The Water Crisis:
A Silent Emergency
Every 15 seconds, someone in the world dies from a disease caused by lack of access to safe water, sanitation, or hygiene. That’s over 2 million people every year, mostly in vulnerable and low-income regions.
An overwhelming 80% of those deaths are children under the age of 5.
That’s the equivalent of a
9/11 attack happening every 4 hours
Or two tsunamis every month
Or five Hurricane Katrinas every single day
In Latin America, over 160 million people still lack access to safely managed water services.
The region is home to vast natural water resources, yet water inequality and infrastructure gaps leave rural and peri-urban communities dangerously exposed to disease and extreme vulnerability.
In Argentina, more than 7 million people do not have access to safely managed drinking water—many of them living in riverine zones, informal settlements, or isolated rural areas.
The Delta del Tigre, just kilometers from Buenos Aires, is one such area: home to thousands of families, schools, and health centers that operate without reliable access to potable water.
This is not just a humanitarian issue—it’s a structural, preventable tragedy happening in silence.
5W – i4i Foundation & the Impact Hub
WHO
Who we are
i4i (Innovation for Impact) is a nonprofit foundation based in Argentina, committed to solving critical challenges in underserved communities through technology, innovation, and collaboration.
We deliver sustainable and replicable solutions in areas such as clean water, renewable energy, education, connectivity, and public health—working alongside local leaders, volunteers, and organizations.
Our first operational focus is in the Delta del Tigre, a unique and vulnerable territory within the Province of Buenos Aires.
WHAT
What we do
We are launching the i4i Impact Hub Argentina: A blockchain-based crowdfunding system designed to connect urgent community needs with individuals, companies, and institutions willing to contribute money, time, or knowledge.
In this first stage, the Impact Hub allows us to:
- Identify and validate local projects with clear community benefit
- Connect them with donors, volunteers, corporate sponsors, and impact investors
- Channel contributions securely via Stellar-based smart contracts
- Automate fund disbursement based on milestone verification
- Provide real-time tracking and reporting to ensure full transparency
WHEN
Timeline
Q2 2025 – Development of MVP and integration with Stellar blockchain
can you include how the program that I am doing in Argentina fits into this timeline and what role stellar plays are you thinking integrating with others building on Stellar
The volunteer program and the Hackaton will take place from August 10-17 this is in Q3 ( with the visit to the communities on August 10. ((sunday) (how much funding are you asking for the volunteers and do the installations during the community visit — what is your vision?
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Kick- off the Hackathon on Monday with SDF Argentinian ambassadors and developers,
The SDF members that I am bringing will be mentors and advisors during the week. On Saturday afternoon August 17th we could have the close of that Hackaton give prizes and launch what was created during that week) we will manage all of the logistics for the Hackaton.
Q3 2025 – Launch of pilot projects in communities of the Delta del Tigre
Q4 2025 – Expansion within the Delta and across other regions in Argentina.
WHERE
Where we operate
Our first implementation takes place in Argentina, with a clear territorial focus on:
-
The Delta del Tigre, in the Province of Buenos Aires: A fragile and fragmented network of islands and waterways, home to over 5,000 families, as well as schools, health outposts, and organized communities that operate without stable access to essential infrastructure.
Reaching many of these communities requires a 2-hour journey by car followed by 40 minutes by boat from the City of Buenos Aires. This geographic isolation makes them particularly vulnerable and hard to reach with traditional solutions, which is why we believe a decentralized model is not only appropriate—it is necessary. - Our fieldwork is supported by INTA (Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria), which leads the preliminary research and community mapping. INTA identifies the most affected families, schools, and communities, establishes the first point of contact, and helps define local priorities.
- Thanks to this collaboration, we have already delivered an initial impact to 30 families and 3 schools in the Delta region—validating the operational model and confirming the urgency of scaling up.
- While the platform is open nationally, the initial focus is 100% local, supporting on-the-ground projects in the Delta with the help of NGOs, teachers, health professionals, and grassroots leaders.
WHY
Why we do it
Because just a few kilometers away from the capital of Argentina, there are entire communities living without clean water, reliable electricity, or access to education and healthcare.
i4i exists to:
- Bridge the gap between local needs and national/international resources
- Empower communities through tools, not charity
- Use technology to create transparent, participatory, and scalable systems
- Build a new model of collaboration—starting with the Delta, but made to grow
What is the
i4i Impact Hub?
The i4i Impact Hub Argentina is a blockchain-powered crowdfunding infrastructure built on Stellar, designed to fund, manage, and track social-impact projects in an open, transparent, and efficient way.
It is a digital ecosystem where
The Impact Hub turns good intentions into measurable results—securely, verifiably, and collaboratively.
Local projects
Such as installing solar panels in schools, filtering drinking water for families, or providing internet access to rural classrooms—can be proposed, validated, and funded
Smart contracts
Automate the release of funds, ensuring they are used according to project milestones
Contributors
From individuals to companies—can follow the entire process in real time, with full traceability
Transparency and trust
Are embedded by design, eliminating the need for intermediaries or blind faith
Scalability – Built for Latin America
The Delta del Tigre is our starting point—but it’s just the beginning.
The technological infrastructure, governance model, and operational methodology behind the i4i Impact Hub are designed to be modular, replicable, and scalable across other regions of Argentina and throughout Latin America.
Many of the challenges we face in the Delta—lack of access, geographic isolation, informal communities, poor infrastructure—are shared by thousands of rural and peri-urban communities across LATAM.
By proving this model works locally, we can then expand regionally, forming a network of decentralized hubs that operate under shared principles of transparency, participation, and measurable impact.
i4i is not just building a platform—we are building a movement of coordinated, technology-powered social transformation across Latin America.
Next Steps – Evolution Toward DAO
Once the Impact Hub reaches operational maturity, i4i will transition into a Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO) to:
- Distribute governance across contributors, communities, and stakeholders
- Enable anyone to propose, vote on, and shape the platform’s future
- Automate decisions and resource flows via smart contracts
- Ensure a radically transparent, participatory, and scalable model of social impact
Becoming a DAO will transform i4i from a foundation for the people into one by the people, fully aligned with our mission of decentralized, community‑driven change.
