Water at a Tipping Point / DAVOS 2025

Summary

This panel discussion at Davos focused on the global water crisis and potential solutions. Experts from various sectors highlighted the urgency of addressing water scarcity, which is expected to affect over half the world’s population by 2030. The discussion emphasized the interconnectedness of water issues with energy, economics, and emerging technologies like AI.

Christophe Beck of Ecolab stressed the link between water and energy efficiency, noting that up to 75% of industrial power usage is related to water management. The panel explored innovative approaches, including the Water Resilience Coalition, which aims to engage 150 major companies that impact a third of global water usage.

Regulatory challenges were addressed by EU Commissioner Jessika Roswall, who emphasized the need for better implementation of existing legislation and the development of a comprehensive water resilience strategy. The discussion also touched on the problem of “forever chemicals” (PFAS) contamination, with Fajer Mushtaq of Oxal highlighting the complexity of addressing widespread pollution while maintaining necessary industrial uses.

Financing emerged as a critical issue, with Fabrizio Palermo of ASEA suggesting the need for innovative funding mechanisms like “blue certificates” similar to carbon credits. The panel agreed on the importance of properly valuing water resources and incentivizing conservation and reuse.

Throughout the discussion, participants emphasized the need for collaboration between public and private sectors, clear regulations to drive innovation, and a holistic approach to water management that considers quality, quantity, and economic factors. The panel concluded with hopes for concrete progress and maintaining political momentum on water issues in the coming years.

Keypoints

Major discussion points:

– Water scarcity is a growing global crisis with major economic and social impacts

– There is a need for better water management, reuse, and infrastructure investment

– Technology and innovation can play a key role in addressing water challenges

– Regulatory clarity and proper valuation of water are needed to drive change

– Public-private partnerships and collaboration are important for solutions

Overall purpose/goal:

The discussion aimed to highlight the urgency of addressing global water challenges, explore potential solutions from policy, business, and technology perspectives, and inspire action to improve water resilience and management.

Tone:

The tone was primarily serious and concerned given the gravity of water issues, but also cautiously optimistic about potential solutions. Speakers emphasized the need for urgent action while also highlighting opportunities for innovation and collaboration. The tone became more solution-oriented and forward-looking towards the end as panelists discussed their hopes for progress in the coming years.

Speakers

– Sherry Madera: CEO of CDP, moderator of the session

– Fajer Mushtaq: Co-founder and CEO of Oxal, a clean tech water tech startup

– Christophe Beck: Chief Executive Officer of Ecolab

– Fabrizio Palermo: Chief Executive Officer and General Manager of ASEA

– Jessika Roswall: European Commissioner for Environment, Water Resilience and a Competitive Circular Economy

Additional speakers:

РJohan Rockstr̦m: Mentioned as announcing the planetary health check

– Katainen: Mentioned as a former EU leader for growth

– Gary White: Mentioned as being from Water Equity

Water Crisis and Solutions: A Comprehensive Discussion at Davos

Introduction:

At the World Economic Forum in Davos, a panel of experts convened to discuss the global water crisis and potential solutions. The session, moderated by Sherry Madera, CEO of CDP, brought together leaders from various sectors to address the urgent need for action on water scarcity, which is expected to affect over half the world’s population by 2030.

Key Participants:

– Fajer Mushtaq: Co-founder and CEO of Oxal, a clean tech water startup

– Christophe Beck: Chief Executive Officer of Ecolab

– Fabrizio Palermo: Chief Executive Officer and General Manager of ASEA

– Jessika Roswall: European Commissioner for Environment, Water Resilience and a Competitive Circular Economy

The Scope of the Water Crisis:

The discussion began with a stark assessment of the global water situation. Sherry Madera highlighted that water stress is projected to affect over half the world’s population by 2030. Jessika Roswall added that water scarcity could negatively impact global GDP by 6% by 2050. Fabrizio Palermo emphasised the pervasive nature of the issue, noting that water impacts 60-70% of GDP directly and indirectly.

Interconnectedness of Water and Energy:

Christophe Beck of Ecolab stressed the intricate link between water and energy efficiency. He pointed out that 75% of industrial power usage is related to water management, including heating, cooling, transporting, and treating water. This insight reframed water conservation as not just an environmental imperative but also an economic opportunity.

Technological Challenges and Opportunities:

The panel explored how emerging technologies, particularly artificial intelligence (AI), are influencing water demand. Beck provided a thought-provoking comment on the unexpected water implications of AI development, stating that it could require “the power of the whole of India in the next five years, and the drinking needs to cool those data centres of the United States in the next five years.” Jessika Roswall noted the potential for AI to assist in water management, suggesting a dual role for technology in both exacerbating and potentially solving water-related challenges.

Water Quality and Contamination:

Fajer Mushtaq of Oxal brought attention to the persistent issue of “forever chemicals” (PFAS) contamination. She highlighted the complexity of addressing widespread PFAS pollution, noting the existence of 10,000 to 15,000 different compounds and the high cost of remediation in Europe, estimated at €17 billion. Mushtaq emphasised the need for clear discharge regulations to drive innovation in treatment technologies.

Jessika Roswall echoed these concerns, stressing the importance of addressing water quality alongside quantity issues and calling for better regulations on PFAS and other contaminants. She mentioned the EU’s efforts to propose new legislation on PFAS by the end of 2023.

Regulatory and Economic Approaches:

The discussion touched on various regulatory and economic strategies to address water challenges:

1. Implementation of existing legislation: Roswall emphasised the EU’s focus on better implementing existing water legislation, including the Water Framework Directive.

2. Comprehensive water strategies: Beck called for countrywide water plans and policies.

3. Infrastructure investment: Palermo highlighted the need for protecting water sources, proper basin maintenance, and predictive maintenance on water infrastructure.

4. Innovative financing: Palermo suggested the development of “blue certificates” similar to carbon credits to incentivise water conservation and reuse.

5. Clear regulations: Mushtaq stressed the importance of clear discharge regulations to drive innovation in water treatment technologies.

Collaboration and Innovation:

The panel agreed on the critical need for collaboration between public and private sectors. Beck mentioned the Water Resilience Coalition, which aims to engage 150 major companies that impact a third of global water usage. He noted that the coalition has already engaged 35 companies representing 3% of global GDP. Roswall highlighted the EU’s efforts to unlock more funding for water projects, while Mushtaq emphasised the importance of creating an ecosystem that supports water technology innovation.

