World Resources Institute (WRI) is a global research not for profit which understands that the foundation of economic opportunity and human well-being relies on the sustainability of the world’s natural resources. For this reason, the WRI focuses on six critical issues at the intersection of environment and development: climate, energy, food, forests, water, and cities and transport. WRI aims to turn the best research into action with the knowledge of 700 experts and staff who work closely with leaders in more than 50 countries.

WRI is committed to providing open access to data providing a catalogue of maps, charts, data sets, infographics among other visual, audio and text resources.

WRI partners with business, governments and civil society to pilot and scale successful projects. The WRI relies on donations and strategic partnerships for its funding. However, the WRI engages with companies of all sizes, globally and in every sector.

WRI has an extensive directory of current programmes and achievements. One notable programme is the Aqueduct project which uses the latest data to produce global water risk maps, allowing stakeholders to assess baseline water stress, interannual variability, seasonal variability, flood occurrence, and drought severity.

Another notable programme is the Access Initiative which seeks to ensure that governments consider sustainable development and the interests of the poor in their environmental decision making. The Access Initiative achieves this by striving to provide the public with access to information, public participation and justice.

The WRI developed the acclaimed Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Protocol in 2001, establishing multiple frameworks for GHG accounting and reporting standards. The success of the GHG Protocol is due to the rigorous road-testing of the draft standards and the multi-stakeholder partnerships with business, NGOs, the World Business Council for Sustainable Development and governments.

To move human society to live in ways that protect Earth’s environment and its capacity to provide for the needs and aspirations of current and future generations.

WRI is mission driven, non-partisan, and independent. WRI enters into contractual relationships only if they are aligned with its mission and program objectives. Corporate donors include Citi Foundation, FedEx, the Shell Foundation, Toyota Mobility Foundation and the IKEA Foundation, among others. Significant government donors include Denmark, Ireland, the Netherlands, Sweden United Kingdom and Japan.

Major donors can be found at the following links:

Recognised donors

Annual report 2018-19