Feb. 9, 2026
S4E2: The Era of Water Bankruptcy
What happens when the world doesn’t just face water scarcity — but water bankruptcy?
In this episode of Sustainability Forward, we unpack a stark new warning from the United Nations: many of the world’s freshwater systems are now so over-used and degraded that they may never recover to their historical levels.
We explore what “global water bankruptcy” actually means, why this framing is different from how we’ve talked about water crises before, and what the implications are for food systems, economies, geopolitics, and climate resilience.
From collapsing aquifers and rivers that no longer reach the sea, to the hidden role of groundwater in global food production, this conversation connects water to some of the biggest challenges facing societies today.
Most importantly, we discuss what can still be done — and why managing water bankruptcy requires political courage, hard limits, and a fundamental rethink of how we value water.
This episode is for anyone interested in sustainability, climate risk, food security, and the invisible systems that underpin modern life.
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Welcome to Sustainably Forward
Harmony.
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How are you doing?
Good Rishi, nice to be back.
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Nice to be back, Harmony.
I wanted to start today's
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episode with a bit of a story,
and the story takes us to
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California, specifically
California Central Valley, where
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about 10 years ago farmers
started drilling deeper and
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deeper wells for water.
When the surface waters started
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drying up, the farmers adapted,
which means they installed new
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pumps, they brought in more
investment, and they started
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drilling more.
But then something started
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happening.
The ground started sinking,
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there were cracks appearing on
the surface of the roads, number
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of the canals that this cross
the valley started warping and
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in some places the land to be
dropped by more than a foot.
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So the whales that the farmers
have been didn't just dry up
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because there was no water, they
actually failed because the
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whole aquifer itself had
collapsed and that water, which
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these farmers were the same, had
no chance of coming back.
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Wow, that's such a powerful
image.
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So it looks like resilience.
So people doing what they
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already always done to cope and
go going ahead, but it's
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probably not exactly that.
Yeah, I actually think it wasn't
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resilience.
It was it was a case of
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overdraft.
What looked like drought turned
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out to be bankruptcy.
And according to the United
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Nations, this isn't just a local
story somewhere in California
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anymore.
It is actually a global problem.
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Yes, at this bring us to the
report that is the core of this
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episode.
A few days back in January 2026,
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the UN University Institute for
Water published a report called
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Global Water Bankruptcy, Living
Beyond Our Ideological Means in
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the post crisis Era.
And when you look at it, he said
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something pretty extraordinary.
They declared the world a
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centered era of global water
bankruptcy.
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And that language actually is is
very critical.
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This isn't a discussion on water
stress, and it's not a temporary
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crisis either.
Water bankruptcy means we are
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using freshwater systems faster
than they can recover, so it's a
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permanent problem.
The report actually argues that
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many rivers and aquifers can no
longer return to historical
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levels even in good years and.
That's a big shift.
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We are used to talking about
draft ending, about cycles,
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about recovery.
But here the cycle is broken.
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So let's unpack this term a
little bit because it sounds a
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little bit abstract.
What does water bankruptcy
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actually mean in practice?
Yeah, and it's very interesting.
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The report breaks it down into
three ideas.
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The first idea is persistent
overuse.
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Essentially, we are withdrawing
more water than nature can
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replenish.
Kind of the idea that we have
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been discussing in the planetary
Boundaries in a way.
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Second, loss of recovery.
Even after wet years, systems
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don't bounce back.
There is additional water in wet
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gears, but the systems don't
bounce back to the to the old
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levels.
And 3rd, they're talking about
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the structural damage.
So aquifers collapse, rivers
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fail to reach the sea, and
ecosystems that degrade
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permanently.
Right?
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All examples of structural
damage, so.
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Isn't shortage anymore, it's
actually damage.
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Exactly.
So scarcity.
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The term suggests that we can
wait it out, but bankruptcy is
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indicating that there is an
element of irreversibility
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associated with it.
Some numbers really make this
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clear.
Around 4 billion people
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experience severe water scarcity
for at least one month every
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year, and about half of global
food production depends on
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regions that are actually
drying.