Rethinking Water Use and Movement:

Beck provided a provocative perspective on wastewater, stating, “The concept of wastewater is an engineering flaw. We should never have wastewater.” He called for a redesign of industrial processes to eliminate wastewater. Beck and Palermo also discussed the challenges of moving water over long distances, emphasizing the importance of local water reuse and circular water systems.

Economic Valuation of Water:

Palermo raised an important point about the economic valuation of water, noting that unlike other resources such as gas or electricity, consumers typically don’t pay for water itself, only for its treatment and transportation. This observation highlighted a fundamental issue in how water is valued and priced, prompting discussion on the need for innovative financing and pricing models for water resources.

Future Aspirations:

In a rapid-fire wrap-up, panelists shared their hopes for progress by 2026:

– Mushtaq: Widespread adoption of new water treatment technologies

– Beck: Implementation of comprehensive water strategies in 50 countries

– Palermo: Significant increase in water reuse and recycling

– Roswall: Better implementation of existing water legislation and new PFAS regulations

Conclusion:

The panel concluded with a sense of cautious optimism, emphasising the urgency of addressing global water challenges while also highlighting opportunities for innovation and collaboration. The discussion underscored the complexity of water management issues, requiring multifaceted solutions that address various aspects of water security, infrastructure, and technology. It also highlighted the need for a paradigm shift in how societies value, use, and manage water across industries and communities.

Sherry Madera: Good afternoon everyone. We’re all having a very good discussion here at Davos. My name is Sherry Madeira. I am the CEO of CDP. I’m delighted to be the moderator for this really important session. By 2030, over half of the world’s population will be in water stress. And what does that mean? That means an impact on economics. It means an impact on health. It means an impact on all of the food scarcity and food issues that we already have in our sites today. Nearly $7 trillion is being invested in earth negative areas. And this is causing actually big shifts in what the planet is being able to be resilient to. I had the pleasure earlier this week of sharing a stage with Johan Rockström when he was announcing the planetary health check. And it’s grim reading. Over six out of nine of the planetary boundaries have already been breached. And the role of the economy is something we now need to pay really close attention to. One of those areas that have been breached is fresh water, is the availability and the access of fresh water. Now, I don’t want to start this panel with a feeling that there’s nothing we can do. There is things that we can do in order to be able to improve the situation. As CEO of CDPM, I’m very close to the data. And what we’re seeing is that over 9,600 companies this year in 2024 actually disclosed how it is that they’re working with data, how they’re dealing with data scarcity, and what opportunities they’re also seeing as they’re seeing a new future where water and water resilience is part of their business model. That is 100% year on year increase in terms of disclosures. And we know that as soon as you have a disclosure, you can measure and then you can manage. So I hope that we can have that same balanced view as we move into our panel discussion. I would like to make sure that we say hello to each of our panelists. I’m looking to my left first at Jessika Roswall. Jessica is the European Commissioner for Environment, Water Resilience and a Competitive Circular Economy. title. Very important. Thank you for being with us. Christophe Beck, the Chief Executive Officer of Ecolab. We also have Dr. Fajer Mushtaq, and we also have Fabrizio Palermo, the Chief Executive Officer and General Manager of ASEA. Thank you, panellists, for being with me. And I’d like to first start with you, Christophe. Looking ahead ten years, which water solutions do you think will shape our global economic strategies? And what can each sector do now so that we can speed up these changes?

Christophe Beck: Great to be here, and great to see as well that water is becoming a little bit more central to the discussions here in Davos, because when we talk about the next ten years, I think we can even think about the next few years that are coming. We are living a pretty extreme time in terms of water. I have the chance to lead a company that’s serving a million customer locations in 170 countries. We’re the largest water company in the world. And for 100 years, we’ve tried helping all industries to produce more with less water at a lower cost, which was an interesting journey. And just to add a little bit some perspective as well, as I’m sharing as well with our teams and our customers and countries that we serve, a few facts that if we put all water in one bubble that we have on the planet, well, that bubble would be 800 miles wide. And if we were to consider just the freshwater, that’s lakes and rivers, that would be 35. That’s 50 kilometers. That’s it. That’s all we have on the planet. And when we look at the supply and demand by 2030, we thought in 2019 before COVID that we would have a gap of 30 percent. We estimate it’s going to be 56 percent today. That number has just changed 22 months ago because that was all before AI truly came on the planet. And I had the chance to be in Saudi Arabia, so a few days ago, last week, where everyone was talking about the energy transition. And energy transition is gonna take, pick your number, 10, 20, 30 years to get there. AI is happening as we speak, and we estimate that AI is gonna have an impact which is gonna be huge, that we didn’t think about. It’s gonna require the power of the whole of India in the next five years, and it’s gonna require the drinking needs to cool those data centers of the United States in the next five years. So when we talk about the next 10 years, let alone 20 or 30, I’d like to focus on the next two or three. And I think as much as that’s a new challenge that we haven’t thought about because it just started, it’s becoming an enabler for solutions. Because interestingly enough, every country, every company wants to embark on the AI wave. No one is against it, and is realizing that there is no way we can make it work without the power. That’s why so many data centers are being connected now to old nuclear plants that are restarting, interesting problem, while on water, the problem is that we can’t create new water, we need to reuse it. And visiting many countries over the last few months, going around the world, looking at South Korea, for instance, while they’re running out of water to produce chips that get into the whole AI chain as well. In India, they’re starting that new industry. Interestingly enough, so talking to the ministry as well of industry and natural resources, they forgot the fact that they will need water to do that as well in a place where there’s not much water as well. We talked about Singapore as well, wanted to become the data hub of the world. Well, all data centers are moving now, so to Malaysia, to Indonesia, to follow water. Saudi Arabia, the same, Spain, the same. And you go to California in the U.S. as well. well the same. And interestingly enough, the whole discussion is completely changing. It’s not about saving the planet. It’s about enabling the growth of AI. Whether we like it or not, that’s a different discussion, obviously. And the few things that we’re seeing, the first one, since we’re dealing mostly with scientists and engineers, the big trigger that I’ve noticed over the last 18 months is to say that the concept of wastewater is an engineering flaw. We should never have wastewater. We’ve been using it for thousands of years, obviously. And we need to redesign our processes, being data centers, being milk production, being processors, or whatever that is, in ways that the water never leaves the site. That’s what we do with data centers, with direct-to-chip cooling, for instance. The water never leaves the data centers, unlike the old technologies as well. So that’s one. It’s really rethinking wastewater in terms of eliminating that concept. You need a lot of technology that exists. And the second one is to have countrywide plans. And I’ve been shocked, being around the world, how few governments are truly having water plans. Singapore is one of them. We helped the government of France, for instance, to do their water plan when they went through crazy droughts a few years back. It’s been a remarkable journey, which has established a framework, new policies, new investments, new support for industries. We’re doing that for California today that’s going through extreme times, to say the least as well here. And the last thing I’d say, focusing on industries is where…

