WWF & GlobeScan, March 2025

The Future Water Agenda: How water can lead the way for sustainability and collective action

Water is an essential resource. It is necessary for life on earth and everything that comes with it. The economy and most businesses depend on water. Without it, they would be forced to shut down and global commerce would grind to a halt.

Despite the importance of water, companies and governments around the world generally do not recognize how much water matters to them or bother to take stock of what would happen if they did not have it. Of course, there are exceptions in places like Mexico, South Africa, and Pakistan where some water supplies have already run dry or billions of litres are trucked in to meet the local demand for water. Along with water shortages, flooding and pollution also pose substantial, growing threats to livelihoods, business, global value chains, communities, and public health.