Jaden Smith’s mission to bring clean water to disenfranchised communities is expanding beyond Flint, Michigan, to Newark, New Jersey.
Last year, through his nonprofit 501CThree, Smith and cofounder Drew FitzGerald introduced the Water Box, a mobile water filtration system that’s able to process 10 gallons of water per minute. 501CThree centralized its focus on Flint, where a severe water contamination crisis was exposed in 2014. To date, four Water Boxes have been deployed across the city, providing more than 38,000 gallons of clean water.
And now the organization’s first Water Box outside of Flint has landed in Newark.
It’s commendable progress that’s slowly chipping away at a problem that’s bigger than what’s happening just in Flint or Newark.
“Point, blank, period: This is environmental racism,” says Anthony Diaz, cofounder of the Newark Water Coalition, in a short video about Newark’s Water Box. “Why is this disproportionately affecting people of color? It’s because people can get away with it here. People can sweep problems under the rug. And that’s where folks like us come in and we’re trying to fight this.”
And at least the fight is getting some calvary.
Find out more about 501CThree and Water Box here.
Recognize your brand’s excellence by applying to this year’s Brands That Matter Awards before the early-rate deadline, May 3.