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by - Civil society groups can enhance environmental and economic outcomes by connecting communities with expertise and formal decision-making processes.
water
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by Vittal Boggaram and Sahana Goswami - March 22, 2017Water’s usability doesn’t need to end once it's flushed down the drain. Rather, India can see industrial and domestic wastewater as a valuable resource from which water, nutrients and even renewable energy can be extracted.
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by Katie Lyons and Todd Gartner - March 21, 2017It’s fitting that International Day of Forests (March 21) and World Water Day (March 22) fall next to each other, as the health of these resources often go hand-in-hand.
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by Xiaotian Fu, Leah Schleifer and Lijin Zhong - March 17, 2017You wouldn't drink wastewater, but it can be converted into a valuable energy source. In fact, some are already trying it, with promising results.
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by Spencer Knowles - March 14, 2017The Chesapeake Bay is one of America's most treasured waterways, but also one of the most polluted. Experts in this WRI Podcast examine nutrient trading as a potential solution.
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by Cy Jones, Beth McGee, Lee Epstein, Erik Fisher and Peggy Sanner - March 2017Efforts to restore the Chesapeake Bay will benefit from nutrient trading to help meet stormwater requirements, which can be the most challenging to achieve. WRI and the Chesapeake Bay Foundation studied three counties—two in Maryland and one in Virginia—to explore the potential for nutrient trading with the stormwater sector.
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by William Hua Wen, Lijin Zhong, Xiaotian Fu and Simon Spooner - March 2017This study assesses the impacts of different water sources (including surface water, groundwater, water transfer and desalination and wastewater reclamation) on the energy consumption of municipal water supply systems. Through the scenario analysis, the report also provides recommendations for policy makers to develop sustainable low-carbon water supply strategies and optimize the allocation of various types of water sources.
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by Charles Iceland and Betsy Otto - February 27, 2017Water security drives state stability and safety in many regions of the world. The direct and indirect effects of water stress—such as migration, food shortages and general destabilization—transcend national boundaries.
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by Yiyuan Qin and Todd Gartner - January 12, 2017Israel is joining a global movement towards holistic forest management that values ecosystem services.
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by Todd Gartner and Chad Reed - November 03, 2016Forest Resilience Bonds are a new investment instrument; money is fronted to pay for forest restoration, which improves water quality and reduces fires, with beneficiaries offering dividends.
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by Suzanne Ozment and Todd Gartner - October 27, 2016A Colorado wildfire that caused $25 million in damage also played havoc with Denver's drinking water supply, prompting the Mile-High City and others to invest in watershed protection to safeguard forests where the water they need originates. Protecting forested watersheds is critical for utilities that serve over 10,000 U.S. cities. Here are 10 factors that can guide watershed investment.
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by Suzanne Ozment, Todd Gartner, Heidi Huber-Stearns, Kara DiFrancesco, Nathaniel Lichten and Sylvia Tognetti - October 2016Based on a 3-year comparative case study analysis of 13 watershed investment programs, this report provides lessons to guide water utilities and communities as they work together in protecting drinking water supply at the source.
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Rapidly growing cities are finding it increasingly difficult to provide their residents with core services, like housing, water, energy and transportation — a challenge that is exacerbated as the share of poor people living in urban areas grows. New research from the World Resources Institute finds that in most cities in the Global South, more than 70 percent of residents lack reliable access to basic services like livable, well-located housing; clean water; sustainable energy; and accessible and affordable transportation. The World Resources Report: Towards a More Equal City examines whether prioritizing access to core urban services will create cities that are prosperous and sustainable for all people.
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As communities around the world face a growing water crisis, the need for lower-cost means to secure ample and clean water is becoming increasingly important.
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by Charles Iceland, Betsy Otto and Richard Waite - July 25, 2016A changing climate means less rain and lower water supplies in regions where many people live and much of the planet's food is produced, as clouds retreat toward the North and South poles. A new study shows this cloud shift is already taking place, with huge implications for agriculture, industry and municipal water provisioning.
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by Paul Reig and Eliot Metzger - June 22, 2016Cities and women can be key players in managing future water demand, including reducing risks from the fastest-growing water users--energy and industrial activities.
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by Lauretta Burke - June 08, 2016More than 80 percent of the Caribbean's wastewater enters the ocean untreated, spurring the growth of algae on coral reefs and increasing the risk of infections for swimmers, among other issues. While many have been aware of this problem in Tobago for more than 20 years, there's been little government action.
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by Andrew Maddocks, Betsy Otto and Tianyi Luo - June 02, 2016Research on future water risk finds that rapidly growing demand for water will drive the greatest increase in water stress, even more so than supply changes caused by droughts and other extreme events.