Financial Implications of Addressing Water-Related Externalities in the Apparel Sector

Ceres, with insights from the Valuing Water Finance Task Force and Investor Working Group, collaborated with water risk consultant Bluerisk, sustainability intelligence provider S&P Global Sustainable, and the asset manager DWS Group to estimate the financial materiality of addressing water externalities for eight companies in the apparel industry and provide an analytical evidence-base to support investor engagement on enhanced management of water risk. This brief aims to inform asset owners and asset managers interested in understanding the financial materiality of addressing water-related externalities in the apparel industry, applying the proposed methods to other portfolio companies in the apparel or other industries, and using the results to inform their engagements with companies on water.