Sherry Madera: So I’m going to cut you off there, because it’s such a perfect segue to you, Jessica. And we’ll come back to that. We’ll have another round of discussions. But something that Christophe has just sparked is thinking about the regional differences and thinking about what’s going on in various different parts of the world. And I’m just wondering if I can turn to you and ask you, what are the views of the EU? How is the EU stepping up to this? sitting on this very stage with President Tharman of Singapore, who is deeply passionate about water. What is the EU doing about it?

Jessika Roswall: A lot of things, but starting maybe with my title, it’s long, but I mean it’s the first time a Commissioner has water in in the title, which is it’s one thing is to show how prioritized this question is for for the Commission and for the President von der Leyen. So that is one thing, but I say we don’t start from scratch and a little bit talk about that. We have a lot of legislation, very many have actually directives on wastewater, we maybe can come back to that. So on my agenda to do is to put forward a water resilience strategy, and with that, as I said, I don’t start from scratch. We have a lot of legislations, but one thing that we need to focus on on a European perspective is the implementation of a lot of things that we already have regulated, and that is something that we are also going to, as you say, we have the data. Yes and no, we have data, but we need also more data to help the regions, the member states also, to plan, plan, plan, to do the plans or follow the plans, so it’s a lot of things. So I would say the water strategy, as I’m going to put forward, is to build on the things that we have on a different things when it comes to quantity, quality, and a lot of other things. But planning is one thing, and then also, and you mentioned it already, I hope we will get back to that, is the innovation, using the innovations that we already have, building the techniques, we have them in Europe also, but we need to scale them up, and I know that probably you will talk more about that. So that is something, and also, yes, we focus a lot on AI, and sometimes I also hear that we should put the money on AI, that with all the money we put on AI, we should put on environment. You can think the other way around, that the thing that we use, that we know about AI, we can use also, and that is not the solution for everything, but using the tech, I would say also. And last point that I think will be a huge importance in the strategy that we will put forward is the funding. How can we unlock more funding? We have a lot of funding of course within the EU on cohesion money and a lot of other things but we need also private funding and yes we need a capital market union but a lot of other things that we’re looking into when it comes to funding. And here I really believe that this kind of forum is really important because this is something that we need to cross-cut. I mean it’s not only the policy makers we need to do this hand-in-hand and we have public money it’s not enough because we also need private. So that’s a little bit of the steering what I see in the forefront but the good thing is that we’re not starting from scratch.

Sherry Madera: Absolutely Jessica and actually the some of the CDP data from last year shows that there’s over four hundred and thirty six billion dollars of identified opportunity in water related projects. So again it’s about unlocking that and I think that that’s where business and government come together. I’d really love to turn to you Fabrizio. You know the the the key here is to understand how businesses and governments need to play together in this space. So as they update their risk management investment strategies to focus on water security which is what we all hope becomes part of the norm. What is the key part of resilience planning? How is it that actually we should be thinking about this so that we move forward faster?

Fabrizio Palermo: So thank you. I think water resilience in general is as been already mentioned but is really the key. The whole point is nowadays we continuously see events that shows the impact of the event related to water. So either draft or floods the average number that is generated in terms of damage is in excess of 300 billion every single year. Less than half of that is insured. So nowadays we are experiencing the consequence but then there is the dilemma that nobody is valuing water enough because if you look and going back to what Commissioner was saying what is the real value of water? If you look in Europe the tariff there is a huge difference You’re going between 10 euro for cubic meter up to 2 euro. Is it correct? Who knows the point is that today is not sufficient to finance investment Therefore, you know the impact on the GDP because water impact you can evaluate between 60 70 percent of GDP directly indirectly It impact agriculture Industry Energy and now AI But nobody is ready to pay for it. So this is the huge difference Solution solution can be analyzed. I mean we are an operator we run Infrastructure water we know perfectly the all the aspect of the problem, but there is only one certainty You need investment you need investment in in protecting sources because I mean distribution water is either Sources you need to To create an ecosystem that protects sources you need system to collect water properly because now a day you need bassin to collect as much as water and when it’s raining and to also do maintenance to this Basin because most of the bassing and the dams done many many years ago are full of debris So you need to to properly maintain them then you have transportation Transportation is large transportation small transportation AI can be of great help Because it’s a question of managing data because this infrastructure, especially in developed countries like Europe have been done more than 50 60 years ago Where the landscape in terms of technology was completely different and nobody now is in a situation To do predictive maintenance on this infrastructure. So we need to do a launch a new cycle For example, I mean in the estimate that now are running term of investment in my opinion are completely undervalued We can invest much more in order to reach another level. We’re doing predictive maintenance You can at the end invest even less then there is what leakage leakage is a problem everywhere If you go to Israel, this gauge is 7% averaging Europe in excess of 20% in some countries is in excess of 40% in Europe. So this is a new source. It’s like discovering new sources if you basically intervene in leakage. And then there’s what you were mentioning, reuse. Reuse is the largest source that the planet has. We need to, our objective should be altogether to point to net zero in water. Means that the same liter of water should be used as many times as possible and not wasted. So I fully agree that, I mean, we have approached the water up to now that waste water treatment, which is very important, but then the water needs to be reused and not sent to the rivers and then to the sea. Because also then checking water also has a value because water is in, and the link between health and water and therefore also government spending on health is very related to water. Because the consequence of not having proper fresh water are evident nowadays.

Sherry Madera: Well, thank you for that. And I’d love to turn to you, Fajer. The co-founder and CEO of Oxal. This panel is called Water at the Tipping Point. Do you believe we’re at a tipping point and what is it that worries you most?

