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PLOS is a non-profit organization on a mission to drive open science forward with measurable, meaningful change in research publishing, policy, and practice.

Building on a strong legacy of pioneering innovation, PLOS continues to be a catalyst, reimagining models to meet open science principles, removing barriers and promoting inclusion in knowledge creation and sharing, and publishing research outputs that enable everyone to learn from, reuse and build upon scientific knowledge.

We believe in a better future where science is open to all, for all.

Clean Water and Sanitation

Insights into the way our world is changing, highlight the impact of water resources
and sanitation on the environment and health

In 2020, it was estimated that around two billion people live without safely managed drinking water services. Some 40% of water bodies across the world don’t meet the standards of ‘good’ water quality, and water stress levels in some areas of the world are over 70%.

The articles on this page highlight how research contributions across multiple disciplines can help to generate change and increase progress. Work being done by researchers with a range of focus areas, can come together to highlight issues and solutions that help to improve the status of clean water and sanitation across the world.

At PLOS, we know that research into these areas is one of the key ways that progress in the clean water sphere can be made. Our commitment to advancing the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals means that we focus on publishing work with real-world impact.

Society and scarcity research

It’s not just the environment itself that feels the impact of problems – and solutions – related to water resources. These articles look at society and scarcity, discussing how water resource issues affect our neighborhoods and demographics, and identify paths forward that work towards achieving the targets laid out by the United Nations.

The SDG Publishers Compact aims to accelerate progress to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.

Our commitment to sustainability

We’re proud to be a signatory of the UN SDG Publisher’s compact to advance the 17 Sustainable Development Goals through the Open Access research we publish and the actions we take across our business.

Discover more content aligned with Sustainable Development Goals

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