Jaden Smith has launched a new initiative to help to solve the water crisis in Flint, Michigan.
The rapper, actor, artist and entrepreneur has partnered with First Trinity Missionary Baptist Church through his company Just Goods and together, the two have launched a new water filtration system called The Water Box which the two designed and engineered together. The system aims to reduce and remove the toxins that are polluting Flint’s water supply.
The water in Flint, Michigan in the USA has been polluted since 2014 when the city’s main water source was changed to a cheaper alternative. The water was not treated properly and the pipes leaked lead into the water supply. A government state of emergency was declared in 2016 and withdrawn in 2017 however residents still complain that the water is still unsafe and poisonous.
According to the local press, a 2014 outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease (a severe type of lung infection) caused by the contaminated water killed 12 people.
This new venture comes after Jaden’s water brand Just was launched in the UK last year. To market and launch the brand, Jaden’s father Will Smith completed a day’s shift at Boots in the Westfield shopping centre in London.
On the brand, Will Smith said, “While Jaden was surfing as a young kid, some plastic water bottles floated by him and he soon realised that they were dirtying our oceans and killing the environment. He was immediately motivated to do something to save our planet, our future and with that wish, Just Water was born.”
Read more about Will Smith’s day as a Boots retail assistant here.