Desalination Design Challenge: 01 Water, Water Everywhere

In this introductory lesson of the Desalination Design Challenge unit, students explore the limited availability of Earth’s fresh water through a hands-on visual demonstration using containers of varying sizes. By modeling the distribution of salt water, frozen fresh water, and accessible fresh water, students develop a concrete understanding of global water scarcity. The lesson prompts students to reflect on human water use, interpret data through graphs, and discuss the importance of water conservation, setting the stage for later engineering and green chemistry–informed desalination design challenges.