WRI Stories Feed: Markets & Enterprise

Aqueduct News Roundup: India, Trading on Water, Shareholder Challenges

Robert Kimball — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 09:50:10 -0500

If you are a regular reader of news related to water risk, you may have seen data and observations from Aqueduct in several venues during the month of January. This is the first of a series of updates on news related to Aqueduct and the subject…

Q & A with Tao Zhang: Scaling Up Impact Investing in China

Tracy Elsen — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 11:31:56 -0500

Opportunities in China for impact investing are growing, where investors look to create positive social and environmental benefits alongside returns. Impact investors actively choose to put their money into companies that address social and…

Stories to Watch in 2012: U.S., China, Food, Renewable Energy, Rio+20

Manish Bapna — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 15:05:29 -0500

What are the top environmental and development issues that will shape 2012? This morning, I presented the World Resources Institute’s 9th annual “Stories to Watch” at the National Press Club. While we can’t predict the future, here’s a rundown of…

Aqueduct Partnership to Map Water Risks in Africa's Orange-Senqu Basin

Paul Reig — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 12:21:36 -0400

Snaking across multiple international boundaries and supporting everything from villages and farms to industry and cities, the Orange-Senqu River is one of the most important natural resources in southern Africa. The complexity and significance…

A Closer Look at Aqueduct's New Global Water Stress Maps

Tien Shiao — Mon, 03 Oct 2011 10:02:07 -0400

The World Resources Institute and the Coca-Cola Company recently announced a partnership that made industry-leading global…

The Coca-Cola Company Donates Extensive Water Risk Database to Aqueduct

Kirsty Jenkinson — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 11:06:12 -0400

This piece, co-authored by WRI’s Kirsty Jenkinson and Coca-Cola’s Joe Rozza, originally appeared on The Guardian…

RELEASE: Leaders Announce Global Effort to Restore 150 Million Hectares of Deforested Land

Michael Oko — Thu, 01 Sep 2011 19:54:06 -0400

New Global Restoration Council to be led by former Swedish Prime Minister Persson

A global effort to restore 150 million hectares of degraded and deforested lands by 2020 is being launched in Bonn, Germany. The announcement comes during the Bonn Challenge Ministerial Roundtable, where a select group of government officials, business leaders, and international forest experts are gathering to catalyze support for global forest and landscape restoration.

At the meeting, Göran Persson, former Prime Minister of Sweden, will propose a new Global Restoration Council to help galvanize action for forest and landscape restoration and build support to achieve The Bonn Challenge. The Council will be facilitated by the World Resources Institute (WRI) and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

“Restoring 150 million hectares of degraded lands represents an exciting and largely untapped opportunity to create more jobs and economic growth, while also protecting our climate,” said Prime Minister Persson, who is also a member of WRI’s board of directors. “I am delighted to be announcing this new Council to raise attention and generate action to strengthen our forests, our economies, our climate, and our lives. I look forward to working with world leaders, businesses, and other colleagues in an effort that will send a strong signal that forest and land restoration must be pursued globally.”

The Bonn Challenge builds on a new global assessment identifying that more than 2 billion hectares of the world’s deforested and degraded lands are available for restoration. This assessment, carried out by WRI, the South Dakota State University, and IUCN on behalf of the Global Partnership on Forest Landscape Restoration, nearly doubles the previous estimate, reflecting greater precision and a better understanding of the conditions needed for forests to grow.

“Forest restoration is big idea that carries many benefits. It will improve food security, enhance biodiversity, protect our climate, and generate jobs,” said Manish Bapna, interim President for WRI. “With this new 150 million hectare target– and support from leaders like Mr. Persson— we have a great opportunity to take action that will enhance the resilience of people and nature.”

Restoring 150 million hectares of land reflects a significant contribution to implementation of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) Target 15 and the REDD-plus agreement of the UNFCCC. The CBD Target 15 calls for the restoration of at least 15 percent of degraded ecosystems by 2020, and the REDD-Plus goal is to slow, halt and reverse forest cover and carbon loss, including through the enhancement of forest carbon stocks.

