Harrison 
To commemorate the 2023 United Nations Water Conference, design firm Publicis Groupe Benelux has created a number of conceptual “supermarket” products that show what consumption could look like in a world with less water.
The Drop Store initiative, commissioned through an initiative of the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, was implemented by Publicis Groupe to show consumers what life is like in a water-scarce future.
The design is designed to contain small amounts of food and discolored water, reflecting the quantities and prices that could become a reality if the water crisis, in which 2 billion people currently live without safe drinking water, continues. Features a package.
”[The United Nations] “We wanted to spread this message around the world so that people understand the value of water,” said Publicis Chief Operating Officer, who was responsible for developing the campaign to raise awareness of the ongoing issue. Eduardo Marquez said.
Marquez and his team chose a product-oriented approach because seeing the items in this context makes the reality of water scarcity more “relatable” to people, officials said.
This approach has allowed the team to create graphics and branding that are more relatable to younger generations, as Marquez believes they are likely to be the messengers of this initiative.
All products designed for “supermarkets” feature fictitious prices and realistic branding. For example, a package containing 35 grams of corn for $129 is labeled “Super Offer!”
Various labels indicate the types of water-related events that lead to the need for each product. These include “drought” to produce bug proteins when livestock do not have enough water.
Marquez said this visualization shows that the broader impact of water inaccessibility and contamination extends beyond the water itself, impacting broader aspects of the supply chain.
“Everything we eat and consume in our lives contains water,” Marquez told Dezeen.
“So instead of just putting the nutritional facts on the label of a product, we actually know how much water it takes to make that type of product.”
The actual water included as part of the project comes in small vials labeled “regular” and “pure,” with regular vials having a cloudy brown hue. The pure vial contains clear water, but it is very small, holding only 15 milliliters.
This presentation was conducted to demonstrate the growing scarcity of pure water.
“If we don’t take action, I think it will be a normal water surface in the future,” Marquez said.
“Drinking water and pure, clean water are going to be in very short supply. That’s the message. We want people to understand that this is going to be a luxury in the future.”
To alleviate these problems, we need to improve wastewater conservation and water resource management, dietary habits, and prevention of contamination of shared water sources.
While dietary habits like veganism have an impact, Marquez said she also hopes companies get the message.
The researchers contacted brands such as Domino’s Pizza and Burger King, assuming that due to water shortages, “there wouldn’t be enough water to make.” [their] Hamburgers or something [their] Pizza,” Marquez said.
The United Nations Water Conference was held in New York City from March 22nd to 24th with Tajikistan and the Netherlands as the hosts.
The conference resulted in the adoption of the Water Action Agenda, an agreement containing a number of “non-binding” recommendations to strengthen water security around the world.
The effects of dwindling water resources are already being felt in developed countries that have so far been spared the effects of the worst droughts, such as those felt in the Horn of Africa.
In January, six western U.S. states suspended water use from the shared Colorado River Basin as water levels in dams along the river hit record lows, negatively impacting the region’s agriculture and livestock industries. They agreed to reduce the amount.
Other speculative projects highlighting the issue of water scarcity include plans by BPAS Architects for a water-harvesting skyscraper.
Many designers have come up with designs that harvest water from the air, including Hong Kong studio Orient Occident Atelier’s community center in Cambodia, which incorporates roofs to collect rainwater.
Project credits:
agency: Publicis Groupe Benelux
client: Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of the Netherlands
Digital agency: neverland
consulting: Hamn
Design company: plant
audio: massive music
Product design: street media factory
Web development: Wow