Fajer Mushtaq: As you said, as this co-founder of a clean tech water tech startup, my personal view and the reason why I founded a water tech startup is simply that I think we were reaching the tipping point of water a very, very long time ago. That’s my personal view. But now if you look around, you look at the new data that we have on the contamination sites, you look at the data of how bad the quality of water is not just in the developing nations, but here in Switzerland, in Western Europe, in US, I think more and more people are not just thinking about it, they’re right about it, that we have reached the tipping point of water. I think in a way, it’s really good. The more transparency we have, the more data we have, the more of these kinds of conversations we can have openly and more constructively, right? And the focus that I spend most of my time at Oxal is something called Forever Chemicals, or PFAS, right? There are 10 to 15,000 different… types of compounds. For those of you who don’t know what they are, they are used in every single aspect of our lives, right? We use them to make our Teflon pants, our rainproof jackets, cosmetics, semiconductor chips. They’re really everywhere, right? And they are so unique and so, so good, like in terms of their use, they are, you know, water resilient, temperature resilient. We need them, right? But what we have done a really, really poor job of, and I wouldn’t just call it an engineering problem, like you said, I think it’s a systematic problem of not having enough data point and manufacturing them at scale without testing, are they safe? How do we discharge them? Do we have the right waste management practices? I think as a society, we did a lot of disservice a couple of decades ago, mass producing them and just putting them into the environment without doing our homework. So it’s an engineering problem, yes. It’s a technological problem, but it’s a regulatory problem. It’s also a health in society. And now if you look at the new data from last week, it’s a hundred billion per year EU problem. Every year for the next 20 years, it’s a societal economic problem. And that’s what worries me because it is a persistence of these chemicals. It’s the reliance we have of them and how we simply cannot just replace them for semiconductor chips tomorrow. We can’t just replace them for medical devices tomorrow, right? So what do we do? We can’t just ban them. And it’s a very good argument to talk about, let’s ban them from places we don’t need them. We don’t need them in our rainproof jackets. We can wax them, right? Fair, but we do need them in a firefighting foam so we can save lives, right? So banning is not the answer. Restricting of use is an answer, but there’s a bigger topic here of proper waste management here. We need to do better water treatment. And we also need to make sure that as the treatments are getting better, the regulations are also moving in that direction. Our regulation is still quite outdated. In the EU level, I strongly feel so. Last year, at least in the EU EPA side, there was a little bit of movement, right? Where for specific compounds, they went down to single digit removal limits, which was a brave new world step from my perspective. A lot of work still to be done. There are thousands of compounds and we are regulating a handful today and they’re all toxic, especially the small, the medium and short chain PFAS compounds. So that’s a topic that keeps me up at night. It’s everywhere. We rely on them and there are good solutions out there that need to be deployed and we need a strong market driver for that. We need regulations. We need… corporates to feel responsible for cleaning up the waste water they’re producing every single day, but also for remediating and then regenerating the waste that they have created. In Europe, we have 20,000 plus sites, which have more than 10 to 100 nanograms of PFAS in it. In US, again, we found data last year, more than 10,000 sites and counting. These are staggering values, right? And these are values of the water, the soil, the drinking water, and the rainwater. We have already contaminated. So it’s such a complex issue, right? You can stop using them. You can ban them. What about the water and the resources we’ve already contaminated? There’s a huge remediation opportunity in the market today where we need to take care of it. We need to regenerate the ecosystems that we have contaminated. And just the last point in that, I know we’re talking a lot about water and water is really important, but I think it’s really important to also notice water gets contaminated from many different diffused sources, right? So if we continue to add PFAS and sludge and fertilizers on the soil, we will continue to have groundwater that has PFAS, right? So it’s a more complex problem. Let’s not keep putting PFAS on all over the farmlands of Europe, because then you create a water problem downstream in a couple of years. So it’s a complex problem that requires a holistic view in terms of better base management, but also putting the right capital and resources to actually tackle that.

Sherry Madera: Great. Let’s try and pivot to thinking about how we can all sleep better at night and make sure that we’re thinking about some of the solutions. And Christophe, part of what you’re doing and leaning into is the World Economic Forum’s Water Futures Community. This is looking at public-private partnerships and how you can actually unlock things that bringing communities together, they couldn’t do on their own. I think it’s really relevant for this community that we’ve gathered both around the stage, but also at WEF. Tell us more about that. Tell us where you’re seeing some interesting projects on the horizon.

Christophe Beck: So maybe a segue to that, I’d like to build first on what Fabrizio was saying on the value of water, which has been a big question for decades, which I think is going to be a really hard to address from a social perspective. It’s kind of a third rail for many politicians as well at the same time. But one big thing that we forget is that there is a direct link between water and energy. And I remember 10 years ago talking to your colleague Katainen, who was leading growth for Europe. There were some very good plans on wastewater, some very interesting plans on climate and carbon footprint. Water was nowhere related to energy. And if we look at the industrial sectors, all industries, starting from restaurants to power plants to steel mills, you name it, ultimately, up to 75% of the power that’s used by those plants is used to manage water, to heat water, to cool water, to transport water, to treat water. And when you think it that way, well, when you reuse and recycle the water, you reuse and recycle energy. And that puts a price on water, which is directly related to energy. And at the same time, you reduce the carbon footprint as well at the same time. We’ve been a 70 billion company over 100 years on that promise. Ecolab means economics laboratory, actually, because it was always focused on that link between water and energy. You save water, you save energy, you save cost, you save carbon footprint. And from a legislation perspective, this is something that is usually not really addressed. And it’s a huge opportunity that industries are ready to embrace. Now, back to your question on this public-private collaborations partnership. There’s one thing that we discovered a few years back. 150 companies in the world impact a third of the world water usage. 150 could be in this room for a third of the world water usage. And when you convince those 150 that if you save water by reusing it. you’re gonna save energy, you’re gonna save money, you’re gonna reduce your carbon footprint, suddenly things change dramatically. And that’s how we’ve created a few years back the Water Resilience Coalition with the idea of bringing those 150 companies together and to make three commitments. First is to save water by saving energy, by reusing and leveraging technology. Second, it’s to work on the 100 most critical basins that are serving 3 billion people around the planet. And the third one is to provide water to 300 million people and all of that with no philanthropy. It is business driven, it is capital that’s invested at a return. And when we think about providing access to waters of a people in needs, one of our friends are Gary White from Water Equity so with us today has done some remarkable work where we can invest, provide water, mostly to women in those places that are ready to pay for it. It’s good for them, it’s good from an investment perspective and we create a business model that is ultimately much more sustainable. And when we see those companies work together as well, exchanging ideas, exchanging technologies, working on the same watershed, it’s remarkable to see how we can solve each other’s problems and what’s happening around us. In California, we’ve gotten 70 companies that came together. We know it’s a 26% gap that we have between demand and supply in California. And we know that the industry can solve most of it, creating a return for the industry. And it’s amazing to see the momentum that we’re having because when people see that they can make money by doing something good, it’s amazing to see how fast they’re moving as well at the same time. So the whole idea of the Water Resilience Coalition is to get those 150 companies. There’s absolutely no limitation. We have 40 companies today. It’s over 5 trillion of market cap. We’ve made remarkable progress and we’re just at the beginning of that journey. So I hope that many more are gonna join us.