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And groundwater now supplies
roughly 40% of irrigation
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worldwide.
And the groundwater, the
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metaphorical physical terms also
is the hidden part of the story,
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because people actually they
don't see this appearing, so
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looks like the problem is not
there.
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Yeah, until the groundwater is
completely gone, people don't
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don't see it disappear.
So you're exactly right there.
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And these figures are coming
from the United Nations report.
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It's Food and Agriculture
organizations, a Quastat report
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and in collaboration with the
World Resources Institute.
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You know, Richie also listening
at the beginning of this episode
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and the story you're told, it
reminds me of what we discussed
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about the tragedy of the
Commons.
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So I see many similar angle of
the story back to that concept.
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But why this is accelerating
now?
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Why are we hitting this limit
all at once?
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Yeah, again, the report seems to
break it down into four big
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drivers. 1st is agriculture.
About 70% of freshwater
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withdrawals go to farming.
In many places, crops are grown
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where water was never abundant
to begin with.
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Second, climate change.
Rainfall is becoming more and
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more erratic, drowser longer.
Evaporation is faster.
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Third, relation and conduction.
More people, more water
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intensive diets and more urban
demand and force.
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And, crucially, it is a
governance failure.
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So the last one is quite
uncomfortable I would say.
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Yes it is.
In many countries, groundwater
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is barely regulated.
Water is treated like an
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infinite public good, again
linked to the idea of the
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tragedy of commerce.
It's not today as a finite
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asset, and it actually is a
finite asset in many ways.
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And the report is very clear on
this point.
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What Bankruptcy is not just a
climate issue, it's a it's a
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management failure problem.
Yeah, you know, in the Third
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Point, in the fourth point that
you mentioned before, he also
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remind me of what happened just
few days back in southern Italy
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that is region for mine from.
So we had Sicily devastated by a
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cyclone Harry, with huge damage,
a lot of water drained to the
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cities, a territory that has
been kind of devastated by this
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body storm.
And we're talking about
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Mediterranean Sea and it
happened during winter.
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So something that was completely
unexpected, but it's linked to
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what you said is linked to the
rainfall.
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I mean more erratic, difficult
to forecast, harder and linked
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to the increasing in temperature
definitely.
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Now back to the report.
This is where the conversation
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coming back from what you what
you are explaining water
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bankruptcy shift from
environmental to economic very
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quickly.
We use the term bankruptcy that
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is an economic term here.
Water bankruptcy isn't just
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about dry cups.
Yeah, it is not.
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It's it's actually about food.
Around 60% of irrigated
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agriculture relies on
groundwater.
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Many major food producing
regions are running on fossil
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water that accumulated thousands
of years ago.
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Kind of like oil and gas
reserves.
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Once that's gone, it doesn't
refill.
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At least on on human times,
right?
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It takes many thousand years
again to refill these of the
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1st, yeah.
So you get this illusion of
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stability.
Everything looks fine until
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suddenly it isn't anymore.
Yeah, and when food systems
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wobble, everything else follows.
Prices rise, trade patterns
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start to shift, Political
instability increases.
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The report links the water
stress to migration pressures as
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well, particularly in parts of
Africa, South Asia and the
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Middle East.
And I can actually relate to
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some of this.
In parts of India and definitely
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in some parts of Pakistan,
regional or countrywide
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migration is happening because
the water table has gone down to
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really alarming levels.
And this is this is actually
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climate risk that it's that is
now showing its face as
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geopolitical risk.
And often in these cases, this
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is far away from where the water
problem actually it is.
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So you see consequences spread
kilometers away.
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Yes, water bankruptcy actually
travels through supply chains
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and there are multiple
references about this on
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included in the UN report and
the and the work that the World
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Bank has done on water and and
fragility.
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Let's go back to that word,
Bara, bankruptcy.
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Often in climate change
discussion, there is a lot of
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alumnus there.
Is this the case also, is this
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truly an alarm what we're seeing
now in water?
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Yeah.
It's definitely closer to to the
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truth in my opinion, but the
framing around it definitely
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matters.
