The global corporate sector has consistently and generously supported sustainable development work throughout the developing world. This has taken place via many channels, including strategic philanthropy, corporate social responsibility, cause-related marketing and employee motivation campaigns. Corporate support for development work is frequently and justifiably linked to the business models of those corporations.
Corporations have a tremendous and timely opportunity to increase their support for safe, affordable drinking water and sanitation. The water challenge is pervasive, so implementing organizations also have the uncommon opportunity to be very flexible in responding to corporate sponsors’ needs.
Many corporations are active in the area already. The guidelines below represent a typical successful approach to the issue:
- Learn more about the global water and sanitation problem and the opportunities to have a positive impact. Also learn more about the negative impact that unsafe water and sanitation have on employees’ health and your company’s social license to operate in a given country.
- Define the business rationale for your company becoming active and supportive of this issue. How could your support for this issue contribute directly or indirectly to your operations overseas or in the United States?
- Research case studies (see below) about how other companies have engaged. Interview your peers in other companies/industries to learn more about best, worst and emerging practices.
- Decide to engage. Identify specific countries/regions of interest and specific project opportunities in those areas. You may choose to build on your own ongoing community engagement efforts in specific countries around the world where you are already actively supporting healthcare or environmental projects, for example.
- Identify implementing partners working with on-the-ground projects who are able to scale up their operations in your chosen country(ies).
- Agree on operational plan and begin work with a pilot project, for example providing water and sanitation facilities to 20 schools in the communities surrounding your manufacturing or upstream assets in a given country.
- Monitor, evaluate, and scale up as appropriate.
Some of the many benefits which accrue to a corporation by sponsoring water projects include:
- Tangible, focused, "brandable" results in a rapid timeframe
- High profile exposure; enhanced business opportunities in U.S. and abroad
- Strengthened brand and credibility as a corporate citizen
- Increased employee motivation
- Both strategic and tactical benefits depending on the design of the project
- Tax deduction
- Business development and product support
- Good return on your investment – water projects typically provide larger returns than other development work, both to recipient communities and to the sponsors
Water Advocates is a resource for your company when you decide to learn more and actively support this issue. We will also work with you to identify implementation partners. Throughout this process, Water Advocates will be very responsive to the sponsor’s needs and identify projects and partners which address those needs as closely as possible.
As well as overseas project work, there are also opportunities for corporations to sponsor water-related events and research in the United States.
Examples of what large corporations are currently supporting in the sector include:
For more information about how your corporation can learn more and engage in this growing sector, please contact John Oldfield at joldfield (AT) wateradvocates.org or call 202.293.4049. |
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