Newsletter Archives

Water-Energy-Climate: Don’t Lose Power! There’s no doubt that water risks are here to stay from floods to rivers running dry. Corporates…

Invest in Our Planet – Earth Day is tomorrow and the theme this year is “invest in our planet” so, this month…

Happy World Water Day! Accelerating change – This World Water Day is a special one as today is the start of the…

Mad Hares or Happy Bunnies? – Can the calm Rabbit counter the brash Tiger?  Will happy bunnies restore global harmony or…

New Ways Forward – Climate Tech: It’s a new year and the stakes for our world have never been higher. Tuvalu is…

Guilt-free feasting this Christmas: If we want to keep feasting at future Christmases – and do it guilt-free – we need…

Climate Bubble! COP27, irrational exuberance & flying blind – COP disappoints and fundamentals have shifted but valuations haven’t and thanks to irrational…

We’re 70 years late! The future is today – Climate impacts we were going to be dealing with in the future…

Toward Transformative Adaptation: After last month’s sobering 8-Factsheet Survival Guide for Hong Kong to Survive Rising Seas, this month we turn to…

Please save HK from rising seas!  Begging is not something we usually do at CWR, but this month we implore…

The Future of Food & Fashion: As we sweat it out with heatwaves and fires, our crops are either drying up…

Oceans: Killing us slowly – Aside from sea level rise slowly drowning our cities, our oceans broke two records last month -…

The Future of Water – Conversations from Singapore: This month we bring you the juiciest snippets on the future of water…

High Hopes for Rapid Deep Cuts: The third & final report of the IPCC Report (AR6 WG3) calls for rapid deep…

Adapt or Die – Time is running out: It cannot be clearer, the just released IPCC AR6 Working Group 2…

Roaring tiger or wet cat? We said last year that it was premature to think “it will get back to normal”…

6 fixes for water & climate – To start the New Year on the right foot and inspire some wins for…

Habit tweaks to save our home – Santa’s home just reached a record temperature high of 38°C. How much longer can…

Post COP26 – Are we more or less water secure? A disappointing COP26 and “totally inadequate” 2030 targets means that we…

Celebrating 10 Years Of CWR!  Woo-hoo … IT’S CWR’s 10-YEAR ANNIVERSARY!!! Sorry for yelling at all of you but we are…

Rising Seas Forces Us To Re-IMAGINE HK: The IPCC AR6 warnings on rising seas bring bad tidings for Hong Kong. If…

IPCC AR6 Code Red – Delay No More On Water! It’s unequivocal – we have caused our world to warm…

Water is killing us! See Singapore’s resilience playbook: From devastating floods in China, Germany, Belgium to New Zealand; mudslides in Japan…

Still dirty! Time to make net zero clean: Let’s face it, the tech we need to get to net zero is…

Risky Business Ahead – Sector Risks To Credit Impacts: Even at 1.5°C, the IPCC says damages could cost us US$54trn; our…

Left High & Dry: 6 Things You May Have Missed: Climate impacts will leave us high and dry; and this may…

Looking for water in China’s 14FYP: The 14FYP outlined in China’s Two Sessions this March marks the start of the next…

Finally, we can all breathe a sigh of relief as we enter the Year of the Ox. Known for its…

Dual tracking – Making money & saving the planet – The calls to build back better are getting louder and there’s…

 A very different Christmas – Eat, drink & be merry has taken on a new meaning this year so, we take a…

Avoiding Atlantis – how to survive rising seas. This month, we continue with threats from rising seas on the back of…

We’ve put sea level rise to the back of the to-do list – labeling it with “not a big deal”…

New ways of doing old things: Our world is falling apart – it is getting increasingly hot and dry. As…

Preparing for Extremes: Floods Everywhere, Desertification & Water Tech: This has been a month of extremes. While it has been…

Who’s Doing It Right? Fashion vs. Central Banks The IEA is warning that we only have six months left to change the…

Environmental Recovery – Where is China? This month, we focus on China – it has finally just managed to hold its 2020…

Systemic Risks – finance reset: With economic losses piling up to USD4.1 trillion, financial systems around the world are facing COVID-19…

COVID Metamorphosis – Truths & Unicorns : The pandemic has turned the world as we know it upside down and while…

Grand plans to become beautiful: Everything is shutting down because of COVID-19: restaurants, malls, cities, even countries. Many events have…

Black Death, Drowned Rat or Mighty Mouse? How will the Year of the Rat unfold? Will it bring more diseases or…

We can do better – innovating with “less”: 2020 is off to a fiery start. Besides geopolitics, wildfires still burn in…

Sorry Santa, we’re still bad: We are heading for warming of 4.5°C which means you’ll be hotter and eventually homeless. So…

Shocked into Action? We have seen some real shockers in the water and climate space this past month. So this…

Playing with water: The problem with water is you can’t have too much or too little of it, you have to…

