Sarina Prabasi and Barbara Frost

As Americans face a historic drought in California, some cooks are feeling a pang every time they pour a pot of pasta water down the drain. But the crisis in California is nowhere as dire as the life-or-death issues faced by the 680 million people around the world who live without access to safe water. As WaterAid CEOs, Prabasi and Frost have helped bring water for drinking and cooking, as well as for sanitation facilities, to people in 27 countries. Prabasi was a driving force behind Congress’s 2014 Water for the World Act, which directs water funding toward needy communities. As of 2015, they’re also aligning their goals with the United Nations and its mission to eradicate extreme poverty by 2030. “We believe clean water, sanitation and hygiene have huge ripple effects in underserved communities,” says Prabasi.