Sherry Madera: Fantastic. What you’re linking there, it’s not about ethics and environmentalism, it’s about economics. I think that’s something that we’re hearing a lot. It gives me a good question to follow up with you, Jessica. Water scarcity is said to have a negative impact on global GDP of 6% by 2050. As someone who’s looking at both protecting the water cycle, the environment, and of course the prospects of the EU, how are you navigating that? How is it that you’re thinking about the growth versus the impacts that we have on our planet?

Jessika Roswall: We have to think all of those together, combined in one way. I would say that it’s a little bit back to the price of the value of water. I’m coming from Sweden, and a lot of us have taken water for granted for a long time. It’s always going to be there, and so is the human right, of course, so it’s complex. I agree with you, but it’s also complex how to value this. But of course, the cost also of doing nothing we know is extreme. We have the flooding in Valencia, we have the energy production when it comes to heat waves on nuclear plants, for example, or transportation where we don’t get it. So we also know all this. So this is, I think, why it’s also very high on the political agenda. I don’t have all the solutions yet, I wish, but I think one thing is to unlock this financing, as I said. One other thing that I think is important for all of us, and that’s quite a big of a job for me, is also to talk about this, not only with businesses, but also with people. Because we, as I said, we have taken this for granted, but that is not possible no longer. And on a global stage, of course, you’ve been to Saudi Arabia, I mean, other parts of the world, they know the suffering of having not enough water. If I may just say one thing that I have to say, because I share your worries, and I’m very happy that you started this, PFAS is a huge challenge for all of us. I mean, I think, hope, as I said at the beginning, that I’m looking both for the quantity of water but also quality of water, and quality of water is a lot about pollution, and PFAS is one of course. So this is a struggle that we need to take really, well in the short term which is, well in an EU perspective not this year but maybe soon, but I totally agree with you that in some parts we need to have a ban where we already know that we can shift to other substances, on others maybe not, but I think if we make some clarity on the rules I hope that there also will be an innovation that we have in other areas that can also solve it. So this is also, I have to just comment on that also because this is something that bothers me a lot and also the people are really worried about the PFAS situation.

Sherry Madera: Well you’re not helping with laying the worries, maybe I can turn to you Fritzio and think about what actually we often have been thinking about when we talk about climate, when we talk about energy, it’s about trying to make sure that we’re moving the money in the right directions and a startling fact, US 900 billion is needed annually to meet global water goals. So what are your perspectives on innovative financing, how can we move the money in order to be able to close the current funding gap?

Fabrizio Palermo: I think key in solving the water issue is, as we mentioned, most done by defining the rules but also the financing. So financing I think in general it’s the same situation in other sectors, basically linked to three aspects. First one, the pricing, so the value of the resource and I think we have already discussed the matter. Clearly today the range of difference is too huge and this is mainly due to the fact that also water, you cannot move it, especially in developed countries, I mean the system have been designed with no interconnection. You can move electricity, you can move gas, you cannot move water in reality because there is no interconnection between the pipes. So even a very, so the value of water today is very different because you cannot move it. So this is the first aspect. So I think in defining what is the proper value, you need also to identify that this key, this is one of the key aspect. Looking also at specific country, you can have at the same time situation where you have excess of water and water is lacking. And this is due to the fact you cannot move. So pricing is one of the key. For example, water is the only resource where you don’t pay the resource. You just pay the cost of the investment to transfer it, to make it safe, et cetera, but you don’t pay the resource. In the gas, in the electricity, you pay the resource and the transportation. This is a huge difference. So second, clearly you need investment. I mean, in developed countries, large investment have been done by government many, many years ago. Then infrastructure has gone down. So I think if you assess the availability to transport water across country, clearly you need to analyze if single government or also sovereign national government needs to make proper plan to have proper return because what is clear that investing in water makes return because it’s also, it’s important looking at Europe, if I may, it’s important to create a same level playing field as other area because otherwise, if you look at AI, decision will be done accordingly to the availability of water. Thirdly, I think the financial market can be very innovative. It has been the case in the past for energy, creating carbon certificate. You have green certificate. Why can we not have blue certificate? That means that we should potentially financially study certificate to. push company to do investment, to recycle, et cetera, and to finance through that to the financial market additional investment. So I think there is no single solution. I think it’s a menu of different solutions that needs to probably analyze and put in place by having a central vision on what we should do on water. Because the reality, which is key, that also at national level decision are too fragmented. So there is, and it’s very important of your appointment with this specific role of water resilience, because it’s the first time that there is a single point of decision on the water matter. But this should be an example that should be replicated also in Europe in the different government.

Christophe Beck: Can I make a comment on this moving water, which is right? I think it’s just a little bit the older way of looking at it. I don’t think we need to move water. If you reuse it at the same location, you don’t need to move it. And that’s why from an infrastructure perspective it’s a little bit like if we were to improve the quality of the phone lines in Europe when nobody is using the phone on the desk anymore. So we all move to the cell phone, obviously. I’m looking at what France is doing with Fossil Mare, for instance, which is going to become one of the largest industrial parks in Europe. Well, it’s built in a way that water is going to be reused and recycled on site with a steel mill, with solar panel production, data centers and so on there. And you rethink infrastructure in a totally different way. And since you’re reusing energy like that, well, it makes even more financial sense as well. And you move much faster. So we might have to rethink a little bit how we use water locally through technology. And that technology exists. We use that everywhere.

Sherry Madera: And again, thank you to my panelists for making my job very easy, because Fajar, I’d like to turn to you. You’ve been a very active member of the WEF in a top innovator space. Technology is potentially one of the tools that we have in our human arsenal to fight this direction of travel. And when we’re talking about water, tell me more about where you think technology fits in the solution.

