Keynote / Conference Speech Excerpt

 

Title: Innovation, Infrastructure, and the Fight for Clean Water
Excerpt from keynote address by environmental nonprofit director

 

Opening:
“When you turn on a faucet in this country, you expect water to flow — clean, safe, drinkable. That expectation is so deeply ingrained, we rarely stop to consider how fragile it actually is.

But in six rural counties across our state, the illusion has already broken. The water is tainted. The pipes are failing. And the systems meant to protect us are asleep at the wheel.”

 

Vision & Solutions:
“This is not a story without hope. Across the nation, innovative models are proving that we can modernize water infrastructure faster and more affordably than ever before:

• Small-scale, solar-powered purification units serving entire neighborhoods.

• Low-interest public bonds funding rapid pipe replacement.

• Polluter-paid trust funds ensuring corporations bear the cost of their contamination.

These solutions work. They just require leadership willing to champion them.”

 

Call to Partnership:
“At Project Blue, we have no interest in working in isolation. Solving the water crisis means forming coalitions across sectors — engineers, policy makers, health advocates, and most importantly, the communities most affected.

The choice before us is simple: we either invest in our water systems now, or we pay for the damage later. But make no mistake — the bill will come due.”

 

Closing:
“The future of our water is the future of our health, our economy, and our stability as a society.

So I leave you with this: when you go home tonight, pour yourself a glass of water. Look at it. And ask yourself if every child in this country has that same privilege. If the answer is no — you have work to do. And so do I.”