Navigating hotspots from the Yangtze, GBA to HSBC: Singapore is getting serious about climate crisis, setting aside SGD100bn to make the…

Fight That Sinking Feeling: Just thinking about the probable and inevitable disasters brought on by climate change is depressing. Overwhelmed,…

Food System: Collapse or Disrupt!: From farm to fork plus waste, the world’s food system is in crisis. Agriculture is…

It’s been five years since China declared war on pollution. But is it winning? This month, we review China’s newly released 2018…

If Bonnie Tyler’s song is now playing in your head, you are old enough to make a difference to the…

Finally, 34 central banks & regulators recognize the vulnerability of financial systems to climate related risks in a new report out yesterday. “It…

“Time stops for no one, and the seasons keep changing” says President Xi. And indeed China is not stopping. More…

Pigs in the Chinese horoscope are associated with wealth and a carefree life. But they can also be lazy, indulging…

In 2018, more than 50% of natural disasters were water-related. The true value of water is in some cases, literally…

Yes, you read that correctly. This could and should be our last Christmas-As-Usual. Why? Simply put it is now or never…

As Lord Nicholas Stern said in Hong Kong earlier this month, “a new climate economy will be the growth story…

To solve Asia’s water challenges it is important to have the right perspective so, this month we start with our…

Asia has limited water resources. Yet, the economy runs on water and it is the only resource we can’t live…

Extreme heatwaves have been making headlines from Europe to Asia and closest to home is news that the North China…

The world is not on track to reach the Sustainable Development Goal on clean water & sanitation, is water too…

China’s new ministry MEE just released the 2017 State of Ecology & Environment Report. It reports that “‘good quality’ surface…

We are excited! China’s Green Finance Committee has just revealed the first-ever book on Environmental Risk Analysis (ERA) for financial…

As talk of a China-US trade war ramps up, how are the two countries rising to water challenges? China’s reshuffling…

China’s “Two Sessions” weren’t just about a “President for Life”, an “ecological civilisation” is now enshrined in the constitution and…

As we move from the Year of the Fire Rooster to the Year of the Earth Dog, stay ahead and…

The recent “bomb cyclone” which caused historic low temperatures in the US is a clear reminder that as we step…

Our world seems to be increasingly split into that of hope and fear. Given this, we look at what is…

Trump’s recent visit to China softened US-China trade tensions but the two countries’ stances on the environment continue to diverge.…

Rivers are the lifelines of not only our lives but our economies. Yet, they have suffered as CWR’s Hu shares…

This month we spoke at the CLSA Investor Forum on the same day as Steve Bannon. His rhetoric on economic nationalism…

The fashion industry is facing greater scrutiny over its environmental impacts than ever before. However, among this scrutiny, the industry…

Last week we saw the G19 breaking off from the US position on climate change. With fake news everywhere, we take a real…

China’s “War on Pollution” appears to be paying off. The recently released 2016 State of Environment Report shows that groundwater…

With the One Belt One Road summit kicking off in Beijing, we look at action on water stewardship that goes beyond borders…

This month we take a closer look at water embedded in trade. The Xi-Trump summit saw an end to China’s…

There is no doubt that air pollution was one of the major headlines at China’s CPPCC & NPC meetings. As Premier Li…

Here we go, strutting into the year of the Rooster… we said the Monkey would be disruptive and it did…

: To start the year with a bang we take a look at the action on water risk by corporates and…

This year the CWR team has all sorts of wishes that will keep everyone busy for the next five years.…

The world is again looking to COP 22 for our path forward on tackling climate change. This was the first…

As we write this, two typhoons are heading for HK and there’s been others hitting South-eastern China. It seems fitting with these…

With China and the US agreeing to ratify the Paris Agreement at the G20 summit this month, climate and water…

It’s been a summer of floods & heavy rains in China. So for this month, we turn our focus to…

This month we dig deep into clean energy & smart tech, only to find shades of grey and a black…

It is hard not to focus on pollution this month with the issuance of the much anticipated ‘Soil Pollution Prevention &…

Our lives are continuously becoming more ‘smart’ thanks to next gen tech. So it makes sense that we get smart about water too, especially when water…

Industries are clearly exposed to water risks but financial valuation of such risks remains elusive. For this month, we review existing quantification…

China wants to exert “tireless efforts” to build a “Beautiful China where the sky is blue, the land is green…

Here we go, swinging into the year of the Monkey. If you thought 2015 was “happening” for water and the…

The COP21 Paris Agreement is a clear signal that climate threats are serious. China Water Risk was on-ground in Paris;…

Some say a dream just came true with the COP21 Paris climate deal over the weekend. US President Obama called…

Glaciers in the Hindu-Kush Himalayan region feed 10 major rivers that provide water to 17 countries in Asia. They are…

