Corporate America has been draining the world’s water. Matt Damon’s new campaign asks Gap, Starbucks, and Amazon to help give it back

Water.org, the nonprofit co-founded by actor Matt Damon and engineer Gary White, is launching Get Blue, a consumer-facing campaign that bets corporate America’s retail footprint can do more for the global water crisis than traditional charity ever could. Get Blue’s founding partners—Gap, Starbucks, and Amazon—are themselves significant consumers of the world’s water supply. Gap Inc. consumed 28 billion liters of water in 2024. A single cup of Starbucks coffee carries a virtual water footprint of roughly 140 liters, accounting for the water used to grow, produce, package, and ship the beans. And Amazon, whose AWS data centers underpin much of the internet, reported 7.7 billion gallons in primary water consumption. Now, all three are being asked to help solve the crisis their operations help deepen. The initiative goes live Monday with those founding partners, alongside Ecolab, and is designed to embed water philanthropy into the mundane rhythms of consumer life: buying a t-shirt, ordering a matcha, asking Alexa a question. More than 2 billion people—roughly one in four globally—lack access to safe water at home, with many relying on hours of daily walking or unsafe sources. The campaign’s mechanics hinge on Water.org’s WaterCredit model: proceeds funnel to local financial partners that issue small, affordable loans so families can finance pipes, pumps, or plumbing. Five dollars funds access for one person; $25 for a family. The loans repay at a 98% rate, meaning capital revolves—one family’s repayment seeds the next family’s loan. Water.org says it has reached more than 90 million people and is targeting 200 million by 2030. Gap is launching a limited-edition capsule collection—denim, tees, and sweats across adult, kids, and toddler lines—with $5 per purchase going to Water.org. The company has saved more than 6 billion liters of water across its supply chain since 2016 and has set a 2030 goal of reducing and replenishing wat