When Hannah Bellamy of Charity Water joined me, Toby Mildon, the conversation took an unexpected turn towards the profound impact of workplace diversity on global issues like the water crisis. Throughout our discussion, we uncover the stark realities faced by women and children in developing countries who struggle daily for access to clean water, and how initiatives like those spearheaded by Charity Water can lead to inclusive growth and sustainable development.
The synergy between businesses and charities unfolds in this episode as we explore how strategic partnerships and innovative fundraising are amplifying the impact of nonprofits globally. Companies like Boston Consulting Group don't just offer support probono; they're part of a larger movement that aligns corporate responsibility with the values of their employees and broader societal needs.
If you want to build a more inclusive workplace that you can be proud of please visit our website to learn more.
When Hannah Bellamy of Charity Water joined me, Toby Mildon, the conversation took an unexpected turn towards the profound impact of workplace diversity on global issues like the water crisis. Throughout our discussion, we uncover the stark realities faced by women and children in developing countries who struggle daily for access to clean water, and how initiatives like those spearheaded by Charity Water can lead to inclusive growth and sustainable development.
The synergy between businesses and charities unfolds in this episode as we explore how strategic partnerships and innovative fundraising are amplifying the impact of nonprofits globally. Companies like Boston Consulting Group don't just offer support probono; they're part of a larger movement that aligns corporate responsibility with the values of their employees and broader societal needs.
If you want to build a more inclusive workplace that you can be proud of please visit our website to learn more.
[music]
Speaker 1: Welcome to the Inclusive Growth Show with Toby Mildon, future-proofing your business by creating a diverse workplace.
Toby Mildon: Hey there. Thank you ever so much for tuning into this episode of the Inclusive Growth Podcast. I am joined today by Hannah Bellamy, and today we are gonna be talking about water. We've never talked about water before, and it'll be really interesting to talk about how water relates to the work that we do in diversity and inclusion. So, it's quite an intriguing episode. So Hannah, it's lovely to see you today. Thanks ever so much for coming along.
Hannah Bellamy: No, thanks for having me, Toby.
Toby Mildon: Hannah, can we just begin with some introductions? Could you just let us know who you are, a bit about your background, your current role, and your unique perspective that you bring for the charity work that you do?
Hannah Bellamy: Yeah, of course. So, I'm Hannah. I work for an organization called Charity: Water and I'm the managing director here in the UK. We are a global organization. And I came to the charity really through all sorts of different routes. So, my very first job was actually in publishing. I studied literature at university and went into the world in a very idealistic way, wanted to go into publishing and discover great literature and works of art and things, but quickly realized that actually publishing is a business. It has to work like any other.
Hannah Bellamy: It has to be able to sell its product, it has to make them in a way which ensures there's enough of a profit to be able to invest in the future books. Once I realized that and that it wasn't just about going out and discovering the next great thing, I decided that I would jump into business head first and actually left and went and worked for a very large corporate on their graduate scheme and learned all about business and what it is and how it does and how to bring people along with you, but also balance the books and the very many different considerations.
Hannah Bellamy: And within that, what I realized was the thing that most appealed to me and most important to me when I was in the workplace was the ethics of the business. How is a business not only treating its employees but considering customers, considering supply chains, considering their role within the world. And I think that, this was probably about 20 years ago, and I think things have got even more, the focus on those areas has really grown. So, for me it was an energy company I was working with at the time. It was fascinating to see from how do you source energy.
Hannah Bellamy: How do you go into countries which are extremely different, with very different ways of working in terms of government and everything else. How do you source things responsibly. How do you then deliver energy to people's homes and ensure that the environmental impact is considered and minimized and on top of that, that you are thinking about how important what you're supplying is to people.
Hannah Bellamy: So lights on, heating on people being able to cook. So, I jumped into all of that and really learned so much about what business is and how it can impact people's lives, how it can really grow and what does that mean for different people in different scenarios. And having done that for a while, I realized that actually my strongest motivation was around the charitable side of it. So, actually not only doing all of that, but actually trying to not only do things in the most responsible way, but move across to deliver positive impact.
