Once again this summer, the reality of climate breakdown hit hard — from historic droughts to devastating wildfires. At the same time, freshwater reserves are being depleted as human consumption climbs year after year, according to UNESCO. Indeed, according to the World Bank, 324 billion m³ of freshwater — enough to meet the needs of nearly 300 million people — is lost every year to warming and failing infrastructure.

Yet this alarm bell is nothing new. As early as 2019, Ksapa identified water management as one of six priority issues for business in its Towards 2030 report (updated at the start of 2026). Recent crises — paralyzing major economic arteries like river transport on the Rhine and the Danube, or disrupting hydropower and nuclear generation — only confirm this analysis: water is no longer a variable we can take for granted. It has become the pivot of our collective resilience.

This makes it critical to better understand the water cycle itself. While the overall volume of water on Earth remains stable, its dynamics have been profoundly disrupted. NASA research shows that human activity and climate change are driving unprecedented shifts in the geographic distribution and seasonality of rainfall. The issue isn't a shortage of water overall — it's a shortage where and when water is needed most.

This new reality demands a shift from crisis management to a lasting logic of adaptation. No sector can afford to ignore its systemic footprint any longer, and mapping direct and indirect dependencies (Scope 3) across value chains is no longer optional. Agriculture alone accounts for 70% of global freshwater withdrawals, and will come under further strain from the looming "Super El Niño".

Solutions exist — and in the face of this challenge, companies' fiduciary duty can't wait. Let's talk about it.

Raphael Hara, Managing Director