Mike Glade, director of water resources for Denver-based Molson Coors, was selected to serve a two-year term as the North American representative on the Steering Committee of the United Nation’s CEO Water Mandate. The Steering Committee oversees strategic, administrative and financial decisions in relation to the initiative.

Launched in July 2007, the CEO Water Mandate is a unique public-private initiative designed to assist companies in the development, implementation and disclosure of water sustainability policies and practices.  

“Molson Coors is honored to have the opportunity to help guide and strengthen the CEO Water Mandate by participating on the Mandate’s Steering Committee,” said Chief Corporate Responsibility Officer Bart Alexander in a statement. “Mike brings a broad range of experience, technical knowledge and leadership in water stewardship, local community stakeholder engagement and championing global corporate water sustainability initiatives.”

The Steering Committee is composed of 10 corporate representatives, each of which serves a staggered two-year term, and several special non-business advisers. The secretariat selected candidates with sectoral diversity, the capacity to bring fresh ideas and innovation to the initiative, and who demonstrated active participation in the mandate.

“Molson Coors has always believed that companies play a critical role in working with local water stakeholders to preserve sustainable watersheds,” Glade said. “As a beverage company, the mission of the CEO Water Mandate is fundamental to managing water risk and water impacts within our local markets, communities and supply chain. Toward that end, we have incorporated the six core elements of the mandate and utilized them as a platform for our own internal global water strategy.”

Molson Coors became a signatory to the CEO Water Mandate in 2008. In addition to a water strategy that targets a 15 percent reduction in water use by the end of 2012, the company also advocates for active community engagement and education about water issues.