Find maps and information behind the 2 billion hectare analysis.

Find out more about IUCN forests work.

Learn more about the Global Partnership on Forest Landscape Restoration.

New Ventures Forum Addresses Challenges to Scaling Up Clean Energy Access in India

Tracy Elsen — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 12:34:59 -0400

New Ventures India, part of WRI’s center for environmental entrepreneurship, and CDF-IFMR convened a workshop in Mumbai earlier this summer to address the…

RELEASE: WRI and Partners Launch Aqueduct Alliance to Measure, Map, and Report on Global Water Risk

Michael Oko — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 10:15:40 -0400

Initiative to provide unprecedented level of water risk information for business and government

Recent water-related events – from extreme droughts across the southwestern United States to flooding in central China – provide vivid examples of the potential impacts of water on people, businesses, and local infrastructure. To assess and respond to increasing water risk globally, the World Resources Institute (WRI) is launching the Aqueduct Alliance, a consortium of leading water experts from the private and public sectors, NGOs, and academia. Founded by WRI, Goldman Sachs and General Electric, the alliance has added Bloomberg, The Dow Chemical Company, Talisman Energy, and United Technologies. The Coca-Cola Company is also engaged and will be providing an extensive global database of once proprietary water risk information to support Aqueduct’s work.

In a survey of 150 large corporations conducted by CDP Water Disclosure, nearly 40 percent of responding companies indicated that they had already experienced disruptions in operations, increases in expenses, and other detrimental impacts related to water. Against a backdrop of rapid population growth and climate change, government entities charged with managing water resources are also increasingly concerned with water-related disruptions and seeking viable approaches for mitigating risks.

“Businesses and governments are increasingly concerned with water-related risks, which can negatively impact profitability and continued economic growth,” said Kirsty Jenkinson, Director of WRI’s Markets and Enterprise Program. “Aqueduct will provide accurate, high quality information together with a platform for businesses and governments to address water risks beyond physical water scarcity, including regulatory and socioeconomic risks.”

At the heart of Aqueduct is a global database of water risk information that will enable companies, investors, governments, and others to create water risk maps with an unprecedented level of detail and resolution. The maps generated by Aqueduct combine advanced hydrological data with geographically-specific indicators that capture the social, economic, and governance factors that affect companies and economies. Robust risk assessment is the foundation for developing strategic water resource management plans at the business, watershed, and municipal levels. This publicly-available and transparent database will inform private sector efforts to reduce its water footprint in high risk areas, and create an impetus for public sector leaders to enter into dialogues with a range of stakeholders that will ultimately lead to more equitable, efficient, and sustainable water resources management in water-stressed basins.

“Water risk is becoming an increasingly critical global issue, but one that is inherently local and not yet fully considered in business and investment decisions,” said Kyung-Ah Park, Managing Director for the Goldman Sachs Environmental Markets Group, one of the founding partners in the Aqueduct project. “Aqueduct will work to facilitate better management of water risk and help identify market opportunities that drive more sustainable economic development.”

“Water risk is emerging as one of the greatest threats to long term economic and environmental sustainability,” said Jeff Fulgham, Chief Sustainability Officer for GE Power & Water, one of the other founding partners in the Aqueduct project. “Our customers around the world are addressing physical, operational, regulatory, social & reputational and financial risks all relative to water. Aqueduct will enable us to help our customers better assess and proactively address these risks.”

WRI has already developed a working prototype of the database and risk mapping tool, covering the Yellow River Basin in northern China. WRI will soon be launching an updated interactive web platform that includes global and basin-specific maps and information on water related risks. The ultimate goal of the project is to provide a comprehensive database of water risk information that can support improved public and private sector decision-making in increasingly water-stressed locations throughout the world.

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Read the Financial Times story on the launch, here

New Ventures China Investor Forum: Green Growth Generating New Opportunities

Tracy Elsen — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 14:13:06 -0400

This piece originally appeared on the New Ventures website. It was written with New Ventures intern Kevin Short.

