Grantee partners presenting at the 2026 University of North Carolina Water & Health Conference offer reflections on their work and what it will take to deliver reliable safe drinking water to rural communities.
The urgent, global need for safe drinking water in rural communities demands strong partnerships and coordination between service providers, governments, philanthropy and other actors. At the 2026 UNC Water & Health Conference, grantee partners of the Hilton Foundation presented key findings, lessons learned and other research related to safe water delivery and how these entities can pull together in a unified safe water strategy.
Andrew Armstrong, Data Integrity Lead, Uptime Global
“We believe that investments in data integrity systems can generate a return not only for governments in terms of better planning and allocation of resources, but also in building a case for safe and reliable services… through new forms of investment”
“We need to have a stronger regulatory body [for safe water], which will enable us to put in place accountability, transparency, and responsibility in the sector.”
Abera Endeshaw Abebe, Senior Advisor to the Minister, Ministry of Water and Energy, Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia
“It is absolutely critical to connect water resource management with WASH service delivery, because the conditions of landscapes hugely affect the quantity and quality of water available.”
Francesca Battistelli, Senior Associate, Water Program, World Resources Institute
“What is most exciting about this study is that it provides us with the evidence to build the structures, mandates, and institutions that support water utilities, and also to build the internal utility capacity required to provide these services in a very difficult context.”
Khuzwayo Tembo, Senior Specialist, Service Delivery, Aguaconsult
“At WRI, we are doing a restoration project in Ethiopia. We are seeing an increase in water elevation, improved surface water flow, and recovery of vegetation in the area. This has implications for water quantity and quality for WASH access downstream.”
Zablon Adane, Associate, Water Program, World Resources Institute
Uptime: The Data Dividend
World Resources Institute: Why Once-Scarce Water Is Coming Back in North Mecha, Ethiopia
Mangrove Water: Case Studies