Hannah Bellamy: So, I worked in partnership with a number of different charities and decided to leave and go work directly with a charity. And for me that's because I was motivated by thinking about climate change and what that means, but really what gets to me and my gut is kids and giving them an actual start in life and sort of all the different roles that, and things there are to consider in terms of diversity and inclusion.
Toby Mildon: Cool. So, you're at Charity: Water now. Could you tell us a bit more about the water crisis and the work that your charity does to address this?
Hannah Bellamy: Yeah, of course. So right now, and it's very difficult for some of us to imagine, but there's 703 million people, which it's almost one in 10 people. They don't have access to clean safe water. What that looks like and feels like is not being able to turn the tap, obviously. But beyond that, actually having to, it's usually a woman. So, I've met some lots of different women in different countries who have this role. One of our teammates, someone called Mulatani, for example, who lives in Malawi. And for her family, what this looked like was her getting up at about 5:00 AM every single morning, putting on a very old pair of kind of flip flops and walking about half an hour up and down a very uneven ravine, really unsteady on her feet, queuing, first of all with lots of other people who are going to collect water to their families.
Hannah Bellamy: Queuing seeing cows drink from the water source. So, you're just looking at like a very kind of pond type. I say pond. It's only a few centimeters deep, pretty dirty, full of parasites, possibly leeches, sharing it with animals who are drinking there and pooing there and everything else. Queuing to where you could actually access this water. Using a scoop. So, a bit like a plastic saucepan type shaped thing maybe, or a cup and putting it into a jerrycan, all this water and putting that onto her head, going back up over the ravine, down, taking it to her family and starting to go about the day, which would be obviously preparing breakfast, cleaning the home, getting the kids ready for school, sending them off to school, looking after the goats, some subsistence farming. And actually then what you think, oh, great, she's done, she's not done. Once the kids have gone off to school, she... That first amount of water she could carry is finished. And so once again, she's off, she's walking that half an hour route, back up the ravine, very unsteady, electing more water and it's pure drudgery. So, the water crisis not only looks like not being able to access clean water and have that immediate human need that we need within the home but actually drudgery and chores and really holding particularly women in many places about 80% of women will be doing the collecting of water.
Hannah Bellamy: It keeps them away from doing anything else. And then the other side of it is not only is it holding people back in their potential, not having access to clean water and sanitation is the leading killer of children under five. And I always think about that and the fact that we know how to solve this. This is something we know how to fix. And I just think how can we not be motivated to want to fix this problem to [0:07:15.5] ____ a lot of people from this drudgery and to save these children's lives?
Toby Mildon: So, obviously the work that we do is around diversity and inclusion within the workplace and we mainly work with HR professionals and the people listening to this podcast mostly work in the HR sector. So, why do you think HR leaders and businesses should care about issues like clean water and the situation that you've outlined and how does this relate to their employees and their role with society?
Hannah Bellamy: It's such an interesting question and I think it touches people in so many different ways. And so how I look at it, and particularly when I think about HR professionals and that side of things, and I go back to when I worked in a corporate role and I was in the corporate responsibility and doing employee volunteering and motivating employees and getting them involved and caring about the business and engaged. And so I think about it from that perspective. And what's really hard when you are in that role and you're trying to do that, is to think particularly in some large businesses or even smaller businesses, people are extremely different with, as we know, a huge variety of passions and interests, things that motivate them, things that perhaps hold them back, things that are going on with them in their lives.
Hannah Bellamy: And what we see is that clean water is, first of all, it's something we all need. And the next thing is it's something we can all agree on. So, in a time when we're particularly polarized and when the workplace could be really difficult with some global issues or the elections that we have coming up, I think it's more than half the world's population about to go to the polls this year. It's a time when to find something, a cause that you can bring people together around and you can share an interest within is actually really important within that HR role. So, that's the first piece for me. And we actually say it's something we can all agree on. We even use that tagline because we have never, and I've worked in the environmental space, I've worked in the health space, I've done all these different things.
Hannah Bellamy: Clean water is the first thing you can talk to anybody about. And we have never had anyone say, that's a really bad idea. Don't go and take clean water. They don't need clean water. People can disagree on so many other things, but you are not gonna have this separation. So, for me that's the first piece, is it can really unite employees around a cause and finding a cause is important. So, I was reading a study, I think it was Dr. Fleming published just a week or so ago looking at all the different interventions.
