It won’t come as a surprise that water comes as a luxury for those living in developing countries. In this part of the world, fresh water isn’t available by simply opening a faucet. To quote Young & Rubicam Argentina, and its work for Fundación Vida Silvestre organization, for some “it’s easier to reach water on Mars than on Earth.”
Millions of humans living in the developing countries aren’t so lucky to find water at the tap of a button. Worryingly, they spend up to six hours a day in search of the precious resource, collecting it for them and for their families. According to Stella Artois, more than 663 million people like this keep struggling for survival.
To show that solving a water crisis takes a lot of time, the beer brand partnered with Water.org and created a social experiment which gave consumers the opportunity to experience what is like to wait for this long for a glass of water.
“The Wait for Water” experiment, created in collaboration with agency Mother, showcases people at a restaurant ordering a bottle of water. Instead of receiving a glass of fresh water, they are told that they need to wait about six hours for their drinks. Irritated and frustrated because of such terrible service, many of them seek to speak to a manager to solve the problem. Much to their surprise, the supervisor was no one other than American actor and co-founder of Water.org Matt Damon, who wasn’t there to apologize for the situation but rather to give the angry customers a memorable lesson about what people from developing countries have to endure on a daily basis.
The three-and-a-half-minute-long video follows the 30-second ad titled “Taps,” with which Stella Artois returned to the Super Bowl for the first time since 2011. Half a minute is just enough for Damon to preach his beliefs and ask consumers to become a part of the good cause. The actor asks viewers to help end the global water crisis by purchasing one of Stella Artois’s Limited-Edition Chalice, a range of beer glasses that can bring so much happiness for those who most need it.
“Now with three simple ways to donate – through the purchase of a Limited-Edition Chalice, a 12-pack, or a pint at a bar – we’re making it easier than ever for consumers to help,” said Damon in the press release.
Stella is commissioned to helping more than 3,5 million people in the developing world and provide them with access to clean, fresh water by 2020. The brand’s mission started in 2015 and since then, it has succeeded in helping more than 1 million people.
Anyone can help the brand to successfully complete its mission. Every purchase of a Stella Artois 12-pack—bottles or cans, including Stella Artois Cidre—translates as one year of fresh water for one person. But for the purchase of a limited-edition Stella Artois Chalice, Water.org promises to provide five years of clean water for one person.
Stella’s Chalices come in the same shape but feature unique design motifs that visually represent one of the many countries where the NGO operates. This year, the glasses were adorned by beautiful aesthetic lines that bloomed inside the minds of artists such as Silvana Avila from Mexico, Janine Shroff from India, and Monica Ramos from the Philippines. With endless creativity, the designers harmoniously blended their talent with real-life scenarios and delivered a personal interpretation of the global water crisis that affects their community.
Could this be the Holy Grail that underprivileged people from developing countries are looking for? Let us know your opinion by sharing it with us in the comment section below.
