The Global Experiment, “Water: A Chemical Solution”, was launched on World Water Day 2011 as part of the International Year of Chemistry 2011. Since its launch, over 70,000 students in 80 countries have taken part in what is being called the World’s largest chemistry experiment. The students explored the chemistry of water and the role of water in society and the environment with four activities focused on the areas of measurement of water quality and water purification:

• pH: Students collect data by measuring the pH of a local water body
• Salinity: Students explore the salinity of their local water body
• Filtration and disinfection: Students learn how chemistry is used to help provide safe drinking water
• Desalination: Students construct a solar still from household materials and experiment with it to purify water

This video was presented at the World Water Forum in Marseille, France, on March 12–13, by IUPAC and UNESCO, the coordinators of the global experiment.

See also:

• World’s Largest-Ever Chemistry Experiment
  Javier García-Martinez,
  ChemistryViews 2011, August.
  The first crowdsourced chemistry experiment is measuring water quality across the globe as part of the IYC
• Global Experiment: Water – A Chemical Solution
  ChemistryViews 2011, February.
  Join to explore one of Earth’s most critical resources and the attempt to break the record for the biggest scientific experiment ever
• News: World Water Day 2012: The World is Thirsty Because We are Hungry
  World Water Day is held annually on 22 March as a means of focusing attention on the importance of water