I mean, a crisis typically
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invites emergency response, but
bankruptcy demands
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restructuring, as we all know
from the language of of finance,
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right?
If a company is bankrupt, what
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do you do?
You try to restructure the
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company.
You don't find bankruptcy by by
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or.
You don't fix bankruptcy by
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hoping for rain.
You fix it by changing the
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rules.
This report argues that we need
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to move from maximizing water
use to managing within hard
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limits, from short term
extraction to long term
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accounting of water.
So we cannot file for a Chapter
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11.
We need to have a mind shift,
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mindset shift and politically
this is hard.
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Very hard because it means
saying no.
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It means reallocating water away
from some views.
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Experts quoted via the Science
Media Center say the term is
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actually quite uncomfortable,
but also accurate.
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So let's trying to not go down
to the Doom spiral.
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Looking from this different
perspective, what does the
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report actually suggest we we
do?
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Several priorities.
First is water accounting.
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As we've said multiple times in
the context of carbon dioxide
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and and other externalities, you
cannot manage what you don't
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measure.
Basin level water budgets are
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becoming very, very essential.
Second, protecting our aquifers.
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Groundwater has to be treated
like strategic infrastructure.
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And 3rd, reallocating water that
includes what kind of crops you
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choose to grow.
How do you design your urban
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centers?
Even getting into dietary
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shifts, about which we mentioned
in the in the episode on
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individual choices, what you eat
also determines your overall
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footprint.
And 4th, it's about equity.
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Poorer communities typically
suffer first despite consuming
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the least, and finally, probably
the most most important one in
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this is political courage.
It takes political courage to
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address these priorities.
And as we said in an other
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episode, college.
Pitiful word, but it's the
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hardest 1 maybe.
It is the hardest one because
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managing bankruptcy means
telling some users they cannot
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have as much water as before.
These recommendations come
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directly from the UN University
Report and not things that you
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and I are have dreamed up in
this episode.
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Yeah.
So Rishi, let's let's bring it
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home.
So in finance, bankruptcy is
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devastating.
But he also can be clarifying.
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It can be.
It forces honesty.
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We have seen obviously, examples
of many companies going into
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bankruptcy and coming out strong
from Chapter 11 filing because
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it forces prioritization, it
forces change. the United
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Nations is is not saying that
the world is out of water.
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It is saying we are out of
illusions.
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And the real question is whether
we keep pretending recovery will
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magically come.
Yeah, or whether we finally
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redesign our systems to live
within planetary limits.
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Again, going back to one of our
favorite topics on this podcast,
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because water, unlike money,
cannot be printed.
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It can only be protected.
Yes, and we need to protect
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generation that will come later
on this.
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Absolutely.
That brings us to the end of
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today's episode.
This is a sustainability forward
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on which we discuss all
important issues surrounding the
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topic of sustainability.
We are present on all major
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podcast platforms, so feel free
to subscribe to this podcast on
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any channel that we use to
consume podcasts.
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This is Rishi your host.
With me is my Co host Carmino.
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Sign up.
Thank you, Carmina.
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Thank you Rishi, good episode.
00:00:08,640 --> 00:00:11,360
Welcome to Sustainably Forward
Harmony.
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How are you doing?
Good Rishi, nice to be back.
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Nice to be back, Harmony.
I wanted to start today's
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episode with a bit of a story,
and the story takes us to
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California, specifically
California Central Valley, where
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about 10 years ago farmers
started drilling deeper and
7
00:00:34,440 --> 00:00:41,080
deeper wells for water.
When the surface waters started
8
00:00:41,080 --> 00:00:45,840
drying up, the farmers adapted,
which means they installed new
9
00:00:45,840 --> 00:00:50,440
pumps, they brought in more
investment, and they started
10
00:00:50,440 --> 00:00:55,000
drilling more.
But then something started
11
00:00:55,120 --> 00:00:58,720
happening.
