Water responsibility as corporate due diligence?

The global water supply is facing an increasing threat from industrialisation, globalisation and population growth. Even though Germany imports most of its water supply through global value chains, companies often direct their attention solely towards water consumption and pollution at their own production facilities.

The project "Water responsibility as corporate due diligence" is funded by the Stiftung Zukunftserbe and investigates how the negative impacts of global supply chains on water resources can be addressed through corporate due diligence.

As a first step, the status quo of the challenges associated with water use in supply chains and their link with corporate due diligence will first be examined through current research and legislation. In a second step, corporate practice of water-related due diligence will be analysed through expert interviews and case studies. Hereby, the following questions are of particular interest: How do companies identify and address their water consumption and pollution throughout their supply chains? What due diligence do they have in place? Finally, best practices in water management and due diligence are identified. Recommendations for action and the need for further research concerning the regulation of water in supply chains will be derived from the findings. The results of the project are intended to support companies and political actors in the design and implementation of water-related due diligence.