At the recent 43rd World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland, water scarcity was identified as the second most important risk facing the world in the years ahead. At an open forum titled Water: Scarcity and Stress, commentators noted that water is tightly connected to food production, energy, climate change, economic growth and security. Sizable parts of the world already lack an adequate water supply, while population growth and improved living standards are expected to exacerbate the problem.
The World Economic Forum (WEF) has continued to focus on issues of water security and water scarcity including two important reports:
- The Water Resources Group – Background, Impact and the Way Forward (2012)
- Water Security – The Water – Energy – Food – Climate Nexus (2011)
More information about the WEF water initiative as well as these reports and updates on DAVOS 2013 is available at http://www.weforum.org/.