What is Corporate Water Stewardship?

As an Alliance for Water Stewardship (AWS) member, IUCN aligns with AWS’s definition of water stewardship which is:

the use of water that is socially and culturally equitable, environmentally sustainable and economically beneficial, achieved through a stakeholder-inclusive process that includes both site- and catchment-based actions

About IUCN’s work and engagements

IUCN has been engaging with business for over 20 years and specifically on water stewardship for more than 10. We have engagements that focus on corporate policies and site management of water and biodiversity but where we see the real potential for transformation is when businesses step outside their fences and engage in basin level collective action. This is where the highest potential exists for improving and restoring ecosystems and their services, as well as connecting upstream and downstream users for strengthened coherence and impact.

Beyond this, IUCN provides thought leadership to several platforms and initiatives including the Alliance for Water Stewardship; Collection Action Alliance; CDP Water Security Advisory Council; CDP Disclosure Framework Advisory Group; Climate Bonds Initiative; Global Reporting Initiative; EC Platform on Sustainable Finance; 2030 Water Resources Group, etc.

Current engagements

Holcim
IUCN has had a long history of engaging Holcim to focused on strengthening its policies and practices on biodiversity and water management. The current engagement with Holcim, initiated in 2024 until the end of 2026, aims to effectively contribute to the achievement of Holcim’s commitments on biodiversity, water, climate change and sustainable construction, and demonstrate measurable progress based on the best science and practice. The Water and Wetlands team is responsible for managing the water stewardship workstream of this engagement which includes the following main goals:
  • Contribute to the development of a framework and guidance on water stewardship that helps Holcim meet its commitments on water;
  • Build company capability on water stewardship and Nature-based Solutions (NbS) for water;
  • Facilitate the establishment of partnerships for collective action on water stewardship and NbS for water.
Natural Mineral Waters Europe
NMWE is a trade association representing more than 550 mineral water companies and national associations. IUCN and NMWE have been working together since 2022 to develop practical and scientifically robust guidance for the European Natural Mineral Water sector on aligning their water stewardship and biodiversity goals.
Guide: Biodiversity in Natural Mineral Waters
Nestlé Waters
IUCN’s engagement with Nestlé Waters has spanned the last 3 years and focused on providing tailored advice for operationalising the Nestlé Waters Pledge and creating alignment between Pledge Projects and IUCN related approaches and standards, especially OECMs and NbS.
Water Stewardship infographic
The Freshwater Challenge’s Business Supporter Programme
IUCN is a core partner of the Freshwater Challenge, a country-led initiative focused on restoring 300,000 kilometers of degraded rivers and 350 million hectares of degraded wetlands by 2030 as well as securing the protection of freshwater ecosystems important for biodiversity and ecosystem services.Whilst country-led, the Freshwater Challenge recognises the important role that business can and should play in managing and restoring freshwater ecosystems. Therefore, a Business Supporter Programme has been developed outlining how businesses can contribute to the Challenge’s goals. IUCN encourages businesses to engage with the FWC and can support interested parties in taking the necessary steps to make a meaningful contribution.

In collaboration with Nestlé Waters and based on IUCN’s learning and experience of engaging businesses on water management and stewardship over the last 20+ years, we present our story of water regeneration. It highlights the role of water as the connector between people and nature, and the critical linkages that need to be made between water, biodiversity and climate for sustainability and resilience.

News

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