We lead a “packaged” lifestyle consuming plastics and paper at every turn. This month, we unwrap water risks in the…

This year’s World Water Week was all about water & development. This month we summarise our key takeaways from Stockholm…

Many of us lead a throw-away, fast-moving lifestyle from fast food to fast fashion at cheap prices. Convenience is prioritised:…

The State of Environmental Report in 2014 was officially “average” but a closer look reveals groundwater quality has worsened four years running…

Are you on the list? China is firing on all fronts: One Road, One Belt; Water Ten Plan; Circular Economy…

So the highly anticipated ‘Water Pollution Prevention & Control Action Plan’ or ‘Water Ten’ is finally out. It is more…

This month we tackle tough choices ahead in power expansion. There are no one-size-fits all solutions for China in the water-energy-climate nexus.…

We have pollution in mind whilst we wait for the release of the Water Pollution Prevention and Control Action Plan’…

The regulatory landscape in China has changed due to multiple polices set & changes in the law in previous years. Many come…

A new year a new start? Unseasonal weather with flooding from the worst monsoon in three decades in Malaysia to…

This year we believe Christmas has come early. It is not just Xi’s carbon emissions promise but the Chinese government…

Ensuring water security is paramount; an important part of this is down to allocation. Who gets water and how much? To…

China’s energy demands are great and growing, but water comes first. As Li Junfeng, Director General of China’s National Center…

This month, we focus on fashion off the back of the recent CLSA U® report “Dirty Thirsty Fashion: Blindsided by…

Water makes a power play this month as China tightens policies and regulations that affect the coal & coal-related industries.…

China has been making public previously unpublished pollution data. This is a step in the right direction but with 7,700…

Recently, a US military board reclassified climate change & water risk from a “threat multiplier” to a “catalyst for instability…

We want responsible and efficient use of water in China. We think our “wish” has a chance of coming true.…

A couple of reports on global food security were published last month including HSBC’s “No Water, No Food”. The author,…

The ‘enemy’ has been identified: China has declared “war on pollution”. We take a closer look this month into the…

Will the galloping green horse derail us or will it race ahead in unchartered waters? With environmental risk cited as one of…

A good “water” start for 2014 with the NDRC proposing tiered tariff schemes to rein in top users of water…

It’s time to be merry and to tally up who’s naughty or nice. This month, we wish for the all-time…

We thought we would cover issues from the ground having just attended the Beijing Forum, an international forum of academics,…

The focus of last month’s World Water Week was on cooperation & partnerships. With that in mind, this month we…

This month we look at the State Council’s new plan to grow the Energy Savings & Environmental Protection industry to…

Apparently we are in for a 20-30 cycle of more rain in northern China thanks to an oceanic cycle shift in…

This month, it appears that things are rolling for anti-pollution. China’s economy slowing down but they are stepping up their…

With increased transparency by the MEP, naming & shaming polluting companies, and the newly released State of Environment Report 2013, we…

This month we give you the down and dirty on water, energy and possible linkages to cancer. An estimated US$7.3…

With over 10,000 pigs dumped into the Huangpu river in Shanghai, we focus on taking stock and cleaning up. Global…

March ushers in the official “all-change” of the old guard. Does the new guard mean new policies? Xi’s bold statements…

Will we be bogged down or will we slide ahead with water this year? Check out our review of 2012 and…

With the Handan ‘Cover Up’ fresh in everyone’s mind (see ‘Tapping In’ for more) we take a look at corporate action on water – are corporates…

Tis’ the season to be jolly and in Hong Kong, the shopping frenzy has started. This month we look at…

It’s all about exposure. The fashion industry took a hit last month with “Sustainable Apparel’s Critical Blindspot” naming 22 out…

HSBC’s recent report “No Water, No Power” warned that project financiers, investors and companies could be stranded high and dry,…

With the focus of the World Water Week in Stockholm on water & food security, this month we dive deeper…

With over 500 protests a day, this month we look at the role and impact of environmental protests which are…

With Rio+20, how can we not explore water & food security. Unfortunately, these themes are large, slow moving and generally depressing. So…

This month, the Chinese government issued various new standards on pollution. We take a look at these and other standards…

“Two Degrees Celsius + Water” was a success with over 70 participants. Most found it a ‘sobering’ event – check…

Is a shift in fundamentals required for China’s drive for energy security to succeed given water is the elephant in…

The Chinese government appears to be “doing the right thing” by putting water high on the political agenda ahead of…

Are we headed for a year of ‘smooth sailing’ or turbulent waters? Find out in our 2011 water review which…

We look at ways to remain prosperous with savings in energy and water; how to make “water sense” of your…

This month, we look at where key fashion brands and Apple stand on water pollution, discuss sustainable apparel with Patagonia,…

This month, we review trends & opportunities in this market, discuss policy issues with the Secretary General of China’s Desalination Association and Amnon Levy, COO…

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