Hey gang, this is important: After careful reflection, I have added a word to the “water words that work” list. It is: “Doing your/their/my part.”

Rather than conveying scientific information, this phrase sends important social cues. It is an attempt to incorporate the advice of Dr. Robert Cialdini, who writes:

…armed with the knowledge that, as a citizenry, we do care about our environment, we should focus on marginalizing the few who don’t care.

By this, Cialdini means that whatever we want everyday citizens to do — change their habits, speak up, donate, whatever — we should focus portraying that behavior as both socially acceptable and, in fact, expected. Here’s an example of how this new phrase can help get you there:

Concerned about the safety of their drinking water and the health of the local creek, there is a growing trend for local residents to install rainbarrels on their homes to reduce the amount of polluted runoff in their communities. Homeowners enjoy painting and decorating the barrels in various ways and comparing their their barrels to their neighbors’. These citizens are doing their part to keep the water clean enough for wildlife to survive today and future generations to enjoy tomorrow. Won’t you do your part? Call (xxx) xxx-xxxx to speak to our clean water program manager, who can help you get a rainbarrel of your own.

Enjoy playing with this new phrase!

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