Dr. Ger Bergkamp, Executive Director, The International Water Association.
The role of the IWA Executive Director is a diverse one often requiring a ‘helicopter view’. Taking off this time, however, things were a little different. There I was sitting behind the instruments: compass, alti-meter, radio frequency, time…”Alpha, Bravo, Whiskey ready to go” – “winds 4.5 mph at 43 degrees” – “Alpha, Bravo, Whiskey you can start”. With some final taxiing, acceleration and pulling the steering wheel towards me, there we were … climbing to 1000 feet, the harbour of Rotterdam stretching out before us.
While I normally favor a “two feet on the ground” approach, sometimes it helps to gain height and get a broader perspective. This is increasingly important within the water sector. A wider audience of non-water professionals is recognizing the need to take water management much more seriously, in all countries. A recent opinion poll amongst world leaders attending the World Economic Forum highlighted the ‘Water Crisis’ as one of the top 3 global risks. Together with impacts from floods and droughts and effects of climate change, whose impact are very much water related, water management is perceived to be one of the top ‘systemic risks’ of the world today. It is thought to be a risk of high impact and high likelihood effecting global supply chains, regional stability and economic performance.
We have thus arrived at a situation in which many actors ‘outside’ the water sector are paying more and more attention to the risks associated with neglecting the role of water. For water professionals this provides a valuable opportunity to show what benefits good water management provides. What are we doing to mitigate water as a risk and inspire a change by turning the ‘Water Crisis’ into a fundamental opportunity for a transformation towards more sustainable societies?
The way we manage water over the coming decades will have a profound impact on future societies, economies, peace and sustainability. Within the International Water Association we believe we need to move from water as a ‘risk’ and a ‘crisis’ to focus on fostering responsibility, capturing opportunities, and promoting new solutions to water challenges. This could be summarized in nothing less than mounting ‘water revolution’.
At the heart of this water revolution are the 5Rs of new water management: reduce, reuse, recover, recycle and replenish. Reducing loss of water and increasing water efficiency can reduce costs and lower water stress in cities and irrigated lands alike. Re-using industrial and domestic water can increase supplies to growing demand for clean water at the right time and place. Recovering water, energy, nutrients and other materials from wastewater can turn a ‘waste’ into a valuable resource. Recycling precious nutrients from wastewater and turning them in fertilizers for agriculture production is increasingly practiced around the world. And finally, we have started to replenish the water resources base. Successful pilots and large-scale applications are underway around the world to restore watersheds, clean-up lakes and refill depleted groundwater reserves. These efforts combined form an important pillar of building a cyclical green economy.
To foster the change in perceptions around water, diplomats and water professionals need to work closer together to prioritize water solutions. One of the opportunities to do so is in September this year, when the United Nations General Assembly is set to adopt the Sustainable Development Goals, including a specific goal on water security and safety. It arises again in December this year when governments aim to reach a global agreement on halting climate change, the impacts of which are felt strongly through water – mainly extreme weather events like floods and droughts, which are becoming more frequent and more severe.
In October this year the International Water Association is organizing the “West Asia Water Summit” as part of the IWA Water and Development Congress 2015. The Summit will bring together leading diplomats, politicians, water professionals and opinion leaders to debate new ways to tackle the water challenges in the Middle East and North Africa and prioritize new solutions. Cooperation across borders is fundamental for water to become a driving force for growth and stability in the region. Countries must act together, act responsibly and act swiftly; there is little time to lose.
I see the IWA’s water diplomacy as a key mechanism to enable inter-governmental networking, and building trust amongst those professionals that are leading the development and implementation of new water solutions. For many of the participants it will be their opportunity to gain a wider perspective and reflect on pathways beyond the current water crisis in the region and seeing water as a new opportunity.
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The International Water Association is the global network of water professionals working on the most pressing water issues. A unique knowledge hub for the water sector and anyone concerned about a sustainable water future, the IWA brings people together to share knowledge, experience and know-how and to innovate new solutions to water challenges. The IWA connects scientists, practitioners and communities so that pioneering research can underpin new solutions; it fosters technological innovation, supports sustainability and drives best practice through international frameworks and standards.