Hannah Bellamy: I think he looked at 90 different interventions that professionals are bringing into the workplace to see how can we boost the wellbeing of employees. So, is it around coaching? Is it around any type of meditation? Is it around all the different types of things? We have counseling services. And he looked at all these 90 different interventions. It was a British study, I think it was at the University of Oxford. And what he found is the only one that moved the needle on wellbeing was the chance to be involved with a charity.
Toby Mildon: Right.
Hannah Bellamy: And so that's huge.
Toby Mildon: You shared with us one story which I personally found really moving. Is there another story or another example that you can share with us or even perhaps a bit closer to home here in the UK and how does solving this problem also address other issues that we might be seeing in education and the health and things like that?
Hannah Bellamy: That's something that we think about. So, when we're talking about the water crisis, sometimes it's not something I experienced growing up. I don't know about you, but lots of people we may think they didn't experience growing up. But that's not to say that actually a lot of people within the UK and within many countries actually did experience it when they were young or their parents did, or their grandparents did. So, while we think this is not something I've experienced directly in that sense, and we see that. So, we last October with Charity: Water, what we often try and do is take what we're talking about to the streets and try and make it real for people and help them understand it. So, we went into London and we projected a woman walking for water. She lives in the Sahel region which sort of bridges Niger and Mali. It's a really particularly harsh desert arid environment. Some will say it's like one of the harshest places you can live. So, access to water often it's pulling it out from 800 year old wells, extremely dangerous, extremely arduous. The water table is moving, people are losing water there.
Hannah Bellamy: So, really difficult situation in terms of getting water. So, we had this film of this woman walking in that scenario, really elegant and beautiful and walk... And we projected this film, we started at Waterloo. We went across the bridge then at Waterloo and then across to the National Gallery. And then we had to... And then filmed her coming back as well. So, we projected her up on these things. And what that showed was, this sort of distance, this would be a 30 minute round trip that somebody would do to collect water. And while we were doing it, we were on Waterloo Bridge and we do it because we want to engage people and want to have conversations. Lots of people have a glance, they'll chat for a second and then they're gone and they're on with their day. But this one woman and her son stopped and they were stopped and they were chatting and she was really smiling, really beaming with happiness.
Hannah Bellamy: And so I went after her. I said, oh, well... Tried to explain what we were doing. And I said we are Charity: Water. We are here because 703 million people don't have access to clean water. We want to spread awareness. And she said, this is great. I've been trying to tell my son for years that this is what my life was like and he never got it and now he can see it. And he was 11. She'd lived in the UK for a number of years, he was born here, but to her this was a very real not that distant memory and she still had family living within this. And she actually came from the Sahel region. So for her, it really felt relevant. And I think that's what's important is it's very easy if it's not relevant immediately to you or to I to not realise that we are a many of us work in global organisations or we have people who come from all different countries.
Hannah Bellamy: People who are British doesn't mean that at some point they haven't lived somewhere else or they don't have family who live somewhere else. We all are humans and interacting. And so I think that while it isn't a day-to-day reality here in London, there are many people here who do and have experienced this. So, for me that was really actually eye-opening just to think about this. I know it's current and I know there's people, but you don't always meet people in day-to-day life. And actually, the more I've talked to people about this, the more people have said oh no, but that's why I first supported Charity: Water and it may not be a country we work in, it may be... We had another supporter comes from Moldova, her family live in Moldova. And she would talk about, yes, no my grandparents have a well, this is how they access their water, this is what... So, it's not always what we think and I think it does touch people so much more in so many different ways that we don't always realise.
Toby Mildon: Yeah. So, in the context of the work that you do what does inclusive growth mean for you?
Hannah Bellamy: Growth is hugely important. And of course want to be inclusive to bring everybody with us. And the reason growth is important and it's different sometimes with a business. They want to grow and they want to acquire new customers and they want products to be successful, services to be successful. But for me, all growth leads to more people accessing clean water. So, at Charity: Water we have what we call a hundred percent model. It means that every single pound penny donation on our website or publicly is invested in one of the 22 countries we work in. And it's invested in clean water solutions, sustainable clean water solutions. So growth, every time that happens, I know I'm impacting someone else. And it's really important because again, if we look at this as a global issue and a global workforce and a global customer base this is, it's where some of the future employees, future customers and people are and actually every pound that we invest in clean water infrastructure generates between £4-£8 within that local economy.
