ways to drive awareness, influence policy, and inspire collective action toward a One Water future. This year’s research projects addressed affordability, regional partnerships, and climate action and sought to make anyone hoping to champion these issues a more effective communicator. We are pleased to share the results from this research in the form of a messaging toolkit to help anyone interested better communicate these topics.
Lessons from Recent Messaging Studies
Here are actionable findings from the Alliance’s most recent reports and tests to inform water communications:
- Building Public Support for Water Assistance Programs: Read about messaging tactics to engage and inform communities about pressing water access issues.
- Building Public Support for Community-Driven Regional Water Partnerships: Learn more about public perspectives on water system regional partnerships, including data-informed tips for starting the conversation with community members.
- A Call for Climate Mitigation in the Water Sector: Messaging Strategies to Move Water Leaders to Action: Browse findings about effective ways to engage water sector leaders in the climate and water conversation.
For more tools and resources to support water communications efforts, browse our collection of Storytelling and Culture resources here. We also invite you to explore and follow the efforts of our Value of Water Campaign—a coalition of leading organizations and individuals from across the US water sector who are working to educate and inspire Americans about how our water is essential, invaluable, and in need of investment.
One Water advocates: we have an immense opportunity ahead of us to collectively inspire action and drive meaningful change in the way we deliver water’s story to the nation. We look forward to keeping the conversation going together.
