The Alliance for Water Stewardship (AWS), an important global multi-stakeholder organization dedicated to promoting the responsible use of freshwater, released the first draft of its International Water Stewardship Standard at the World Water Forum in Marseille, France.
Register for the webinar on April 26th here >
Stuart Orr, WWF International’s Freshwater Manager commented: “As water issues become more urgent, approaches that effectively bridge business activities with public water management are essential. As one such approach, the AWS Standard, will play a crucial role in ensuring that businesses and other water users increasingly become part of the solution to our shared water challenges.”
The Standard, which is now open for public consultation, aims to support water users in taking appropriate actions to evaluate and improve their impacts on watersheds. It aims to build on other water-related tools, helping users to reduce their water risk and generate social, environmental and economic benefits. The Standard is designed for global application in all relevant sectors.
2degrees is delighted to be involved in the process.
The first in two webinars with Alexis Morgan, Global Water Roundtable Coordinator at the Alliance for Water Stewardship described:
- How the AWS draft Standard was developed and why
- The structure and content of the draft Standard
- How to comment on the draft Standard and shape the second draft
A recording of the webinar is available here >
Questions included:
- With all the scoring and ranking fatigue out there, why did AWS launch on standards and scoring, rather than just standards?
- How would the Standard recognize positive impacts downstream, for example your products help your customers reduce their water use, even in another watershed?
- A question on scope: is this primarily a standard to certify stewardship programs or stewardship impact? 11 of the 12 steps seem to focus on programattic or process criteria.
Register for the next webinar on April 26th here >
As Ron Cotterman, Executive Director, Sustainability, Sealed Air Corporation put it, “the beauty of the proposed draft AWS Standard is that voluntary implementation raises the bar for all organizations, creating a virtuous cycle of water stewardship.” You can view the first draft here and provide your feedback by following this link.
You can provide your feedback until 15th of June 2012. A second draft of the Standard, based upon stakeholder feedback, will be released in late 2012 with a final Standard expected in mid 2013.
We are hopeful that AWS will help drive action towards better corporate water stewardship globally, and that with your involvement in the development of the Standard, sustainable water use will be made truly possible.
We're welcoming your thoughts!