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Risk in Context Podcast: Unpacking water-related economic risks and solutions

In this episode our hosts discuss some of the water-related risks that businesses and communities are facing and examine risk management strategies that can enhance resilience and sustainability.

20/05/2025 · 2 minute read

Whether dealing with droughts or flooding, water can lead to significant challenges for individuals, communities, and businesses. And despite wide recognition of water’s essential role, water-related risks are increasing.

Addressing these challenges requires a robust water management strategy that identifies the risks, puts hazard mitigation actions in place, and leverages insurance as a final layer of protection. Public-private partnerships are instrumental in fostering collaboration and innovation, enabling stakeholders to devise effective strategies for managing water resources and mitigating associated risks.

In this episode of Risk in Context, Swenja Surminski, Managing Director for Climate and Sustainability within Marsh McLennan, speaks with Daniel Kaniewski, Managing Director for the Public Sector at Marsh McLennan, and Henk Ovink, Executive Director and Founding Commissioner for the Global Commission on the Economics of Water. They discuss some of the water-related risks that businesses and communities are facing and examine risk management strategies that can enhance resilience and sustainability.

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Key takeaways

Develop robust resilience plans

Create comprehensive plans that integrate preparedness, hazard mitigation, and insurance to increase your business’s ability to withstand and recover from water-related disasters and help you protect operations and assets.

Embrace innovative solutions

New technologies can help organisations and communities identify and address water-related risks. By prioritising innovation, organisations can develop sustainable solutions intended to tackle immediate challenges and help create long-term water security.

Forge strategic public-private partnerships

Collaboration between public and private entities is critical, enabling the development of innovative solutions for effective water risk management and helping create resilient systems to benefit both organisations and society.

About our speakers

Swenja Surminski

Swenja Surminski

Managing Director of Climate and Sustainability, Marsh McLennan

  • United Kingdom

Swenja Surminski is managing director of climate and sustainability at Marsh McLennan and chairs the Munich Climate Insurance Initiative. She is a Professor at the Grantham Research Institute at the London School of Economics and has been appointed by the UK government to the UK Climate Change Committee, an independent statutory body that advises the UK government on emissions targets and on adapting to the impacts of climate change. She was a contributing author to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and has written several books and articles on climate risk management.

Daniel Kaniewski

Daniel Kaniewski

Managing Director, Public Sector, Marsh McLennan

  • United States

Daniel Kaniewski is managing director for the public sector at Marsh McLennan. He was previously Deputy Administrator for Resilience at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). In this role, he was FEMA’s second ranking official and led the agency's pre-disaster programmes, including the National Flood Insurance Programme.

Henk Ovink

Henk Ovink

Founding Commissioner, Global Commission on the Economics of Water

  • United States

Henk Ovink is the Executive Director and founding Commissioner for the Global Commission on the Economics of Water. He was the first global water ambassador, appointed in 2015 by the Dutch Cabinet as Special Envoy for International Water Affairs. As Ambassador to the UN on Water he led the second UN Water Conference in 2023, the first since 1977.