meet 'AWA', the soap that cleans the rivers by andea & fahrenheit DDB

andea, the mineral water brand of cusco, peru, and its creative agency fahrenheit DDB, introduce ‘AWA: the soap that cleans the rivers,’ a soap bar that improves the quality of water. in a world where 159 million people are dependent on untreated water, also as a cultural tradition, the company seeks to convert a common laundry soap into a product to decontaminate river water.

all images courtesy of  AWA

andea, whose purpose is to preserve the natural sources of the andes, and fahrenheit DDB, decided to begin a decontamination process through project ‘AWA‘, drawing upon people who wash clothes in the rivers. after several months of research together with CIRSYS, a peruvian innovation start-up that seeks technological solutions for social development, they managed to find microorganisms with a probiotic function, capable of feeding on pollutants from the river, proving to have up to 75% efficiency.

a significant percentage of people are relying on water sources such as rivers, lakes, ponds and streams to wash their clothes. in peru, this heritage is attributed to its inca origin, while it also gives an opportunity for socialization among the women of the villages. however, the soap they use contributes to the contamination of the river on which the entire community depends, even from which they extract the water to drink, unconsciously causing various diseases.

‘we intervene in the soap formula to make it eco-friendly and so that the soap can properly hold our probiotics, without damaging them or reducing their effectiveness,’ says andea.

andea has made the AWA formula available to governments, non-profit organizations, social enterprises, and soap manufacturers. that way, AWA will reach the right hands and the rivers where these ancient traditions are still carried out.

project info:

name: AWA: the soap that cleans the rivers

company: fahrenheit DDB – andea

designboom has received this project from our ‘DIY submissions‘ feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

edited by: christina petridou | designboom