Launched in 2015, the “Business Alliance for Water and Climate” initiative demonstrates the crucial role of companies, through concrete commitments, in addressing the issue of sustainable management of water resources in the context of a changing climate. The long-term monitoring of commitments is ensured through the endorsement of the ‘CEO Water Mandate’ and reporting to CDP Water.

The Alliance is led by the UN Global Compact’s CEO Water Mandate, CDP (ex-Carbon Disclosure Project) Water, WBCSD (World Business Council for Sustainable Development) Water and the French company SUEZ. All companies and private-sector-related organizations/networks can join the initiative.

3 levels of ambition:

• Analyse and share water-related risks to implement collaborative response strategies;
• Measure water footprint with existing standards;
• Reduce impacts on water availability and quality in direct operations and all along the value chain.

Aspirational targets:

• Implementation of all action plans designed by endorsing companies;
• Scaling-up potential of the initiative: to be built collectively.

Photo credit: Tim Geers (Flickr)