The ground started sinking,
12
00:00:59,600 --> 00:01:03,640
there were cracks appearing on
the surface of the roads, number
13
00:01:03,640 --> 00:01:08,160
of the canals that this cross
the valley started warping and
14
00:01:08,160 --> 00:01:12,120
in some places the land to be
dropped by more than a foot.
15
00:01:13,160 --> 00:01:16,720
So the whales that the farmers
have been didn't just dry up
16
00:01:17,200 --> 00:01:21,280
because there was no water, they
actually failed because the
17
00:01:21,280 --> 00:01:26,160
whole aquifer itself had
collapsed and that water, which
18
00:01:26,240 --> 00:01:30,120
these farmers were the same, had
no chance of coming back.
19
00:01:32,040 --> 00:01:34,040
Wow, that's such a powerful
image.
20
00:01:34,640 --> 00:01:38,840
So it looks like resilience.
So people doing what they
21
00:01:38,840 --> 00:01:44,600
already always done to cope and
go going ahead, but it's
22
00:01:44,600 --> 00:01:49,040
probably not exactly that.
Yeah, I actually think it wasn't
23
00:01:49,040 --> 00:01:51,800
resilience.
It was it was a case of
24
00:01:51,800 --> 00:01:56,640
overdraft.
What looked like drought turned
25
00:01:56,640 --> 00:02:01,320
out to be bankruptcy.
And according to the United
26
00:02:01,320 --> 00:02:07,480
Nations, this isn't just a local
story somewhere in California
27
00:02:07,480 --> 00:02:10,199
anymore.
It is actually a global problem.
28
00:02:12,880 --> 00:02:16,480
Yes, at this bring us to the
report that is the core of this
29
00:02:16,480 --> 00:02:21,240
episode.
A few days back in January 2026,
30
00:02:21,240 --> 00:02:26,960
the UN University Institute for
Water published a report called
31
00:02:27,320 --> 00:02:32,120
Global Water Bankruptcy, Living
Beyond Our Ideological Means in
32
00:02:32,120 --> 00:02:36,120
the post crisis Era.
And when you look at it, he said
33
00:02:36,120 --> 00:02:39,400
something pretty extraordinary.
They declared the world a
34
00:02:39,400 --> 00:02:42,680
centered era of global water
bankruptcy.
35
00:02:44,360 --> 00:02:48,080
And that language actually is is
very critical.
36
00:02:50,240 --> 00:02:55,320
This isn't a discussion on water
stress, and it's not a temporary
37
00:02:55,320 --> 00:02:59,600
crisis either.
Water bankruptcy means we are
38
00:02:59,600 --> 00:03:06,200
using freshwater systems faster
than they can recover, so it's a
39
00:03:06,200 --> 00:03:10,280
permanent problem.
The report actually argues that
40
00:03:10,400 --> 00:03:14,760
many rivers and aquifers can no
longer return to historical
41
00:03:14,760 --> 00:03:20,440
levels even in good years and.
That's a big shift.
42
00:03:21,720 --> 00:03:25,880
We are used to talking about
draft ending, about cycles,
43
00:03:25,880 --> 00:03:29,920
about recovery.
But here the cycle is broken.
44
00:03:32,400 --> 00:03:37,480
So let's unpack this term a
little bit because it sounds a
45
00:03:37,480 --> 00:03:42,320
little bit abstract.
What does water bankruptcy
46
00:03:42,400 --> 00:03:47,800
actually mean in practice?
Yeah, and it's very interesting.
47
00:03:47,840 --> 00:03:50,360
The report breaks it down into
three ideas.
48
00:03:51,320 --> 00:03:54,560
The first idea is persistent
overuse.
49
00:03:55,600 --> 00:03:59,600
Essentially, we are withdrawing
more water than nature can
50
00:03:59,600 --> 00:04:02,520
replenish.
Kind of the idea that we have
51
00:04:02,520 --> 00:04:05,600
been discussing in the planetary
Boundaries in a way.
52
00:04:07,160 --> 00:04:13,040
Second, loss of recovery.
Even after wet years, systems
53
00:04:13,240 --> 00:04:17,519
don't bounce back.
