Background

There is no dearth of evidence that water has become a scarce resource and pressures on it are multiplying. Given the importance of the sector both for human well being and economic growth there is a need to evolve mechanisms which look at forging partnerships among various stakeholders for developing innovative solutions to address the key issues. 

In the National Water Policy and several state policies water allocation to industry is at the bottom of the priority list.  Keeping this in view, sustained supply of freshwater becomes a critical issue for the survival of many industries especially water-intensive industries. The risk that industry faces today can be measured in terms of situations that have occurred where water stress, measured in terms of both availability and quality, has led to an increase in water costs, growth in business disruption and increased concern among the stakeholders about companies’ water-related performance.

Companies, civil society and governments are all coming to recognize that management of water resources, efficient water use and management of domestic, industrial and urban waste streams to protect public health and ecosystems are essential components of sustainable development today and in the future. The implications for businesses, for their markets and for the communities and environments where they work remain, often overlooked and clouded by uncertainties. In a world that is becoming increasingly constrained by water, these uncertainties are a concern to some, an opportunity for others and a challenge for all. 

TERI-Business Council for Sustainable Development (BCSD)[1] India is embarking on a process to explore the key water challenges and drivers for Indian businesses by developing scenarios to 2025. TERI-BCSD India will leverage off the water scenario work already carried out by other organizations, and in particular the Water Scenarios of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD)[2].

Success in the future requires wise decisions to be made today. Scenario building can help us explore what we know and what we do not know, whilst being aware of, and prepared for, all the potential outcomes. We can use scenarios not only to help uncover critical assumptions underpinning strategies, policies and programs that would otherwise remain implicit, but also to respect and explore differences and to build the logical framework for navigating businesses in the scenario of water scarcity.

The project will be carried out from June 2007 and be finalized and presented at the Delhi Sustainable Development Summit (DSDS) in February 2008. Using a scenario planning process with expertise provided by the WBCSD the project will kick off with a stakeholder workshop scheduled to be held on World Environment Day 05 June 2007 in Mumbai that will be instrumental in highlighting relevant, plausible and challenging narratives about water in the coming decades.

The Workshop

with participants and panelists drawn from the private sector, civil society, government and inter-governmental organizations the workshop would focus on providing both regional and global perspectives.

Aim:  To explore what really matters from the combined perspectives of all participants;

·         Better/shared understanding - identify critical linkages/enable holistic solutions

·         Generate new ideas/out of the box thinking

·         Catalyze action and help find solutions for, the business community;

·         Clarify roles and responsibilities for different interests;

·         Suggest policy options/explore possible solutions/show reasonable course of action;

To identify the key challenges and their associated drivers of change that will most shape and impact the way in which the sustainability of water use unfolds over the next 18 years; to identify a range of plausible outcomes in 2025. 

Date:  05 June 2007

Time:  10.30 am to 17.45 pm

Venue: The Leela Kempinski, Mumbai

Media contact:

• Rajiv Chhibber - Manager (Corporate Communications) - This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ,
  Mob: +91 11 98104 26698 - Ph: +91 11 24682111 / +01 11 24682100

• Pratik Ghosh - TERI- (Business Council for Sustainable Development) BCSD India - Ph: 91-11-24682100,41504900 Fax : 91-11-24682144, 24682145 M: +91 9810259265, This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ,