A veteran's well ran dry in August. The neighbours helped — and his new well became the 1,000th

When the well at a veteran's home in Aroda, Virginia, ran dry in August, he fetched water from a local store and leaned on a neighbour. Now his replacement well has become a milestone: the 1,000th water well completed by the Water Well Trust since the programme began in 2012. The national nonprofit, funded by the US Department of Agriculture's Decentralized Water Systems programme and matching funds from water-industry companies, offers low-interest loans so low-income homeowners can drill or repair the household wells and septic systems that city water never reaches. Across 44 states it has now had a hand in more than 1,000 wells and 174 wastewater projects — quiet infrastructure, one household at a time.

SDG 6 · Clean water and sanitation — Mechanism: institutional program