There is additional water in wet
54
00:04:17,519 --> 00:04:20,880
gears, but the systems don't
bounce back to the to the old
55
00:04:20,880 --> 00:04:24,680
levels.
And 3rd, they're talking about
56
00:04:24,680 --> 00:04:30,080
the structural damage.
So aquifers collapse, rivers
57
00:04:30,240 --> 00:04:36,080
fail to reach the sea, and
ecosystems that degrade
58
00:04:36,520 --> 00:04:37,360
permanently.
Right?
59
00:04:37,520 --> 00:04:40,160
All examples of structural
damage, so.
60
00:04:43,480 --> 00:04:46,280
Isn't shortage anymore, it's
actually damage.
61
00:04:46,960 --> 00:04:49,960
Exactly.
So scarcity.
62
00:04:50,160 --> 00:04:56,480
The term suggests that we can
wait it out, but bankruptcy is
63
00:04:56,480 --> 00:05:00,400
indicating that there is an
element of irreversibility
64
00:05:00,440 --> 00:05:04,720
associated with it.
Some numbers really make this
65
00:05:04,720 --> 00:05:07,920
clear.
Around 4 billion people
66
00:05:07,920 --> 00:05:13,560
experience severe water scarcity
for at least one month every
67
00:05:13,560 --> 00:05:18,520
year, and about half of global
food production depends on
68
00:05:18,520 --> 00:05:20,440
regions that are actually
drying.
69
00:05:21,480 --> 00:05:27,320
And groundwater now supplies
roughly 40% of irrigation
70
00:05:27,360 --> 00:05:32,480
worldwide.
And the groundwater, the
71
00:05:32,480 --> 00:05:35,920
metaphorical physical terms also
is the hidden part of the story,
72
00:05:36,720 --> 00:05:39,840
because people actually they
don't see this appearing, so
73
00:05:39,840 --> 00:05:41,200
looks like the problem is not
there.
74
00:05:41,960 --> 00:05:45,600
Yeah, until the groundwater is
completely gone, people don't
75
00:05:46,080 --> 00:05:50,040
don't see it disappear.
So you're exactly right there.
76
00:05:50,880 --> 00:05:55,040
And these figures are coming
from the United Nations report.
77
00:05:57,280 --> 00:06:01,160
It's Food and Agriculture
organizations, a Quastat report
78
00:06:01,800 --> 00:06:05,880
and in collaboration with the
World Resources Institute.
79
00:06:07,360 --> 00:06:10,520
You know, Richie also listening
at the beginning of this episode
80
00:06:10,520 --> 00:06:14,680
and the story you're told, it
reminds me of what we discussed
81
00:06:14,680 --> 00:06:16,200
about the tragedy of the
Commons.
82
00:06:16,200 --> 00:06:22,880
So I see many similar angle of
the story back to that concept.
83
00:06:25,840 --> 00:06:27,960
But why this is accelerating
now?
84
00:06:28,240 --> 00:06:31,120
Why are we hitting this limit
all at once?
85
00:06:31,960 --> 00:06:37,720
Yeah, again, the report seems to
break it down into four big
86
00:06:37,720 --> 00:06:42,520
drivers. 1st is agriculture.
About 70% of freshwater
87
00:06:42,520 --> 00:06:47,200
withdrawals go to farming.
In many places, crops are grown
88
00:06:47,200 --> 00:06:50,920
where water was never abundant
to begin with.
89
00:06:51,800 --> 00:06:55,360
Second, climate change.
Rainfall is becoming more and
90
00:06:55,360 --> 00:07:00,680
more erratic, drowser longer.
Evaporation is faster.
91
00:07:02,520 --> 00:07:07,120
Third, relation and conduction.
More people, more water
92
00:07:07,120 --> 00:07:12,160
intensive diets and more urban
demand and force.
93
00:07:12,920 --> 00:07:15,600
And, crucially, it is a
governance failure.
94
00:07:17,840 --> 00:07:20,920
So the last one is quite
uncomfortable I would say.
95
00:07:22,240 --> 00:07:26,160
Yes it is.
