The human need for clean water is one of the biggest concerns among ESG (environmental, social and governance) investors worldwide, says a recent article on Greenbiz.com. The World Economic Forum’s (WEF) Global Risk Report has listed water crises among the top risks each year for the past several years, says the article’s author, Melanie Adams, Vice President at RBC Global Asset Management.
In a recent survey of several hundred institutional investors, two-thirds said water concerns factored into ESG decisions. Only cybersecurity and anti-corruption ranked higher.
The WEF report ranked water concerns third-highest in its 2018 report, with only weapons of mass destruction and climate ranked higher. In 2017, the WEF noted that water was a major factor in conflicts in 45 countries.
In the United States alone, nearly half of the nation’s 204 freshwater basins may be unable to meet demands for fresh water within the next 50 years, another study showed. In Europe, more than 11 percent of the population has already been “affected by water scarcity, costing some $100 billion since 1980,” the European Commission says.
If you want to become an impact investor, interested in sustainability and ESG investments, working to ensure clean drinking water across the globe is a great place to start.