Hannah Bellamy: So, by investing in clean water, investing in what may seem like a far off future, actually what we're really doing is we are raising the potential of people on this planet. Because otherwise it holds people back. If we go back to Mulatani, who's otherwise spending hours doing this really long tedious chore and having no time to do anything else, once that's taken away, what it actually means is that women in these communities become entrepreneurs. They find their passions and their creativity and they make things. And they may sell those things and their children go to school and they receive their education. Then maybe they go to other places and they join our businesses and they do all sorts of... And so this one thing, this one clean water solution, the ripple effects are massive.
Toby Mildon: So, how do you think charities and businesses could be better supporting one another? And I asked that question because I believe that you've worked recently with the Boston Consulting Group and they've been supporting you and your charity, but how do you see businesses and charities working together?
Hannah Bellamy: So, actually Boston Consulting Group is a great example. They've done a number of different projects for us and they've done the pro bono. And they give us access to ideas and resources and everything else, and the strategic nonce that otherwise we can't do on your day-to-day trying to build an organisation impact. I'm looking day-to-day what are the numbers in terms of donations? What are we doing there? How we direct... So, to step back and look at the strategy is really helpful. So Boston Consulting Group, they're giving their time and their expertise and it's hugely valuable. And it's something that we need and we can then take and hopefully act upon and grow ourselves and we help other businesses. Travis Smith for example, they're a legal firm. They give us pro bono legal supports. They'll look at things like actually our employee handbook, what are our employment policies? How are we treating people? Again 'cause we have to consider that ourselves.
Hannah Bellamy: So, they've done that for us pro bono. So, there's those examples. And then there's other organisations we work with where what they're doing is more about... So, we have someone called Bending Spoons, for example. They give us every candidate they see for a role, even when they don't get the role, they will make a donation to us on behalf of them. So, it's a way of just saying thank you. And we have quite a few businesses who do things like that where employees' birthdays for example, or we have others who go further and beyond that. So, Beam Suntory, they do what's called One Suntory Walk and across many different employees in different locations around the world will walk and they will fundraise and again bring that money to Clean Water. So, there's so many different ways. And we also work on the marketing side of things and project launches we did, instead of Black Friday, the Stanley Cups this last year, they did what they called a Glow Week.
Hannah Bellamy: So, instead they gave 25% of revenue on their website to Charity: Water and we're building clean water to thousands of people thanks to that. So, there's all different ways that businesses can get involved. And I think the main thing for me, and this goes back to me and why I do what I do, is businesses beyond developing the product and the service and that is the purpose piece. And actually giving employees something to unite around and bringing that to the workplace and then bringing it and spreading that further to others by engaging with, whether it's Charity: Water, or a different organization, a different charity organization of whatever is the right fit to have that knock-on impact. So, there's all these amazing people with incredible skills, passion, and they want to do something else and actually see and map the impact and see what they've achieved.
Toby Mildon: Definitely. And I mentioned earlier that the majority of people that listen to us work in HR. So, what do you think HR leaders could do within their organization to support causes like Clean Water? How could they become a force for good in society?
Hannah Bellamy: So for me, I think the first thing is having that step back realization that many employees do want to do good in the charitable work and boost engagement and help keep employees and all those other things. So, once you thought about that, then it's about what cause is relevant to my employees or to us as a business and what the barrier we sometimes face is people say, oh, well our workplace, we want to help a local cause because this is where we're based and this is what is important to us. So, it may be a food bank, it may be something else, and don't stop doing that. That's not my message. My message is that yes, do those things, but actually as I've said, people have all these different backgrounds and all these different experiences and all these different passions and you have to do more than just work on your doorstep.
Hannah Bellamy: People often say things like, well, charity begins at home and all these other things, so like no, we are a global human race. And actually, as I've said, this is the leading killer of children under the age of five. So, if you really want to do something and to move the needle and to stop that, you can. We have the power to do that as people. That's what I think. So, HR leaders are perfectly placed because they're about people and bringing people together and moving people and creating movements. And so for me, this is something they could definitely do and I would love them to do and I'd love to chat with any of them. And I always want to come in and give presentations and talk and get ideas and get ideas flowing as to what works in any workplace in terms of is it fundraising? What does it look like for different organizations?