In many countries, groundwater
96
00:07:26,160 --> 00:07:29,840
is barely regulated.
Water is treated like an
97
00:07:29,880 --> 00:07:34,680
infinite public good, again
linked to the idea of the
98
00:07:34,680 --> 00:07:38,120
tragedy of commerce.
It's not today as a finite
99
00:07:38,120 --> 00:07:41,240
asset, and it actually is a
finite asset in many ways.
100
00:07:41,800 --> 00:07:44,000
And the report is very clear on
this point.
101
00:07:44,120 --> 00:07:47,880
What Bankruptcy is not just a
climate issue, it's a it's a
102
00:07:47,880 --> 00:07:55,040
management failure problem.
Yeah, you know, in the Third
103
00:07:55,040 --> 00:07:57,920
Point, in the fourth point that
you mentioned before, he also
104
00:07:58,280 --> 00:08:03,920
remind me of what happened just
few days back in southern Italy
105
00:08:03,920 --> 00:08:10,840
that is region for mine from.
So we had Sicily devastated by a
106
00:08:10,840 --> 00:08:18,240
cyclone Harry, with huge damage,
a lot of water drained to the
107
00:08:18,240 --> 00:08:24,480
cities, a territory that has
been kind of devastated by this
108
00:08:24,960 --> 00:08:27,280
body storm.
And we're talking about
109
00:08:27,280 --> 00:08:30,400
Mediterranean Sea and it
happened during winter.
110
00:08:30,920 --> 00:08:38,440
So something that was completely
unexpected, but it's linked to
111
00:08:38,440 --> 00:08:41,559
what you said is linked to the
rainfall.
112
00:08:41,559 --> 00:08:50,320
I mean more erratic, difficult
to forecast, harder and linked
113
00:08:50,320 --> 00:08:53,040
to the increasing in temperature
definitely.
114
00:08:53,800 --> 00:08:59,320
Now back to the report.
This is where the conversation
115
00:09:02,280 --> 00:09:05,000
coming back from what you what
you are explaining water
116
00:09:05,000 --> 00:09:09,680
bankruptcy shift from
environmental to economic very
117
00:09:09,680 --> 00:09:13,360
quickly.
We use the term bankruptcy that
118
00:09:13,360 --> 00:09:18,600
is an economic term here.
Water bankruptcy isn't just
119
00:09:18,600 --> 00:09:22,440
about dry cups.
Yeah, it is not.
120
00:09:22,600 --> 00:09:27,760
It's it's actually about food.
Around 60% of irrigated
121
00:09:27,760 --> 00:09:30,480
agriculture relies on
groundwater.
122
00:09:32,280 --> 00:09:36,080
Many major food producing
regions are running on fossil
123
00:09:36,080 --> 00:09:39,360
water that accumulated thousands
of years ago.
124
00:09:39,680 --> 00:09:42,040
Kind of like oil and gas
reserves.
125
00:09:42,920 --> 00:09:45,880
Once that's gone, it doesn't
refill.
126
00:09:46,680 --> 00:09:48,960
At least on on human times,
right?
127
00:09:48,960 --> 00:09:52,720
It takes many thousand years
again to refill these of the
128
00:09:52,720 --> 00:09:56,240
1st, yeah.
So you get this illusion of
129
00:09:56,240 --> 00:09:59,680
stability.
Everything looks fine until
130
00:09:59,680 --> 00:10:05,880
suddenly it isn't anymore.
Yeah, and when food systems
131
00:10:05,880 --> 00:10:10,880
wobble, everything else follows.
Prices rise, trade patterns
132
00:10:10,880 --> 00:10:14,440
start to shift, Political
instability increases.
133
00:10:15,240 --> 00:10:19,960
The report links the water
stress to migration pressures as
134
00:10:19,960 --> 00:10:25,000
well, particularly in parts of
Africa, South Asia and the
135
00:10:25,000 --> 00:10:27,800
Middle East.
And I can actually relate to
136
00:10:27,800 --> 00:10:32,320
some of this.
