Scott Harrison spent almost 10 years as a nightclub promoter in New York City before leaving to volunteer on a hospital ship off the coast of Liberia, West Africa as a volunteer photojournalist.

Returning home to New York City two years later, he founded the non-profit organization charity: water, in 2006. Turning his full attention to the global water crisis and the world’s (then) 1.1 billion people without clean water to drink, he created public installations and innovative online fundraising platforms to spread international awareness of the issue.

In 17 years, with the help of more than 1 million donors worldwide, charity:water has raised more than $740 million and funded over 156,000 water projects in 29 countries. When completed, those projects will provide 18.4 million people with clean, safe drinking water.

Harrison has been recognized on Fortune magazine’s list of 40 Under 40, Forbes’ Impact 30, and Fast Company’s 100 Most Creative People in Business, where he earned the #10 spot. He is currently a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader and author of the New York Times
Bestselling book, Thirst.

Scott and his wife Viktoria have two children, Jackson and Emma.