Bentley Systems Inc. announced that it has contributed $100,000 to Water For People in support of the organization’s work improving water systems in emerging economies around the world. Bentley has also donated a selection of eight software products from its portfolio, including MicroStation, WaterGEMS, SewerGEMS, FlowMaster and Bentley Map. The software will be used by Water For People team members to design, engineer and construct water systems, as well as to map the functionality of water points in every district. Team members will access the software through Bentley’s STUDENTserver self-serve website, which will enable them to download, at no charge, current and future versions of the software and provide them with access to training and technical support.
Water For People teaches local communities in Africa, Central and South America and India how to build, manage and maintain water and sanitation systems, and to build capacity that ensures the systems can be operated and maintained at levels appropriate for each community. Bentley is a global sponsor of Water For People, with many of its colleagues—including Bentley COO Malcolm Walter, who serves on the organization’s board—volunteering their time to the organization.
Added Malcolm Walter, “Improving quality of life for people around the world is an essential part of Bentley’s mission. It’s what investment in sustaining infrastructure is all about. All of us at Bentley Systems are very pleased to support the crucial and amazing work that Water For People is doing sustaining water systems in areas currently struggling to provide communities with adequate supplies of safe drinking water. Very recently, on a trip to Bolivia, I was able to see firsthand the difference this wonderful organization is making in people’s lives. I saw the happiness in the faces of villagers who now have running water at their doorstep instead of 3 to 5 kilometers away—something that we in the developed world take for granted.”
He continued, “Water For People’s ‘Everyone Forever’ vision is for every family, every school, and every health clinic in the areas it works to have access to improved water and sanitation on a sustainable basis. Through the hard work and dedication of the volunteers behind this organization, partnering with local governments and municipalities and empowering people to be the architects of their own solutions, this vision of clean, safe water for everyone, forever, is becoming a reality.”