This year marks the 50th anniversary of Water Day and Water Week in Japan, celebrated annually from 1 to 7 August. Water Day was established in 1977 to promote public understanding of the nature of water resources and its value through various awareness-raising activities and events. It is held annually in early August when water use peaks, raising the public’s interest. This year’s theme, ‘Passing on a Healthy Water Cycle to Future Generations: Balancing Basin Management, Water Use, and the Environment’ demonstrates the merits of water stewardship and highlights the importance of collective action in addressing shared water challenges.
One year ago, AWS held the ‘Japan Water Stewardship Forum’ to mark the formation of the Japan Water Stewardship Leadership Group (JWS) in collaboration with the Alliance for Water Stewardship (AWS). Since then, JWS has advanced water stewardship in Japan by providing Japanese-language training and capacity-building programmes, delivering AWS training courses, and fostering corporate networking and collaboration. In addition, they have worked together to identify priority watersheds, strengthen engagement with government agencies and lay the groundwork for future collective action initiatives. Below are some key highlights from the past year.
Water stewardship in Japan at a glance
Connected with
1,380+
individuals at events
Trained nearly
70
water stewards in 2025
There are now
6
sites certified to the AWS Standard
Raising awareness of water stewardship
We have organised and participated in a number of events and initiatives in collaboration with a diverse range of stakeholders, including businesses, government agencies, NGOs, academic institutions and industry associations. A selection of key activities from the past year include:
AWS Standard Version 3.0 Launch | 18 March 2026
AWS officially launched the AWS Standard Version 3.0 at Suntory World Headquarters in Tokyo. Participants received an overview of the key updates in Version 3.0, discussed practical considerations for implementation, and heard perspectives from Chugai Pharmaceutical, WWF International and Water Stewardship Assurance Services (WSAS) on the value of seeking AWS certification. The event marked an important milestone in advancing water stewardship and AWS adoption in Japan.
Water Stewardship in the Age of ‘Water Bankruptcy’ | 25 May 2026
AWS and WWF Japan co-hosted a hybrid seminar in Tokyo, bringing together nearly 400 participants from business, academia, NGOs and government. The event introduced AWS and the AWS Standard, and featured presentations from United Nations University, WWF Japan and WWF International. In addition, Suntory, Shiseido and Coca-Cola Japan shared case studies highlighting how companies are collaborating with local stakeholders to address water, biodiversity and climate challenges. This seminar provided an opportunity to deepen understanding of corporate water stewardship practices and the importance of collaboration within watersheds.
Global Nature Positive Summit 2026 | 14-16 July 2026
AWS and WWF Japan co-hosted a session at the Global Nature Positive Summit in Kumamoto, showcasing watershed collaboration and collective action through examples from Suntory, Sony Semiconductor Solutions, Geosphere Environmental Technology Corporation and Yachiyo Engineering. The discussion highlighted how addressing water challenges needs to go beyond individual operations. Showcasing the experiences from this region demonstrated that effective solutions require stakeholders from businesses, governments, academia and non-governmental organisations, to work collaboratively at the catchment level. The experiences shared offered valuable insights for other areas facing shared water challenges.
JWS members also contributed to several sessions at the Global Nature Positive Summit. A key milestone was the launch of the Kumamoto Water Positive Design Center, led by MS&AD, Suntory and other partners, alongside the publication of its first white paper. The initiative is currently welcoming new members to support collective action for groundwater recharge and watershed resilience.
"Since its launch last year, JWS has focused its efforts on raising awareness of water stewardship and promoting JWS within Japan. This year, a significant milestone has been reached with the update to the AWS Standard. JWS has therefore seized various opportunities to emphasise the importance of biodiversity, freshwater ecosystems and the link with climate change, as well as collective action on the water stewardship journey. We hope that more Japanese companies will promote water stewardship initiatives through the JWS framework moving forward."
Growing interst in the AWS Standard
Coinciding with JWS’s efforts to increase awareness around water stewardship, there has been a rising interest in the AWS Standard as a framework for addressing shared water challenges. Suntory Holdings Ltd., Coca-Cola Japan and Coca-Cola Bottlers Japan, all founding members of JWS, were early adopters of certifying their sites against AWS Standard V2.0 in Japan. Together, they have six sites certified, ranging from Core to Platinum.
With the launch of V3.0, more companies have expressed interest in understanding and implementing water stewardship. In 2025 alone, nearly 70 individuals completed AWS Standard System Training, doubling the total number of trained water stewards in Japan. AWS is also engaging with other companies based in Japan or with operations in Japan that are either getting started or looking to continue their water stewardship journey.
This growing interest reflects the increasing recognition of water stewardship as an important part of corporate sustainability and responsible water management at the catchment level.
Looking ahead
Building on the successes from the past year, JWS will continue to advance AWS’s mission to ignite and nurture leadership in credible water stewardship. Having built a foundation for water stewardship in Japan through cross-sector engagement, JWS is focussing on scaling up collective action and expanding impact at the catchment level. The group has started to identify priority river basins where stakeholders can collaborate and undertaking planning for a series of learning and networking events later this year. The aim of these events will be to support knowledge sharing and foster collaboration among stakeholders. In addition to our engagement with companies and civil society organisations, we will continue to strengthen dialogue with policymakers and expand outreach to the financial community.
Are you interested in advancing water stewardship in Japan? Join AWS and JWS to access training opportunities, connect with peers and contribute to collective action on shared water challenges. Companies, organisations and individuals who would like to be part of the growing water stewardship community are welcome.
We extend our heartfelt thoughts to all those affected by the earthquake in Kumamoto Prefecture and surrounding areas. We hope that our members and partners, their sites and facilities, and local stakeholders are safe and well.
