Water Careers Around the World

Water challenges don't look the same everywhere. The career paths they create depend heavily on the location. Understanding this geographic context can help you find opportunities that match both your skills and your impact goals.

31 percent of the population might suffer from extremely high water stress by 2050, but that’s just one form of water crises.

In low-income countries like Tanzania, the focus is on access and equity. Water professionals here are often social entrepreneurs, community organisers, and appropriate technology specialists. Instead of high-tech solutions, the work centres on creating sustainable decentralised systems, like designing business models for community-run water stations or developing low-cost household filtration that families can maintain themselves.

Sister Water Project Completes 500th Well in Tanzania.

In middle-income countries like Brazil, it's about managing growth and pollution. Rapid industrialisation creates complex challenges requiring environmental remediation specialists, regulatory compliance experts, and corporate sustainability consultants who can help businesses reduce their water footprint while cleaning up legacy contamination.

Water pollution was one of the biggest headlines during the 2016 Rio Olympic.

In developed countries like the Netherlands, the challenge shifts to adaptation and optimisation. With basic access solved, the focus becomes climate resilience, efficiency innovation, and high-tech solutions. This creates demand for data scientists modelling irrigation systems, urban planners designing flood-resistant cities, and researchers developing water reuse technologies.

Space-powered insights for smarter water management to roll out across the Netherlands in 2025.

What kind of water challenges does your community face? How would you shape your career path to solve them?

If you happen to be a university student in their final year, we’re ‘brewing’ some water career tips for you in the following weeks. Keep an eye out!