Hydrologic History

Enactus is a 501(c)3 social entrepreneurship organization out of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The organization focuses on the development of projects which address social issues present in the local Champaign-Urbana community. The Enactus project portfolio is home to many impactful projects that exist to serve the community, and has incredibly dedicated student members that pour their all into these projects. Enactus projects tend to begin as ideas, or within the research and development (R&D) team.

Hydrologic first began as an R&D project in Fall 2019, along with other potential projects investigating anaerobic digestion and biogas. Eventually however, R&D's low-flow showerhead design was chosen to become a project over other possible options, and Hydrologic was born. The project officially joined the Enactus portfolio as a subsidiary of the organization during the Spring 2020 semester. Hydrologic is dedicated to reducing excess water consumption in the Champaign-Urbana and campus communities by creating a low-flow showerhead that can be retrofitted onto existing shower setups. Long-term, the project aims to see this showerhead design applied throughout campus, such as within residence halls, apartments, and recreational facilities.

Throughout the past couple of years, Hydrologic has made tons of progress. As the past year began, tremendous strides have been made in terms of networking. A team of talented engineering students was formed for product development, a symbiotic relationship with University Housing was fostered and further strengthened, and an official partnership with other on-campus organizations, such as ActGreen was established. During this time, the team worked hard to apply for numerous grants and take initial steps toward creating a social media presence. The team also worked on marketing efforts, such as posting flyers throughout ISR to promote Hydrologic's on-site showerhead testing. This hard work paid off, and the team secured a $10,000 grant from Student Sustainability Committee (SSC).

At present, the Hydrologic project is heading toward a promising future and working toward a finished product. With the $10,000 grant, the project is now able to continue iterating on the current prototype for the showerhead. In the near future, Hydrologic will conduct mass testing with the student population, followed by additional development and improvement of the showerhead prototype. To create more interest in the project among students and others, we will soon be completing our official website and further growing and improving our social media presence. The project team is also looking to reach out further to find new partners and other parties who may be interested in the showerhead product. Hydrologic is also making strides in identifying new grants to apply for and potential manufacturing partners that could assist in producing the showerhead in bulk in the future.