Fajer Mushtaq: I mean, it’s a core element of that, right? So if we talk about we need better regulations, we need better implementation, we also need a solution that can enable those regulations to be implemented. So it’s a core piece of that. And I think for me in the PFAS puzzle, yes, there is a lot of advancements to be made with technologies. But today, do we have solutions that kind of work and almost work, right? Yes, we do. We’ve had them for quite a long time. I think the problem we’ve had, which I think is let’s say, the biggest barrier, maybe, to enable a proper treatment of water, not just from a PFAS perspective, but a systemic micropollutant, pesticide, pharmaceutical contamination perspective, as well as this lack of clarity and ambiguity about what should be regulated and what should not, right? Because if you cannot set clear discharge regulations on what is considered okay, what is not, then one country does something and the other can’t and does something else. Like, it’s just a lot of lack of clarity, which just enables people to keep doing the same old, and then also prevents technological solutions not to be innovative. There’s no drive in the market for better change because the same old works, right? So I think what’s always missing for me in this puzzle is what is safe to discharge, what is not? What can we eliminate, what we cannot? Something also you alluded to today, right? I think we need to just put this data out there and to set standards, because that’s a basic foundation homework we need to do. After that, of course, technological solutions exist, and there’s a lot we can do to further bolster them. We need to create a better ecosystem, I feel, right? Where there are some early champions, maybe, who want to test new technologies, who are daring. And what would make them daring, I believe, would be some kind of a push to be daring, like a regulatory push, maybe, or an issue with paying some fines, or a brand image issue, right? So it’s, again, coming back to having clarity and raising more awareness. And this will enable an ecosystem where there are new and younger people coming with great ideas, trying to test them, and having real support on the ground who is willing to test those solutions then. There’s maybe a funding available for them, visibility, collaboration available for them. That is missing, so if you want to set up in water to treat the water problems, it’s always a daunting prospect today, right? Because very capital-intensive, slow-moving market, usually conservative to change and innovation. But of course, if there is a market driver, like a new regulation or a class of pollutants that are really problematic, that helps foster a better innovation-driven ecosystem, right?

Christophe Beck: I’d like to support what you’re saying here. because we serve a third of the world food production. We’re ready to move. She has the solution. We know the solution. We know how to implement them. The whole food industry is just waiting on what’s the standard, what’s gonna be the regulation before they move. And that’s been true for a long time. That’s an obvious one where we could accelerate pretty quick.

Sherry Madera: Really interesting. What I’d like to do is make sure that we have some time for Q&A. So any of us in the audience here, please raise your hand. I’ll take a couple of questions and bring it back to the experts. But to give everyone just a moment to think, actually, on our rapid fire wrap up, I’d love to hear which each of you would love to be able to reconvene here at the WEF in 2026 and say, we did good there. That was something exciting, something positive that happened in the course of 2025. So I will go around the room for that. But I’d first like to go to our wider audience. Are there any questions in the room? We’ve got a shy group after lunch. Great. I’m gonna keep my eye open so you haven’t lost your ability to do that. But let’s go to that rapid fire because then at least we’re gonna get an idea of perhaps spark some other questions that come out of the room. I’d love to start with you, Fabrizio. If we’re all sitting here together in 2026, what is it that you’re gonna say, we did that really well?

Fabrizio Palermo: First thing, I think that already having this session is a great success. One year ago, it was not the case. So we are starting to speak about the problem, discussing, analyzing possible solution. I don’t personally think there is one single solution to the problem. There is a menu that differentiate between countries, between situation, et cetera. But the fact of we are starting to analyze the problem on the different aspect is key because the only way to start finding solution and to raise the responsibility of the problem that is a global problem, it’s not only of companies that are working the sector. Because as of today, mainly it has been the case. So either companies like yours or mine who manage the network, you are responsible over activities. So, but the level of knowledge also at politician, etc., has been so far very limited. So if we are able to at least raise and present a menu of possible solution, I think this is a great success because it’s the start to find and then to put in place concrete solutions.

Sherry Madera: Great. Inspiration for next year. Fajer.

Fajer Mushtaq: I agree with pretty much most of the stuff that you said, actually. So I was going to say those same things now in words. But in addition, I think if you look at the composition of this panel right now, I hope this is what success would look like in a year where we have innovation, you know, market leaders, collaborators working together to deploy more and more solutions, finding the price for value of this water. Who’s going to pay for that? And how much can we subsidize? How do we incentivize people? Certificate model, maybe to show, I don’t know, two, three really good examples of this was done in Italy. This was done in France. This was done in Switzerland or maybe next year in Davos somewhere. As a good example of we try to collaborate and we can show that the scalable model for water contamination reversal does work. It’s economical. It benefits the environment. It benefits the large corporations. It also benefits the young, innovative people out there.

Sherry Madera: Right. Sounds like a great plan. And we’re going rapid fire. So I’m going to move over to you, Christophe.

Christophe Beck: Last year in 24, we’ve had to save enough water for 900 million people and saved seven billion of operating costs in 24. So it’s working and it’s provoking returns as well at the same time. If next year we can have 150 companies get together with aligned plans on how to solve it, I think that would be a great progress.

Sherry Madera: Clear call to arms. Thank you. Jessica.

Jessika Roswall: So representing the policymaker, I mean, if I would wish for one year and also five years, I think about also is to keep the water on the political agenda on the eye. So that is one thing that I said in my first interviews. And of course, I’m new here and you haven’t talked about a lot of things, these things. for a long time and but I still want to be hopeful not only because I knew because I think there are innovations that we really can scale up but I’ve keep the political momentum I will say that this is one thing just to say also one thing that we haven’t mentioned so much why I hope that this will be a political momentum is that we talk about Mr Draghi’s report, Mr Letta’s report, competitiveness and I think Europe have a competitive advantage here but also Nini Sture’s report, Mr Salininu’s report on security because water is also a security question so that is also why I am quite hopeful.

