Why Does No One Take Water Communicators Seriously?

Water is life. It grows our food, fills our cups, keeps us alive and yet, when it comes to telling the story of water, communicators are often treated like the garnish on the plate. Nice to have, but not the main course.

If you work in water, climate, or sustainability, you know how central communication really is. It is what helps people understand the science, feel the urgency, and see their role in the solution. Without it, even the most powerful ideas can stay unheard.

The Water Storytellers Collective was created to change that and to put storytelling and communication where they belong: at the center of how we drive impact.

“Can you make it viral by tomorrow ?”

Every communicator has been hit with requests that sound simple but are basically impossible:

• "We forgot to tell you the event is next week. Can you make sure 100 people show up?"

• "Here’s a document. Can you make it look beautiful?"

• "We don’t have budget for communications, but we need it to go viral."

And when the magic trick doesn’t happen? Blame falls on the communicator, not on the fact that no one gave them time, budget, or even basic respect.

The Missed Opportunity

Here's the thing: storytelling isn't decoration. It is the beidge. Without it, all the brilliant data and policy work risks staying within expert circles instead of sparking broader action.

Look at it this way. Climate scientists and engineers design the best solutions in the world. But if no one hears about them, connects to them, or cares enough to act, what’s the point?

Communication is the bridge between “great idea” and “real change.” When it is sidelined, we lose the chance to spark public support, influence policy, and actually shift behavior.

We Have Seen It Work

Think about the times water communication has broken through:

• Flint Water Crisis (U.S.): The crisis became a rallying cry not because of technical reports on lead levels, but because journalists and community members shared human stories of kids getting sick, families lining up for bottled water, and mothers holding up brown tap water.

• Cape Town’s Day Zero Campaign (South Africa): In 2018, Cape Town warned its citizens that the city could literally run out of water. The phrase “Day Zero” was sticky, terrifying, and effective, sparking global media coverage and pushing behavior change that delayed the taps from running dry.

• Fashion’s Thirsty T-shirt (Global): Remember the stat that one cotton T-shirt takes about 2,700 liters of water to produce? That simple, relatable hook made the water footprint of fashion go viral in a way a 100-page supply chain report never could.

• Pacific Institute’s Water Conflict Chronology: A niche research database? Maybe. But when framed as the global tracker of water-related conflicts through history, it gets picked up in classrooms, media, and policymaking because it tells a story that water is central to both peace and conflict.

None of those moments happened by accident. They happened because someone translated technical detail into human story.

So Why Are Communicators Still an Afterthought?

Partly because communication is seen as “soft” compared to policy, engineering, or science. Partly because it is hard to measure in neat bar graphs. And partly because (let’s admit it) many organizations still think tweeting is just pressing a button.

But here’s the truth. The world has no shortage of data. It needs communicators who can turn data into urgency, jargon into clarity, and water issues into something your grandma (or your teenage cousin) actually cares about.

A Call for Recognition (and Budget)

If we are serious about solving water and climate challenges, communicators can’t be left scrambling at the end. They need to be at the table from day one, shaping how stories are told and who hears them.

Because let’s face it.. without them, the message never leaves the room. And if the message never leaves the room, nothing changes.