Hans Goossens, President’s editorial
Dear Water Europe friends,
Taking water action forward was our motto this month. The much-anticipated UN 2023 Water Conference took place, and we were there with our new vision in our hands, eager to share it with the water world, get feedback and collect impressions. Now, we are back with something more than our commitment to building a Water-Smart Society. We are back with a vision ready to be put in place as a step-by-step plan to overcome the water-related challenges and ensure water security, sustainability, and resilience for our society.
Throughout the whole UN2023 Water Conference week, our five side-events addressed the aspects of climate resilience, collaborative innovation, circular economy, WEFE nexus and water & health as key elements for building a Water-Smart Society. The sessions were all very well-attended with important representation from the whole water value chain. In particular, we were happy to deliver the first copies of our new vision to Zuhal Demir, the Flemish Minister for Environment, Dr Daniel Westlén, State Secretary to Swedish Minister for Climate and Environment and Magnus Heunicke, the Danish Minister for Environment that participated in the programme of our events. To see all the highlights of our UN 2023 Water Conference participation, click here.
On the World Water Day, the United Nations World Water Development report 2023 also got released to remind us that protecting and preserving this precious resource for future generations depends on partnerships. The report made clear reference to our vision for a Water-Smart Society and the Water-Oriented Living Labs as successful examples to accelerate action to achieve the SDG action agenda. As it’s mentioned, “A water-smart society leads to a more resilient water sector, with water security and safety as essential goals”.
Following the UN 2023 Water Conference’s efforts to put water at the top of the political agenda, we are now starting the real preparations for our own Water Innovation Europe 2023 conference that is coming up to continue the discussion opened. Its theme is EU Water Policy: What’s next? and it’s the next occasion to book in your calendar from the 20th to the 22nd of June 2023.
