P&G and Electrolux among corporate members of major new water security alliance

The Resilient Cities Network's director of innovation and project development Braulio Eduardo Morera will lead the new initiative

Called the 50L Home Coalition, the initiative is being convened by the World Economic Forum, 2030 Water Resources Group and World Business Council for Sustainable Development. It will work to minimise water use in homes and business operations in some of the world’s most water-stressed urban areas.

The UN has estimated that, on a ‘business-as-usual’ trajectory, more than half of the global population will be living in water-scarce areas by 2050. Currently, a quarter of the world’s population across 17 countries are living in regions of extremely high water stress. Urban areas are particularly affected; the World Economic Forum claims that 14 of the world’s 20 megacities are already experiencing water scarcity, including London, Cape Town, Rio De Janeiro and Los Angeles.

50L Home Coalition members have jointly agreed on a four-pillared approach to addressing the role which water waste and overconsumption plays, consisting of innovation, education, policy and regulatory engagement and implementing new infrastructure and systems. On the latter, the initiative plans to bring pilot projects online in multiple water-stressed cities, with the support of local financiers and businesses, in the coming years.

It hopes that this framework will “re-invent the future of water and change the narrative” on water consumption. The Coalition’s overall work should generate progress towards Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6: Clean Water and Sanitation; as well as SDGs 12 (Responsible Production and Consumption) and 13 (Climate Action).

Founding business members of the Coalition are P&G, Electrolux, Engie, Suez, Acradis and Kohler.

“Through the 50L Home Coalition, we will leverage our global presence, our water chemistry expertise and our innovation in water and energy-efficient products to accelerate positive change,” P&G’s chief sustainability officer Virginie Helias said.

“We need to partner with the entire water value chain through public and private collaboration, and we need cities and citizens to engage. Together, we can bring to life this ambitious and inspiring vision, re-imagining how people live in their homes so that we can collectively protect our common home.”

Exclusive content

P&G’s senior director of global climate and supply chain sustainability James McCall recently took part in edie’s #SustyTalk series of video interviews, discussing the role which behaviour change and external engagement plays in meeting its targets. You can watch that discussion in full here.

For readers interested in water stewardship trends, AB InBev’s global vice president for sustainability Ezgi Barcenas recently penned a blog tracking the evolving corporate approach. You can read that article in full here.

Sarah George