Sherry Madera: Excellent well I think that we’ve got a lot of work to do this year but hopefully we will have at least a few of those inspirational thoughts that we can credit ourselves with next year. In terms of wrapping up we’ve done you know quite a wide-ranging discussion and perhaps that is because water is now firmly on the agenda that we are looking at it from many different angles. That link to energy, the fact that it cannot be divorced from what’s happening with AI, the fact that we have a complex challenge in front of us with water. It’s not just wastewater, it’s not just contaminants, it’s not just moving water to where it needs to be it’s all of plus plus plus. So let’s make sure that we do think about it in that way as we talk to our financial market colleagues because moving the money and being able to make sure that we unlock the capital to be able to make these changes is going to be critical to the success. Finally getting those goals in place you know we’ve heard from this panel but perhaps we can inspire those that are listening to think about what their tangible goals need to be not just about climate not just about nature or biodiversity but specifically about water and at CDP what we call that is thinking about earth positive action and if we can actually be the partner there to think about data then we can actually look at the trends and look at the data this year and next year and hopefully have something we can all celebrate. So thank you very much to my panel and thank you to the WEF for having us. Thank you. Thank you.

Agreement Points

Water scarcity’s significant economic impact

speakers

– Sherry Madera
– Fabrizio Palermo
– Jessika Roswall

arguments

Water stress affecting over half the world’s population by 2030

Water impacts 60-70% of GDP directly and indirectly

Water scarcity’s negative impact on global GDP of 6% by 2050

summary

The speakers agree that water scarcity will have a substantial negative impact on the global economy in the coming decades, affecting various sectors and a large portion of the world’s population.

Need for improved water management and infrastructure

speakers

– Christophe Beck
– Fabrizio Palermo

arguments

Need for countrywide water plans and policies

Need for protecting water sources and proper basin maintenance

Need for predictive maintenance on water infrastructure

summary

Both speakers emphasize the importance of comprehensive water management strategies, including protecting water sources, maintaining infrastructure, and implementing predictive maintenance techniques.

Importance of water reuse and recycling

speakers

– Christophe Beck
– Fabrizio Palermo

arguments

Importance of water reuse and recycling

High water leakage rates in Europe compared to other regions

summary

The speakers agree on the critical need for water reuse and recycling, with Beck emphasizing the redesign of processes to eliminate wastewater and Palermo highlighting the potential of addressing water leakage as a means of conservation.

Similar Viewpoints

Both speakers emphasize the importance of innovation and technological advancements in addressing water challenges, with Beck focusing on the energy-saving aspect and Mushtaq calling for an ecosystem that supports water technology innovation.

speakers

– Christophe Beck
– Fajer Mushtaq

arguments

Link between water conservation and energy savings

Need for an ecosystem supporting water technology innovation

Both speakers stress the need for clear and effective regulations to address water contamination issues, particularly regarding PFAS and other pollutants, and to drive innovation in water treatment technologies.

speakers

– Jessika Roswall
– Fajer Mushtaq

arguments

Need for better regulations on PFAS and other contaminants

Importance of clear discharge regulations to drive innovation

Unexpected Consensus

AI’s impact on water demand

speakers

– Christophe Beck
– Jessika Roswall

arguments

AI development increasing water demand for data center cooling

Potential for AI to assist in water management

explanation

While Beck highlights the unexpected increase in water demand due to AI development, Roswall sees AI as a potential tool for improving water management. This unexpected consensus suggests that AI could both exacerbate and help solve water-related challenges, highlighting the complex relationship between technological advancement and water resources.

Overall Assessment

Summary

The speakers generally agree on the severity of water scarcity issues, the need for improved water management and infrastructure, the importance of water reuse and recycling, and the role of innovation and regulation in addressing water challenges.

Consensus level

There is a high level of consensus among the speakers on the urgency of addressing water-related issues and the need for multifaceted approaches involving technology, policy, and economic incentives. This consensus suggests a growing recognition of water as a critical global issue, which could potentially lead to increased collaboration and investment in water-related solutions across various sectors and stakeholders.

Different Viewpoints

Approach to water infrastructure

speakers

– Christophe Beck
– Fabrizio Palermo

arguments

Need for countrywide water plans and policies

Need for protecting water sources and proper basin maintenance

summary

While both speakers emphasize the importance of water infrastructure, Beck focuses on developing comprehensive national water strategies, while Palermo stresses the need for protecting water sources and maintaining existing infrastructure.

Focus on water quality vs. quantity

speakers

– Jessika Roswall
– Fabrizio Palermo

arguments

Importance of addressing water quality alongside quantity

Need for protecting water sources and proper basin maintenance

summary

Roswall emphasizes the need to focus on both water quality and quantity, particularly addressing pollution and contaminants, while Palermo’s arguments primarily focus on water quantity and infrastructure maintenance.

Unexpected Differences

Role of AI in water management

speakers

– Christophe Beck
– Jessika Roswall

arguments

AI development increasing water demand for data center cooling

Potential for AI to assist in water management

explanation

While Beck highlights the unexpected negative impact of AI on water resources due to increased demand for data center cooling, Roswall suggests that AI could be beneficial in addressing water management challenges. This difference in perspective on AI’s role in water management was unexpected.

Overall Assessment

summary

The main areas of disagreement revolve around approaches to water infrastructure, the balance between water quality and quantity concerns, and the role of AI in water management.

difference_level

The level of disagreement among the speakers is moderate. While there is general consensus on the importance of addressing water scarcity and its economic impacts, speakers differ in their specific approaches and areas of focus. These differences highlight the complexity of water management issues and the need for multifaceted solutions that address various aspects of water security, infrastructure, and technology.

Partial Agreements

All speakers agree on the significant economic impact of water scarcity and the need for conservation. However, they differ in their approaches: Beck emphasizes the link between water and energy savings, Palermo focuses on the broad economic impact, and Roswall highlights the long-term GDP effects.

speakers

– Christophe Beck
– Fabrizio Palermo
– Jessika Roswall

arguments

Link between water conservation and energy savings

Water impacts 60-70% of GDP directly and indirectly

Water scarcity’s negative impact on global GDP of 6% by 2050

Similar Viewpoints

Both speakers emphasize the importance of innovation and technological advancements in addressing water challenges, with Beck focusing on the energy-saving aspect and Mushtaq calling for an ecosystem that supports water technology innovation.

speakers

– Christophe Beck
– Fajer Mushtaq

arguments

Link between water conservation and energy savings

Need for an ecosystem supporting water technology innovation

Both speakers stress the need for clear and effective regulations to address water contamination issues, particularly regarding PFAS and other pollutants, and to drive innovation in water treatment technologies.

speakers

– Jessika Roswall
– Fajer Mushtaq

arguments

Need for better regulations on PFAS and other contaminants

Importance of clear discharge regulations to drive innovation

Key Takeaways

Water scarcity is a critical global issue, with over half the world’s population expected to face water stress by 2030

