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Virtual Reality Brings Issue of Safe Water to Life in a New Clorox and AOL Video 

Safe water is foundational. Yet one in seven people in Peru do not have access to it. Around the world, approximately 88 percent of deaths due to diarrheal illness are attributable to unsafe water, inadequate sanitation, and poor hygiene. Diarrheal diseases kill more children than AIDS, malaria, and measles combined, making it the second leading cause of death among children under five years old.

However, unsafe drinking water still seems like a far-away issue for most people in the United States, where water safety is not typically an everyday concern. The good news is that emerging technologies like VR and 360 video present incredible opportunity for inspiring social good. Clorox is harnessing this power to bring the issue of unsafe drinking water to life.

Tackling the global issue of unsafe water can seem daunting and there are many clean water processes and infrastructures in place to solve this problem, some coming with large costs and multiple moving parts. However, there is actually a simple, cost-effective, scalable and easily adoptable way to kill bacteria and viruses in water�a few drops of bleach. Through The Safe Water Project, Clorox is leading an effort to address the chronic problem of unsafe water. The Safe Water Project�s bleach dispenser model provides a simple, affordable water treatment solution for use in areas where people collect water from an untreated, communal water source.

Clorox and HuffPost RYOT Studios partnered to create a 360 video allowing viewers to immerse themselves in a community in Peru that has benefitted from The Safe Water Project. As part of the experience, viewers are guided by one of the community leaders, Bernadina, and shown a surprisingly simple solution�using bleach to purify water. Clorox Bleach kills 99.9 percent of bacteria and viruses in water like cholera, so it is a viable and important solution even for parts of the world that lack any infrastructure.

Since The Safe Water Project launched, there have been strong results, with more than 60 percent of community households treating their water with bleach and over 350,000 liters of water a day being purified.

Leveraging AOL�s network, which reaches more than 500 million global consumers, this short film, titled �Purely Peru,� showcases how VR can be used for global storytelling and social good. Through this partnership, Clorox and AOL are creating a fresh new dialogue around how brands can engage with their audiences about important issues.

The 360 video is accessible across screens on the HuffPost RYOT app, YouTube 360 or through a VR headset; viewers can make a donation straight from their devices. Visit http://ryot.huffingtonpost.com/purely-peru/. Visit www.Clorox.com/TheSafeWaterProject to learn more.

�Gabriele Amtmann, associate director of marketing, The Clorox Company