Toby Mildon: Yeah. I think if we look at the United Nations sustainability goals, water, I think they call it clean water, that's the one that always jumps out at me as being something that we could probably all easily relate to. Because in the UK we all pretty much use water on a daily basis to drink, make a cup of tea. That's a very British thing, of course. Have a bath or a shower. I think it is something that we can all understand. And then also if we look at something like Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, it's right there at the bottom in terms of our basic human needs along with shelter and security and stuff like that. So, it is, like you say, it's a big unifier. What's your vision for the future and where do you see your organization heading?
Hannah Bellamy: So, I think actually I'll just comment a second quickly on the UN sustainability goals as well. So, just because you reminded me then that actually there is a sustainability development goal number six around clean water and sanitation.
Toby Mildon: Yeah.
Hannah Bellamy: And it's really important. But actually if you achieve that one, so any business and where leaders are looking at how do we do something about the UN Sustainable Development Goals and we want to put that into our reporting and we want to make sure that's part of our workplace, if you move the needle on that one, number six, you impact eight others. So, zero hunger is impacted because you're not going to have as many parasites and things in the water for children. So, they don't have to eat quite as much. And obviously also it helps to sustain the subsistence farmers. If you look at it improves the environment and the local infrastructure. It reduces poverty and in education, gender equity. So, it just goes on and on. So, just because you said that and I wanted to mention that because it really reminded me.
Toby Mildon: No. I was thinking along the same thing as you were talking about that woman who was walking half an hour each way. There is a big gender equality discussion here, isn't there? As well it's not just about water, it's the impact on the other sustainability goals like gender inequalities.
Hannah Bellamy: Yeah. And the fact that then in that sense, it's a social injustice. So for me, I always say it's a social injustice issue. It's not right. And it's not fair. And then when you ask about the future for me, this is... I look at so many other issues and so many things I care about all we can, we want to help. But we don't know how to necessarily or how to fix them. And this is something we actually do know how to fix. And so I look at the future and I just want to see a day and I believe we will see a day where every single person will have access to clean and safe drinking water. And actually we can make that... And like what a moment we can all celebrate when we've managed to achieve that. And giving everybody that one place to start from is yes, you will not be born into a clinic where your mother is unable to wash after giving birth, you will go to a school and there will be toilets and there will be drinking water. And at home, you will have drinking water and you will be able to wash and you'll have that dignity and give everybody that chance. So that's for me, that's we just have to keep going until that happens.
Toby Mildon: If the person listening to us right now wants to learn more about the work that you do and they want to get more information and support you somehow, how should they go about doing that?
Hannah Bellamy: So, just go to charitywater.org. Also, I'm on LinkedIn, Hannah Bellamy always just drop me a message or get in touch. And we love talking with people and doing more. So, please do find us, interact with us, get involved.
Toby Mildon: Brilliant. Well, Hannah, thanks ever so much for joining me today. It's been really great to catch up with you. And I just wish you all the best for the great work that you're doing. Thank you.
Hannah Bellamy: No, thank you, Toby. I really, really appreciate it. I've loved chatting with you.
Toby Mildon: You're welcome. And thank you for tuning into this episode of the Inclusive Growth Podcast with Hannah and myself. Hopefully, you found it a really interesting discussion. I think one of the main key takeaways here is the real impact that businesses can make. Like Hannah said, charity doesn't have to start at home. You can actually make a real impact on something really important like access to clean water, which as Hannah said, has such a knock-on effect in terms of other inequalities that we're seeing in society. So, making sure that we are reducing gender inequality, making sure that we're reducing poverty, making sure that we're providing access to great education. So, the work that Hannah does and the important role that water plays in our lives is really important. So, yeah, please do go back to your organisation and think of any ways that you can do to support a shared common goal around providing clean and making access to water much better. So, thanks for tuning in and I look forward to seeing you on the next episode, which will be coming up very soon. Until then, take good care of yourself.
[music]
Speaker 1: Thank you for listening to the Inclusive Growth Show. For further information and resources from Toby and his team, head on over to our website at mildon.co.uk.