Water issues are closely linked to economic impacts, affecting 60-70% of GDP directly and indirectly

There is a strong connection between water conservation and energy savings, providing economic incentives for better water management

Innovative financing solutions and clear regulations are needed to drive investment in water infrastructure and technology

Collaboration between governments, businesses, and innovators is crucial to addressing water challenges

Water quality, particularly PFAS contamination, is a major concern requiring better regulation and remediation efforts

AI and new technologies present both challenges (increased water demand) and opportunities (improved water management) for the water sector

Resolutions and Action Items

EU to develop a water resilience strategy to address water challenges

Expand the Water Resilience Coalition to include 150 major water-using companies

Implement ‘blue certificates’ as a financial incentive for water conservation and recycling

Develop clearer discharge regulations to drive innovation in water treatment technologies

Keep water issues high on the political agenda, linking them to competitiveness and security concerns

Unresolved Issues

How to properly value water resources and set appropriate pricing

Balancing the need for PFAS in certain applications with environmental and health concerns

Addressing fragmented decision-making on water issues at national and international levels

How to finance the estimated $900 billion needed annually to meet global water goals

Developing standardized regulations for water quality and contaminant discharge across different regions

Suggested Compromises

Selective banning of PFAS in non-essential applications while allowing use in critical areas like firefighting foam

Balancing public and private funding for water infrastructure investments

Focusing on local water reuse and recycling rather than large-scale water transportation projects

Combining water conservation efforts with energy savings to make projects more economically viable

AI is happening as we speak, and we estimate that AI is gonna have an impact which is gonna be huge, that we didn’t think about. It’s gonna require the power of the whole of India in the next five years, and it’s gonna require the drinking needs to cool those data centers of the United States in the next five years.

speaker

Christophe Beck

reason

This comment introduced a new and unexpected perspective on how AI development will dramatically increase water demand, connecting two major trends in an insightful way.

impact

It shifted the conversation to consider the water implications of technological advancement, leading to discussion of how countries are grappling with water needs for AI/tech development.

The concept of wastewater is an engineering flaw. We should never have wastewater. We’ve been using it for thousands of years, obviously. And we need to redesign our processes, being data centers, being milk production, being processors, or whatever that is, in ways that the water never leaves the site.

speaker

Christophe Beck

reason

This reframed wastewater as a design problem rather than an inevitable byproduct, challenging conventional thinking.

impact

It prompted discussion of circular water use and the need to rethink industrial processes to eliminate wastewater.

Forever Chemicals, or PFAS…There are 10 to 15,000 different types of compounds…We rely on them and there are good solutions out there that need to be deployed and we need a strong market driver for that. We need regulations. We need corporates to feel responsible for cleaning up the waste water they’re producing every single day, but also for remediating and then regenerating the waste that they have created.

speaker

Fajer Mushtaq

reason

This highlighted the complexity of the PFAS problem, balancing their usefulness with environmental harm, and the need for a multi-faceted approach.

impact

It deepened the discussion on water quality issues and prompted consideration of regulatory and corporate responsibility aspects.

There is a direct link between water and energy…up to 75% of the power that’s used by those plants is used to manage water, to heat water, to cool water, to transport water, to treat water. And when you think it that way, well, when you reuse and recycle the water, you reuse and recycle energy.

speaker

Christophe Beck

reason

This insight connected water and energy efficiency in a way that reframes water conservation as an energy and cost-saving measure.

impact

It shifted the conversation towards the economic benefits of water conservation and reuse, potentially making these efforts more appealing to businesses.

Water is the only resource where you don’t pay the resource. You just pay the cost of the investment to transfer it, to make it safe, et cetera, but you don’t pay the resource. In the gas, in the electricity, you pay the resource and the transportation. This is a huge difference.

speaker

Fabrizio Palermo

reason

This observation highlighted a fundamental economic issue in how water is valued and priced compared to other resources.

impact

It prompted discussion on the need for innovative financing and pricing models for water resources.

Overall Assessment

These key comments shaped the discussion by broadening its scope beyond traditional water management issues. They connected water challenges to emerging technological trends (AI), energy efficiency, and economic models. This multifaceted approach highlighted the complexity of water issues and the need for innovative, cross-sector solutions involving technology, policy, and business practices. The discussion evolved from identifying problems to exploring potential solutions and necessary systemic changes in how water is valued, used, and managed across industries and societies.

How can we better value water economically?

speaker

Fabrizio Palermo

explanation

There’s a huge discrepancy in water pricing across Europe, ranging from 2-10 euros per cubic meter. This undervaluation makes it difficult to finance necessary investments in water infrastructure and management.

How can we unlock more funding for water-related projects and infrastructure?

speaker

Jessika Roswall

explanation

There’s a need to explore innovative funding mechanisms, including both public and private sources, to address the significant investment required for water resilience.

How can we better regulate and manage PFAS (Forever Chemicals) contamination?

speaker

Fajer Mushtaq

explanation

PFAS contamination is a widespread and complex issue affecting water quality. There’s a need for more comprehensive regulation, improved waste management practices, and technological solutions for remediation.

How can we create better incentives for water conservation and reuse in industry?

speaker

Christophe Beck

explanation

There’s potential for significant water and energy savings in industrial processes through water reuse and recycling, but better incentives are needed to drive adoption.

How can we develop more comprehensive national and regional water management plans?

speaker

Christophe Beck

explanation

Many governments lack comprehensive water management plans. Developing these could help address water scarcity and resilience issues more effectively.

How can we better integrate water management considerations into AI and data center development?

speaker

Christophe Beck

explanation

The rapid growth of AI is creating new water demands for cooling data centers. This needs to be factored into water management and technology development plans.

How can we develop innovative financial instruments to support water infrastructure investment?

speaker

Fabrizio Palermo

explanation

Suggestions like ‘blue certificates’ for water, similar to carbon credits, could help drive investment in water conservation and infrastructure.

How can we improve data collection and analysis for water management?

speaker

Jessika Roswall

explanation

Better data is needed to help regions and member states plan and manage water resources more effectively.

How can we accelerate the adoption of water-saving technologies in industry?

speaker

Christophe Beck and Fajer Mushtaq

explanation

Many water-saving technologies exist but are not widely adopted. There’s a need to explore ways to speed up implementation, potentially through regulation or incentives.