The 2011 New Ventures China Investor Forum showcased the potential of environmental entrepreneurship on a larger scale than any previous forum in the program’s eight years of operations in China.

Six rising environmentally-focused enterprises presented their business models to 300 forum attendees in June. The forum provided an opportunity for these entrepreneurs to connect with both regional and global investors, an often arduous task for small and medium enterprises (SMEs).

“It has been extremely difficult for those environmental SMEs to get investment for further development in the local market, which explains why New Ventures’ services are in great demand, ” said Tao Zhang, Chief Operating Officer of New Ventures.

A new era of partnerships

This year’s forum, held at the Wan Shou Hotel in Beijing, represented a more diverse cross-section of Chinese society than at any previous New Ventures China investor forum. In an exciting development, New Ventures partnered with China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), the first time New Ventures China has collaborated with a local government agency to hold such forum. Government recognition of the energy savings, efficient resource utilization, and potential for economic growth facilitated this new partnership.

New Ventures China and the Information Center of MIIT have agreed to explore the possibilities of co-establishing a online database for Chinese green SMEs to be recognized by MIIT. They will also jointly launch a media initiative to highlight the achievements of Chinese green SMEs.

Alongside these officials sat many members of Chinese civil society, members of the business sector, media personnel, and of course, investors. The global network capabilities of New Ventures were also demonstrated through the presence of New Ventures Indonesia staff.

“We expect to make the New Ventures forum into a leading platform, through which more investors will get proper understandings about the fledgling green companies, help them grow up and finally find a way for profit and environment going hand in hand,” said Walter Ge, Director of New Ventures China.

Diverse services, common challenges

From e-waste management to bioenergy conversion, the companies represented at the China Investor Forum offered a wide range of environmental services. Beijing Huakong Automation System Co. Ltd., Shanghai Honghoo Group, Qingdao United Scrap Automobile Co. Ltd., Shanghai Electric Waste Collection Co., Ltd., Beijing Visualized Energy-Saving Co., Ltd., and Xuzhou Hootech Co., Ltd. were all allotted time to present to investors.

Since its fouding in 2006, Beijing Huakong Automation System Co., Ltd has saved its clients what amounts to the energy impact of 1.5 million tons of standard coal. The unit water consumption in Xuzhou Hootech’s production method is equal to 30% of the average amount across the industry, while the unit energy consumption represents just 1% of that in the ore mining industry.

Despite the range of environmental and energy objectives pursued by the businesses, these SMEs face remarkably similar hurdles. Namely, the SMEs face a lack of financing and sustained investment, barriers to scaling up, and underdeveloped business management expertise. Too large for microfinance and too small for mainstream investment, these companies represent the “missing middle”- an essential but frequently overlooked segment of emerging economies.

New Ventures has addressed this intersection of environment and development in China since 2003, offering services to over 400 SMEs to assist them in growing to scale. Through this program, over 20 Chinese environmental entrepreneurs have received over $150 million from various investors. At June’s China Investor Forum, potential investors included China International Capital Co Ltd, CLSA Capital Partners, Beijing ZhongTinYinTai Investment Management Co, HENG RUN International Group Limited, Energy Capital, LGT Venture Philanthropy, among others.

Prospects for the future

Leveraging the successes from June’s Investor Forum, New Ventures China now looks to expand these matchmaking services and facilitate even greater levels of investment for these green SMEs. New Ventures is now considering launching an impact investment fund that directly targets SMEs in the environmental sector.

“We plan to investigate the feasibility of running such a fund in China in the next two years,” said Tao Zhang.

New Ventures China plans to hold another Investor Forum late this year in Shenzhen, a key Chinese special economic zone bordering Hong Kong, as well as continuing to explore cross-regional collaboration opportunities, matchmaking models, and public outreach.

“Environmental impact investment will become more and more important in the country simply because China is facing an increasingly urgent need to balance environmental protection and further economic development,” said Tao.