Walgreens partners with Me to We in clean-water initiative

ENGLEWOOD CLIFFS, N.J. — Walgreens and Unilever on Wednesday announced their partnership with Me to We, a social enterprise that provides socially responsible products and services, and donates half of its profits to the charity Free the Children.

Walgreens’ Give H2OPE to Others campaign will donate proceeds from select Unilever products — including TRESemmé, Suave and Caress — to supply five gallons of clean water to families in rural Kenya. Walgreens expects to provide up to 15 million gallons of clean water by the end of the campaign on Sept. 30.



“Walgreens is dedicated to championing everyone’s right to be happy and healthy, and by offering programs that reflect this mission, we aim to make it easy for customers to take part and help make a difference,” Walgreens president Alex Gourlay said. “We look forward to supporting our customers as they participate in this meaningful cause to make a true impact.”



Unilever executives see opportunities for growth in purpose-driven business.

“We’re also seeing results that map against this belief, as we watch our brands with a strong social purpose become larger business drivers,” Todd Tillemans, Unilever’s corporate SVP and president of customer development, said. 

The partnership represents Unilever and Walgreens’ sustainability initiatives, and was “designed to help show that even the smallest steps can have a large-scale social impact,” Walgreens said.

Clean water will help reduce the incidence of waterborne disease and illness, and will cut time spent collecting water — allowing people to spend more time in school, farming or working, according to the company.



“Clean water isn’t a luxury,” Craig Kielburger, co-founder of Me to We, said. “It’s a basic human right … This partnership will ultimately make a tremendous impact in the lives of so many families overseas, helping to break the cycle of poverty for many.”