In parts of India and definitely
137
00:10:32,320 --> 00:10:35,880
in some parts of Pakistan,
regional or countrywide
138
00:10:35,880 --> 00:10:42,280
migration is happening because
the water table has gone down to
139
00:10:42,360 --> 00:10:46,320
really alarming levels.
And this is this is actually
140
00:10:46,320 --> 00:10:50,480
climate risk that it's that is
now showing its face as
141
00:10:50,760 --> 00:10:55,040
geopolitical risk.
And often in these cases, this
142
00:10:55,040 --> 00:10:58,240
is far away from where the water
problem actually it is.
143
00:10:58,440 --> 00:11:01,200
So you see consequences spread
kilometers away.
144
00:11:01,960 --> 00:11:06,320
Yes, water bankruptcy actually
travels through supply chains
145
00:11:08,120 --> 00:11:11,720
and there are multiple
references about this on
146
00:11:12,560 --> 00:11:15,560
included in the UN report and
the and the work that the World
147
00:11:15,560 --> 00:11:18,280
Bank has done on water and and
fragility.
148
00:11:20,120 --> 00:11:23,600
Let's go back to that word,
Bara, bankruptcy.
149
00:11:25,120 --> 00:11:28,960
Often in climate change
discussion, there is a lot of
150
00:11:29,840 --> 00:11:33,520
alumnus there.
Is this the case also, is this
151
00:11:33,520 --> 00:11:37,520
truly an alarm what we're seeing
now in water?
152
00:11:38,920 --> 00:11:44,840
Yeah.
It's definitely closer to to the
153
00:11:44,840 --> 00:11:48,000
truth in my opinion, but the
framing around it definitely
154
00:11:48,000 --> 00:11:51,520
matters.
I mean, a crisis typically
155
00:11:51,520 --> 00:11:55,400
invites emergency response, but
bankruptcy demands
156
00:11:55,400 --> 00:12:02,320
restructuring, as we all know
from the language of of finance,
157
00:12:02,440 --> 00:12:04,160
right?
If a company is bankrupt, what
158
00:12:04,160 --> 00:12:05,640
do you do?
You try to restructure the
159
00:12:05,640 --> 00:12:09,400
company.
You don't find bankruptcy by by
160
00:12:10,040 --> 00:12:11,400
or.
You don't fix bankruptcy by
161
00:12:11,400 --> 00:12:14,400
hoping for rain.
You fix it by changing the
162
00:12:14,400 --> 00:12:19,000
rules.
This report argues that we need
163
00:12:19,000 --> 00:12:24,160
to move from maximizing water
use to managing within hard
164
00:12:24,160 --> 00:12:28,400
limits, from short term
extraction to long term
165
00:12:28,440 --> 00:12:33,040
accounting of water.
So we cannot file for a Chapter
166
00:12:33,040 --> 00:12:35,840
11.
We need to have a mind shift,
167
00:12:36,000 --> 00:12:39,640
mindset shift and politically
this is hard.
168
00:12:40,600 --> 00:12:43,880
Very hard because it means
saying no.
169
00:12:45,080 --> 00:12:49,800
It means reallocating water away
from some views.
170
00:12:50,560 --> 00:12:56,440
Experts quoted via the Science
Media Center say the term is
171
00:12:56,520 --> 00:13:00,680
actually quite uncomfortable,
but also accurate.
172
00:13:02,760 --> 00:13:09,000
So let's trying to not go down
to the Doom spiral.
173
00:13:12,160 --> 00:13:14,680
Looking from this different
perspective, what does the
174
00:13:14,680 --> 00:13:17,640
report actually suggest we we
do?
175
00:13:19,400 --> 00:13:23,560
Several priorities.
First is water accounting.
176
00:13:25,160 --> 00:13:29,320
As we've said multiple times in
the context of carbon dioxide
177
00:13:29,320 --> 00:13:34,200
and and other externalities, you
cannot manage what you don't
178
00:13:34,200 --> 00:13:38,120
measure.
Basin level water budgets are
179
00:13:38,120 --> 00:13:43,840
becoming very, very essential.
Second, protecting our aquifers.
