Water is a precious resource, vital for sustaining human development and prosperity across the globe and essential for the functioning of daily life, from health to sanitation, from transport to industrial production. However, water supplies are increasingly under stress due to unsustainable land use, economic activities, such as energy production, industry, agriculture and tourism, as well as urban development. This Task Force meeting painted a picture of the challenges in the water cycle, both in and outside the EU, and demonstrated why quantity, quality and access to water matter. The meeting also provided an overview of the EU’s water-related policies and tools for action.