Nike's watershed-restoration work focuses on our extended cotton supply chain. In addition to reducing our freshwater footprint, restoration projects reduce pesticide run-off, improve soil health and improve community access to water depending on local needs and conditions.
In 2021, Nike, Inc. completed two water-restoration projects in collaboration with The Nature Conservancy. In India, we supported converting 30 hectares of farmland to drip irrigation in the state of Maharashtra, benefiting 75 farmers (17 of which were women). Gayini (Nimmie-Caira), 84,000 hectares of biodiverse wetlands and floodplains in Murray Darling, Australia, is now legally registered as a conservation area. This designation will help restore cultural-heritage sites and medicinal-food plants; transfer ownership to the Nari Nari community (the Traditional Custodians of the land); unlock perpetual conservation funding; and protect the habitat of hundreds of species. We are expanding our water-restoration project portfolio over the next five years to reach our 2025 target.