180
00:13:44,320 --> 00:13:47,840
Groundwater has to be treated
like strategic infrastructure.
181
00:13:49,520 --> 00:13:54,960
And 3rd, reallocating water that
includes what kind of crops you
182
00:13:54,960 --> 00:13:58,480
choose to grow.
How do you design your urban
183
00:13:58,480 --> 00:14:01,680
centers?
Even getting into dietary
184
00:14:01,680 --> 00:14:06,560
shifts, about which we mentioned
in the in the episode on
185
00:14:06,600 --> 00:14:11,040
individual choices, what you eat
also determines your overall
186
00:14:11,040 --> 00:14:14,840
footprint.
And 4th, it's about equity.
187
00:14:15,760 --> 00:14:20,560
Poorer communities typically
suffer first despite consuming
188
00:14:20,560 --> 00:14:27,720
the least, and finally, probably
the most most important one in
189
00:14:27,720 --> 00:14:31,200
this is political courage.
It takes political courage to
190
00:14:31,200 --> 00:14:36,360
address these priorities.
And as we said in an other
191
00:14:36,360 --> 00:14:38,960
episode, college.
Pitiful word, but it's the
192
00:14:39,160 --> 00:14:43,320
hardest 1 maybe.
It is the hardest one because
193
00:14:43,320 --> 00:14:47,800
managing bankruptcy means
telling some users they cannot
194
00:14:47,800 --> 00:14:52,200
have as much water as before.
These recommendations come
195
00:14:52,200 --> 00:14:57,240
directly from the UN University
Report and not things that you
196
00:14:57,280 --> 00:14:59,920
and I are have dreamed up in
this episode.
197
00:14:59,920 --> 00:15:03,480
Yeah.
So Rishi, let's let's bring it
198
00:15:03,480 --> 00:15:06,760
home.
So in finance, bankruptcy is
199
00:15:06,760 --> 00:15:10,320
devastating.
But he also can be clarifying.
200
00:15:11,680 --> 00:15:13,720
It can be.
It forces honesty.
201
00:15:14,440 --> 00:15:17,760
We have seen obviously, examples
of many companies going into
202
00:15:17,760 --> 00:15:24,520
bankruptcy and coming out strong
from Chapter 11 filing because
203
00:15:24,520 --> 00:15:29,080
it forces prioritization, it
forces change. the United
204
00:15:29,080 --> 00:15:32,280
Nations is is not saying that
the world is out of water.
205
00:15:32,400 --> 00:15:35,520
It is saying we are out of
illusions.
206
00:15:36,760 --> 00:15:40,640
And the real question is whether
we keep pretending recovery will
207
00:15:40,640 --> 00:15:45,080
magically come.
Yeah, or whether we finally
208
00:15:45,680 --> 00:15:50,240
redesign our systems to live
within planetary limits.
209
00:15:50,640 --> 00:15:55,040
Again, going back to one of our
favorite topics on this podcast,
210
00:15:56,000 --> 00:15:58,640
because water, unlike money,
cannot be printed.
211
00:15:58,880 --> 00:16:04,320
It can only be protected.
Yes, and we need to protect
212
00:16:05,680 --> 00:16:07,840
generation that will come later
on this.
213
00:16:08,960 --> 00:16:11,960
Absolutely.
That brings us to the end of
214
00:16:13,120 --> 00:16:17,000
today's episode.
This is a sustainability forward
215
00:16:17,040 --> 00:16:20,320
on which we discuss all
important issues surrounding the
216
00:16:20,320 --> 00:16:24,360
topic of sustainability.
We are present on all major
217
00:16:24,680 --> 00:16:29,600
podcast platforms, so feel free
to subscribe to this podcast on
218
00:16:29,600 --> 00:16:32,360
any channel that we use to
consume podcasts.
219
00:16:33,000 --> 00:16:37,480
This is Rishi your host.
With me is my Co host Carmino.
220
00:16:37,520 --> 00:16:38,920
Sign up.
Thank you, Carmina.
221
00:16:39,640 --> 00:16:40,920
Thank you Rishi, good episode.
