The Living Danube: How Collaboration Helps Revive Europe’s Lifeline

On the occasion of World Rivers Day, WWF is speaking with Wouter Vermeulen, Vice President, Public Policy & Sustainability at Coca-Cola in Europe, about the importance of water for business, the role of partnerships, and how restoring rivers like the Danube can help build resilience for people, nature, and economies.

Water scarcity is increasing worldwide. Why should it be seen as not only an environmental challenge but also a business risk?

The world is experiencing increased water scarcity with demands for safe, usable water exceeding supply in certain areas. Over half of the world’s GDP is moderately or highly dependent on nature. Protecting and restoring natural resources isn’t only an environmental responsibility, it’s an essential part of safeguarding the future of our business and the communities we serve. While the challenges are significant, solutions are within reach.  However, to achieve meaningful change, cross-sector collaboration is essential – because no single organisation can solve this problem alone.  

At The Coca-Cola Company, water is a priority because it is essential to life, the communities we operate in, and, of course, to our business. Water is not only the first ingredient in our drinks — we also rely on it to grow the crops that provide our ingredients, and to run our factories while maintaining the highest standards of food safety. With operations nearly everywhere in the world, we have a responsibility to accelerate our efforts to help address water stress, protect local and shared water resources and help build community climate resilience.

What makes the Danube a priority for restoration efforts?

As a lifeline of Europe and the longest river in the EU, the Danube River connects not just 10 countries but countless ecosystems and communities. However, over 80% of European habitats are classified as having a ‘poor’ or ‘bad’ conservation status^, according to WWF.  

One of our most longstanding partnerships is the Living Danube. With the support of The Coca-Cola Foundation, WWF Central and Eastern Europe, the International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River, along with a network of national and local stakeholders, have worked for over a decade to restore the Danube’s health and reconnect people to the river that sustains them.

The first phase of this partnership, from 2014 to 2021, included 9 projects in 6 countries. As a result, 13.45 million m3 of water were replenished and 5,462 hectares of wetlands were restored or improved.  

The Living Danube Partnership is now in its second phase. What are the priorities for this phase of the Living Danube Partnership?

The Living Danube Partnership demonstrates how collective action can help to address decades of decline. While ripples of change were created, this work is just the start of a long journey ahead. The partnership has embarked on a second chapter with additional support from Coca-Cola in Europe and Coca-Cola HBC. This ongoing phase of this partnership shares a continued commitment to help increase climate resilience and watershed health across the Danube basin, helping create momentum for change that comes with every action. The Living Danube Partnership is not only focused on restoring wetlands and rivers but also on fostering a culture of water stewardship among citizens, stakeholders, and governments across the Danube River Basin. By engaging local communities, policymakers, businesses, and civil society, the partnership advocates for the protection of one of our most precious resources: water.

What lessons can other businesses and policymakers take from this partnership?

By collaborating, businesses and NGOs can bring together complementary expertise, resources, and networks to deliver greater impact than either could achieve alone.  At Coca-Cola Europe, we’re committed to ongoing learning and open dialogue.  We value the opportunity to learn from one another, to complement our respective strengths, and to achieve greater collective impact than any of us could deliver alone — a principle highlighted in the recently launched ‘Scaling Impact Through Business–NGO Partnerships for Sustainability’ report, co-authored by GlobeScan and Coca-Cola Europe. We now stand at a pivotal moment. It is no longer enough to simply conserve what remains – we must actively restore what has been lost. That means reviving rivers, rewetting wetlands, and rebuilding their rich biodiversity. Nature based solutions, including restoring key wetland ecosystems and floodplains, provide multiple, critical ecosystem services. They help reduce flood risks, combat droughts, and sustain diverse wildlife. They’re also key to strong economies, recreational opportunities, and securing clean water for drinking and agriculture.  It is more important than ever to work together to forge a more sustainable, climate-resilient future for the Danube – and for Europe as a whole. Water is a shared resource that knows no borders — and so must our response. Tackling water challenges demands true collaboration, because collective action isn’t just important, it’s the only way forward to create lasting change.”

Learn more about the Living Danube Partnership here.

Watch the full conversation on the business case for water with Wouter Vermeulen, Vice President, Public Policy & Sustainability at Coca-Cola in Europe, Jan Burger, Climate and Water Sustainability Director, Coca-Cola Europe, and Pendragon Stuart, Director at GlobeScan.

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