Inclusive Water Security: Progress Made Through Applying the AWS Standard

Sarah Wade

Outreach and Engagement Coordinator, AWS

sarah@a4ws.org

THE ALLIANCE FOR WATER STEWARDSHIP (AWS)

- AWS is a global membership alliance of business, civil society and public sector

- We unite behind a shared definition and a common approach to robust, independently verifiable water stewardship: the AWS Standard

- The AWS Standard is already being implemented at hundreds of sites around the world

“Water stewardship is the use of water that is socially and culturally equitable, environmentally sustainable and economically beneficial, achieved through a stakeholder inclusive process that involves site

and catchment based actions”

AWS definition of Water Stewardship

AWS STANDARD V2.0

3rd Party Certification

Credible Claims

Catchment Impacts

IMPLEMENTERS SAY THE BENEFITS OF USING THE AWS STANDARD ARE:

Site:

- Increase efficiencies

- Enable risk mitigation

- Grow staff capacity & motivation

- Strengthen stakeholder relationships

- Build and grow community trust

Catchment:

- Improve local water quality and availability

- Protects socially and culturally important water-related areas

- Drives local collaboration

- Supports knowledge sharing

- Strengthens multi-stakeholder governance

Corporate:

- Understand sites’ risks

- Common approach across whole business

- Credible independently verifiable claims

- Contribute to CDP & other disclosures

- Support CSR activities

- Reinforces brand credentials

SAVE WATER

PROTECT THE

SOURCE & THE

CATCHMENT

SHARE OUR

KNOWLEDGE

CONTRIBUTE TO

COMMUNITIES

STRIVE FOR

COLLECTIVE

SOLUTIONS

✓ By 2025: all NW sites to be AWS certified

OUR WATER STEWARDSHIP JOURNEY

SHARE OUR WATER KNOWLEDGE3D BLOCK DIAGRAMS AND BEYOND

7

HOW THE AWS STANDARD HELPS COMPANIES ACHIEVE

CONTEXT-BASED TARGETSEmilio Tenuta, VP of Sustainability

Ecolab

AUGUST 28, 2019

TODAY’S DISCONNECT

9

75% 82%of companies have

water reduction goals

of those companies

lack the tools to achieve

them at the local level

THE

PROBLEM?

KEY LESSONS FROM THE AWS FRAMEWORK

▪Rethink the way you manage water

▪Site-level action alone isn’t enough

▪We need to drive collective action within watersheds

▪Context-based goals are key

10

POSITIVE OUTCOMES

11

AWS Certification:

• City of Industry, California

• Carson, California

• Taicang, China

Up Next: Garyville, Louisiana

• Improving operational efficiency and

absolute water use

• Leveraging nature-based solutions

• Restoring 100% of consumptive

water use for the plant

Inclusive water security: progress made through applying the AWS Standard, August 28th 2019

Reducing complexity through

collaboration in agricultural supply chains

EDEKA and WWF – a decade of strategicpartnership

August 28thWWF | Reducing complexity through collaboration in agricultural supply chains | SIWI World Water Week 2019 13

sustainability

topics

Water stewardship to systematically reduceEDEKA‘s water risks

14

EDEKA Water Risk ToolApplying an adapted version of WWF

Water Risk Filter to analyse supply chain

water risks and track mitigation measures

On-ground projectsImplementing water stewardship measures

and initiatives with growers of selected

commodities in water risk hotspots

Market transformationMainstreaming water stewardship through

consumer communication, knowledge sharing,

networks and platforms

Standards & certificationsApplying and improving standards with water

stewardship criteria as a systematical framework for

risk reduction

August 28thWWF | Reducing complexity through collaboration in agricultural supply chains | SIWI World Water Week 2019

3. April 2019WWF Präsentation | Titel | Anlass 15

Citrus fruits from Guadalquivir basin, Spain

Partners

Project scope

Result

▪ First European site AWS certified (gold status) in June 2018

Outlook

▪ Collective actions & AWS implementation at all 11 project

farms

Agro-

chemicals

Bio-

diversity

Water

Manage-

ment

Water

Steward-

ship

3. April 2019WWF Präsentation | Titel | Anlass 16

Bananas from Colombia & Ecuador

Partners

Project scope

Result

▪ Establishment of multi stakeholder water stewardship

platform in Colombia

Outlook

▪ AWS certification of all 20+ project farms until mid 2020

Agro-

chemicals

Climate &

Waste

Bio-

diversity

Social

Com-

pliance

Water

Manage-

ment

Water

Steward-

ship

growers

Concluding remarks on AWS implementationthrough food supply chain cooperation

▪ Growers‘ capacity & resource constraints

▪ Complexity of Standard & stewardship

approach

▪ „Certification fatigue“

17

Key c

hallen

ge

sL

esso

ns

learn

ed

Ma

jor

be

ne

fits

▪ Supply chain & NGO cooperation can

create business case for growers

▪ Synergies with other standards (e.g.

GlobalG.A.P.)

