An epic start to 2023: wins for water reuse in Fast Company, TIME, and CBS
Our water challenges are multiplying — we are facing a hotter, drier world every year, with some regions facing too little water and others facing too much water.
These water challenges deserve more mainstream attention to help galvanize action and ensure water security for our communities. However, things seem to be slowly turning around.
After many years advocating for the critical role of sustainable water technologies in climate adaptation plans, we’re excited to see high-profile discussions around water coming to the forefront. No longer relegated to the sidelines, water is in the spotlight at major international conferences like the World Economic Forum’s meeting at Davos.
Over the last few months, Epic’s onsite reuse solutions, projects and advocacy work have been featured in mainstream publications including TIME, Fast Company, and CBS. In fact, an ABC crew just finished filming at our Epic operation in San Francisco for an upcoming special that will be featured on Hulu.
We’re inspired and energized to participate in this growing awareness of practical, sustainable solutions to make sure cities and families have the safe, clean water they need – now and in the future. Here are some recent highlights:
Epic Named #1 in Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies: Small and Mighty
Fast Company’s annual Most Innovative Companies List honors organizations that help transform industries and shape society for the better. This year, we’re thrilled to be named #1 in Fast Company’s Small and Mighty: 10-100 Employees list.
We’re proud to have our innovative approach to onsite water reuse recognized in such a prominent and progress-minded list. In addition to recycling up to 95% of a building’s wastewater, our unique OneWater™ system and wastewater treatment process can also capture organic waste for soil amendments and recover wastewater heat for the building’s domestic hot water supply, which reduces the building’s carbon footprint and energy costs even further. This isn’t the first time Epic has been featured in Fast Company, and it’s especially exciting to see our small and mighty team’s contributions recognized as a key way to advance water-focused sustainability efforts in the built environment.
Winners of World Economic Forum’s First Freshwater Innovation Challenge
Attention around water sustainability and resilience featured prominently when the World Economic Forum (WEF) and HCL Tech launched a five-year Aquapreneur Innovation Initiative supported by the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the Nature Conservancy, and other high-profile organizations.
As part of this initiative’s goal “to find innovative solutions that conserve and restore freshwater ecosystems,” WEF used its UpLink Innovators platform to launch an annual Global Freshwater Challenge — and Epic is one of the ten winners. We’re honored to be included among these innovators, each of which was featured for their contributions to increasing water security and sustainability.
Our CEO and Co-founder Aaron Tartakovsky received this award at the annual WEF Forum in Davos, at which he literally brought water reuse into the spotlight:
At Davos, Aaron also participated in several high-level panels and discussions regarding sustainability and urban resilience. In each of these, he was inspired to see representatives of major organizations such as Coca-Cola, Pepsi, and Salesforce focus on the global need for investment in sustainable water solutions. Read his reflections here on how this well-deserved and growing recognition of water’s essential role in climate strategy will make communities more resilient, sustainable, and water-secure.
Epic Pioneering Efforts Featured in CBS and TIME’s Best Inventions
November 2022 saw two major media wins for Epic’s water reuse efforts. First, CBS’ Jeff Ramos did a deep dive into Epic’s work at a downtown San Francisco high-rise to collect, purify, and recycle over 7,500 gallons a day.
Next, TIME Magazine named Epic’s OneWater™ system one of the 200 Best Inventions of 2022 for its potential to combat the effects of drought by reusing water onsite for toilet flushing, irrigation, laundry, and more. Receiving this acknowledgement strengthens our hope to see more sustainable water solutions receive the attention they need to take on their integral role in “climate-proofing” communities.
What’s Next? ABC and More
Stay tuned: an upcoming ABC special on water will feature Epic Cleantec’s Soil Processing Hub and garden in downtown San Francisco, as well as our Epic OneWater™ system.
Looking toward the future, it’s time for water sustainability to take center stage. Major publications and organizations are now recognizing the essential role of climate-friendly water technologies in sustainable urban development. We’re happy to see the message of clean and sustainable water resonate and look forward to participating in more discussions that elevate water issues and ways to solve them. These will ultimately drive investment into water-conserving strategies that combat one of the most critical challenges facing humanity today.
As we face that challenge, our team is encouraged and energized by the growing attention to water issues and solutions. We’re proud to help lead the water reuse revolution, and we’re only just getting started.
