Published just ahead of World Water Day by WWF and GlobeScan, The Future Water Agenda: How water can lead the way for sustainability and collective action details the top global concerns. Water pollution is viewed as a ‘very serious’ issue by 63% of people.

Photo: Rebecca Bliklen

Three other water-related issues – depletion of natural resources, water scarcity and loss of nature – were in the top 10, in addition to climate change, which primarily impacts societies and economies through water. Global experts echoed these concerns, with majorities expecting water issues to become even more important in the next 3-5 years – flooding (89%), scarcity (81%), pollution (78%), and protection and restoration of freshwater ecosystems (81%).

According to the survey, more than two-thirds of people believe governments and companies are most responsible for conserving and protecting water, yet most people view the performance of both as poor. Most experts in the survey also rated private sector performance on water stewardship as poor, with every sector ending up with a negative overall rating.

Significantly, almost 40% of experts identified investors as the biggest potential driving force behind this transformation. Jason Walters, Program Director at GlobeScan, believes “one of the most interesting findings of the report was the very strong level of public and expert support for corporate advocacy on water – with 70% of people strongly supporting companies speaking out and taking sides on government action to protect freshwater.” So far, most of the pressure to engage in collective action has come from NGOs and other companies. The research points to some key shifts in water stewardship that would accelerate action and deliver greater impact and resilience, including positioning water as a connector, strengthening water stewardship practices across entire value chains, and investing in collective action in priority river basins