▪ Flexibility & adaptability are crucial

▪ Risk reduction & supply security

▪ Framework & blueprint for water

stewardship

▪ Scalability of stewardship approach

▪ Reputation & communications

August 28thWWF | Reducing complexity through collaboration in agricultural supply chains | SIWI World Water Week 2019

An Inclusive Systems Approach

to Water Stewardship

Dr. Sophie NGUYEN KHOA

Senior Advisor, Water Security

HELVETAS Swiss Intercooperation

Stockholm World Water Week

AWS Standard Session, 28 August 2019

WATER STEWARDSHIP

From Site to Catchment

WAPRO: A ‘Push-Pull-Policy’ Partnership Approach to Water

Stewardship

Capacity strengthening

Knowledge and Technologies

Water Governance

Enabling Policy Environment

Incentives and

Investments

PUSH

POLICY

PULL

Adoption of water use efficient and

improved water quality practices

Examples of Implementation Frameworks1. Water Use Master Plan (WUMP) for Irrigation Systems

Punjab, Pakistan

Participatory prioritization and

planning for multiple water uses:

• Addressing access and equity issues

• Including the environment

• Strengthening local institutional capacity

Goal 1

Reduced Water-

related Disaster

Risks

Goal 2

Efficient use

oft Water

Resources

Goal 3

Reduced Land

Degradation

Goal 4

Integrative

Watershed

Governance

Obj. 1.1Increase awareness on IWSM & CCA

Obj. 2.1Increase irrigation WUEat farm level

Obj. 3.1Restore the degraded forest area

Obj. 4.1Facilitate transboundary dialogues/mgt

Obj. 1.2 Improve DR preparedness and response capacities

Obj. 2.2Improve WRM at WUA & irrigation scheme level

Obj. 3.2Optimise livestock vs. pasture capacity and restore

Obj. 4.2Coordinate Aksu WSM with the SD RBM plan

Obj. 1.3Protect population from water-related disasters risks

Obj. 2.3Increase farmers’ use of soil conserving and meliorative practices

Obj. 3.3Use of energy efficient hh products and business models

Obj. 4.3Integration of Aksu WSM in District, Jamoat and VD plans

Obj. 3.4Stabilize land through sustainable ag.

Obj. 4.4Effective governance for INRM

2. Integrated Watershed Management Planning - Aksu, Tajikistan

Farmers trained in water saving

practices & technologies

(PUSH)

Incentives from the private sector

e.g. through standards, CSR

(PULL)

Supply of seed

varieties consuming

less water

Extension, advice on

water efficient practices

& technologies

Weather forecast /

warning system

Research on WUE

WPDY techniques/mgt

e.g. for cotton, rice

Marketing of crops

produced under

Water Stewardship

Polycentric gov.

incl. local org.

Climate risk

management

Ensured water

access by the

vulnerable

WUAs recognised

legitimacy

Adequate

trade taxation

Subsidy schemes

for water efficient

and diversified ag.

Governance (incl. POLICY)

Water Stewardship

Support Functions

Inclusive & gender

sensitive gov.

Customary

water rights

Adequate supply of

irrigation water

(timing, volume)

Multi-sectoral

governance of

water use

Agro-business

Irrigation managers

Extensionists

Micro-finance

institutes

Farmers

associations

Water & Ag. research

institutes

Actors

Irrigation

suppliers

Ministry of Ag.

Min. of Commerce

Ministry of Water R

Min. of Irrigation

CSOs

Local public

insititutions

Community

leaders

Farmers

Food processors

Food traders

& retailers

Water Services

suppliers

Increased WUE & Water PDY

CBOs

Village rep.

WUAs

Consumers

NB: Illustration of the framework, not of an exhaustive case

Lobby GroupsCSR

representatives

3. Inclusive Water & Food Systems Approach to Leave No One Behind

Collective Action with the Public & Private Sectors

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For a fair water future

AWS implementation at Serengeti Brewery, Moshi and supply chain engagement

Insights on the value of the AWS standard

Maji SASA Initiative

Water Stewardship Action for Smallholders in Africa

launched in 2017 with support from Scottish Government, DFID and GIZ’s International Water Stewardship Programme to:

➢ Characterise water and climate challenges across a large and geographically diverse supply chain.

➢ Design, deliver and evaluate bespoke packages of support to improve smallholder water security and climate resilience.

➢ Develop and share a methodology for efficiently targeting water stewardship action to ‘de-risk’ large and diverse supply chains of SMEs and smallholders.

Led by WWI and local partners Shahidi wa Maji, working closely with Ministry of Water and Irrigation, Local government, Nelson Mandela University, TRIAS and SelianAgricultural Research Institute.

Key challenges facing barley farmers

1. Erratic rainfall, drought and its impact on yields and finances

2. Soil degradation, erosion and safe use of agro-chemicals

3. Resource conflict, land tenure and issues with governance

4. Limited water supply and sanitation in the community

5. Undefined supply contractual relationship with Company

Survey conducted with 25% of farmers to characterise and rank problems, benchmark against SDGs and set M&E baseline.

Water challenges facing supply-chain farmers by production area

AWS implementation benefits

• AWS standard drives understanding and action to address the water challenges facing suppliers.

➢ Barley production, farmer livelihoods and community well-being significantly impacted by water insecurity and climate variability.

➢ SBL’s production influenced by availability of barley from small to medium sized farms across Tanzania (from 2 to 120 ha).

Smallholder stewardship support modules

1. Conservation agriculture and climate smart agronomy

2. Access to weather indexed and crop insurance

3. Entrepreneurship, business planning and financial risk management

4. Empowerment, rights and obligations

5. Safe water supply, sanitation and hygiene

“The world is facing a water crisis.

An inclusive approach will be necessary... New partnerships and ways of working will be crucial.

Governments, communities, the private sector and researchers will need to collaborate.”

- High-Level Panel on Water, 2018

OTHER STANDARD

SYSTEMS

PUBLIC SECTOR

NON-PROFITGLOBAL BRANDS

RETAIL AND SUPPLY

CHAINS

AWS: A MULTI-STAKEHOLDER MEMBERSHIP ALLIANCE

AWS STANDARD V2.0