How RepRisk helps identify countries at risk of water stress

# August 2019

The recent release of the updated Aqueduct™ Water Risk Atlas (Aqueduct 3.0) by the World Resources Institute (WRI) has made headlines around the world for highlighting the issue of water risk. WRI discovered that 17 countries, home to a quarter of the world's population, are currently at threat of extremely high water stress, a measure of competition for water. The situation will likely become worse as growing water demands and climate change create increased competition for dwindling water resources.

Quality and timely data is the key to understanding which countries are most water-stressed, and also for tracking emerging trends and hotspots. WRI relies on a diverse range of datasets for its Aqueduct suite of tools and data, including RepRisk's proprietary Country ESG Risk Index, which was used to understand the broader country-specific ESG and reputational risks that may threaten water quantity, quality, and access.

To help identify which countries are most at risk of water stress, RepRisk conducts an advanced AI screening of over 90,000 media, stakeholder, and third-party sources daily to identify and analyze ESG-related incidents. Analysts then curate the information and hand-select the items relevant to water risk, giving each incident a score in addition to a written summary. The RepRisk Country ESG Risk Index takes into consideration the impact of a country's risk incidents within the last two years and the average of a country's Worldwide Governance Indicators. The RepRisk data used in Aqueduct 3.0 was collected from October 2016 through October 2018.

This is just one example of how RepRisk's data is helping companies, researchers, and government officials make better-informed decisions about how to respond to different ESG issues. If you are interested in learning more about how other leading non-profits and professional services are using RepRisk data, visit our Featured Stories.

To learn more about WRI, please follow the links below.

WRI Aqueduct - https://www.wri.org/aqueduct

Aqueduct

Press release: Updated Global Water Risk Atlas Reveals Top Water-Stressed Countries and States
Methodology: https://www.wri.org/publication/aqueduct-30

Media Coverage Selection

New York Times: A Quarter of Humanity Faces Looming Water Crises
Bloomberg: These Countries Are the Most at Risk From a Water Crisis
The Washington Post: Mapping the strain on our water