MEET THE CEOs
Two friends. One mission.
They lead with their feet on the ground.
Coté and Renato don’t manage from offices. They spend their time in slums, schools, and villages—week after week. They listen before they act. They believe in working with communities, not for them. That’s what makes WATERisLIFE different. That’s what makes it personal.
Coté Terré is a journalist and humanitarian, driven by the belief that what you don’t show, doesn’t exist. As Co-CEO of WATERisLIFE, she leads with both strategic vision and hands-on experience, ensuring the organization’s mission is grounded in real solutions for real people.
Her work takes her to some of the most remote and underserved places on earth — slums, villages, and forgotten communities where children still drink water from polluted rivers. That’s where she feels most aligned with her purpose: listening, learning, documenting, and bringing visibility to those who are too often left unheard.
In early 2020, just before the world shut down, Coté found herself unexpectedly grounded in Kenya. What began as a reporting trip became a turning point. Life, as she says, “placed me exactly where I needed to be.” She set aside the television studios and cameras and chose to dedicate herself fully to a mission: to help provide access to safe water for people who have never had it.
While her path now moves between rural Africa and global cities like Madrid, New York, and São Paulo, it’s not the contrast that drives her — it’s the connection. She sees each world as essential to the other: the urgency and resilience of the communities she serves, and the capacity and generosity of those who can help. Without both, change can’t happen.
Coté is also a passionate speaker and advocate. Her TEDx talk raised awareness about the invisible water crisis and the transformational power of clean and safe water. She continues to use storytelling as a tool for action — inspiring donors, companies, and governments to invest in long-term, sustainable solutions.
For Coté, WATERisLIFE isn’t just an organization. It’s a calling — one that proves, every day, that when people gain access to clean and safe water, everything begins to change.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Renato started working with WATERisLIFE, moving from Santiago to Nairobi for what he thought would be a short-term role. Instead, it became transformative: he discovered the immense human challenge around water access and committed his life to social innovation, with water as the catalyst. What began as temporary turned into a lifelong mission. Today, he leads the organization as Managing Director and co-CEO, traveling between Mexico, Kenya, and other key countries, to advance WATERisLIFE’s mission.
Living in Nairobi has reshaped his understanding of humanitarian work, reinforcing that lasting impact requires close, on-the-ground collaboration with communities. A large part of his CEO routine involves sharing, mentoring, and working directly with people, reflecting his belief—highlighted in a 2024 Newsweek interview—that sustainable change demands genuine partnerships between donors, NGOs, and communities, focused on delivering tangible and relevant results.
This is more than a water project.
This is a movement of people changing lives—beginning with their own.
This isn’t just a story about water. It’s a story about people. And it’s still being written.