On #WorldWaterDay, our Trout Tank H2O participants share why they love water and how it has inspired their businesses.
Check out what water means to them and join us April 19 for Trout Tank H2O: Pitch Event, where five of these outstanding businesses will share their pitch with the chance to take home a $5,000 cash prize.
Sink Twice – Culver Van Der Jagt
I care about water because I have seen what happens to people when they run out. Cape Town for example, is running out of water. People are now carrying five gallons per day just for themselves. Saving five gallons per day is much easier than carrying it. We can never come close to putting ourselves and our children in that kind of a position.
I’m also horrified by what is being done to our aquifers and fresh water supplies. It seems imperative that utilities begin pricing water at its true value and that water saving devices either have no sales tax or are subsidized like Denver Water does for high-efficiency toilets.
Kokopelli Packraft – Kelley Smith
I suppose without water, or with a bunch of dammed up rivers we wouldn’t really have a business. Our primary call to action is to get people out on the water to enjoy nature. We believe that there is a connection to water that humans have and that floating down a river or paddling out on a lake gives you a completely different sense of what water is, the calming effects and how it brings you closer to nature.
Catena Analytics – Andre Dozier
At Catena Analytics, water is at the center of all we do. We help communities understand how they are using their water and how that changes over time. Water is a necessity for all, so it is our top priority to help cities maintain a secure and reliable water supply.
Instream Water – Patrick Mahncke
We believe in a sustainable approach to problem solving. We have a precious natural resource for which demand exceeds supply, and we need to create innovative solutions to address the inequity. In Colorado, we relay on water for agriculture, recreation, commerce and tourism. If we don’t create solutions to reduce waste, improve efficiencies and build awareness around the value of water, everyone will be impacted.
Open Water Foundation – Steve Malers
Water is perhaps the most important ingredient for life and it touches everyone in some way. At the same time, we take water for granted and its price is relatively low compared to other commodities. Most organizations that work with water have a narrow focus, yet the wicked water problems that we face are cross-jurisdictional and span time and space. The Open Water Foundation (OWF) works to understand water issues across physical, organizational, data and other systems so that society can better utilize water resources. Water matters to OWF because it is the primary ingredient in the challenges and opportunities that we evaluate every day.
VisuGen Global LLC – John Gerdes
The presence of potential pathogens in water is critical to our economy and monitoring for their presence will become increasingly important with increasing water demand. Pure, safe water has an impact on the entire community including sustainable agriculture, water recreational use, food processing and overall public safety.
RenewWest – Michael Smith
Wallace Stegner wrote "Beyond the 100th Meridian", a story about John Wesley Powell and his explorations of water in the American West. It talks about how the mountains get much of the attention, but the most common feature of our land is its lack of water. Our land and our lives exist only where water enables it, including our forests. Our forests live in an inseparable symbiotic relationship with water - dependent upon water for their continued survival and enabling of water continuing to stream across our landscape. Loss of forests means a loss of water. Loss of water means a loss of forests. We love them both.
Running Rivers – Andrew Todd
At Running Rivers, we understand that water is critical to Colorado for both our naturally functioning ecosystems and our recreation-based economy. Running Rivers believes that we can’t just be outdoor enthusiasts; we have to give back and commit to long-term conservation and preservation in order to keep the wild places healthy.
n2water - Mike Schultz
There’s many of reasons why water is important to r2water - from the creation of a national fresh water reserve for our national security to the importance of recharging our aquifers to continue to be the bread-basket of food for the world. And because of our need to maintain energy independence we need to reclaim the spent fracking water that is needed per well. Finally, because I have grandchildren and they, like everyone else, will need a plentiful clean water supply!
Morgan Alu is the programs and marketing specialist for the Denver Metro SBDC.
