World Economic Forum Ranks Water Crises as Top Global Risk
More than nuclear weapons or a global disease pandemic, impairments to water supplies and punishing cycles of flood, drought and water pollution are now viewed by heads of state, non-profit leaders, and chief executives as the most serious threat to business and society.
For the first time, water crises took top spot in the World Economic Forum’s tenth global risk report, an annual survey of nearly 900 leaders in politics, business and civic life about the world’s most critical issues. Water ranked third a year ago.
The report measured 28 risks on two dimensions, the likelihood of occurring within 10 years, and impact, which is a measure of devastation.
Water ranked 8th for likelihood and first for impact. It was one of four risks – along with interstate conflict, the failure to adapt to climate change, and chronic unemployment – that were deemed highly likely and highly devastating.
Water’s ascent reflects a remarkable shift in thinking among members of the World Economic Forum, the Geneva-based think tank known for its yearly meeting in the Swiss Alps that draws the elite of wealth, business savvy and political power.
Water’s top ranking also reflects the growing recognition among world leaders that diminishing supplies of reliable clean water, if not well managed, will be a significant impediment to health and wealth for the poor and for the richest economies and largest cities.