You are a Water Europe board member of college D ‘Suppliers & SMEs’- Could you tell us what drives you personally to have this role at Water Europe? What do you want to achieve?
Twenty-three years ago, I wasn’t working in the water sector but was the CEO of a film and TV media company with over 450 employees. During the renovation of our family home, I modified the plumbing so that we could collect shower and bath water, treat it, and then reuse it for toilet flushing. I found it quite odd that we flushed our toilets with potable tap water. I’ll never forget the amazing experience of standing in the shower, watching the water flow down the drain, and knowing that this water wasn’t going to be wasted but would be used again. It was a liberating feeling, being able to enjoy our beautiful new shower without any guilt. That laid the foundation for a turn in my personal career, leading me to become actively involved in water sustainability. If the Romans were to see our linear water infrastructure, they’d say, ‘Look, that’s how we did it too…’
My goal is to help individuals and organisations adopt a wise approach to water management. That wise approach is a circular one. Waste is a resource.
Representing the solutions providers at Water Europe, which ones do you consider the key challenges and the most burning needs of this college and how do you contribute to addressing these in the context of Water Europe?
Water Europe is a unique organisation where all stakeholders from the water sector come together to combine and publish research and knowledge. This occurs at a more academic and abstract level. I see it as the role of the College D Solution Providers to translate this into practical applicability. Many national and local governments and organisations are faced with the consequences of increasing water scarcity. They have a strong need for practically applicable solutions. I see it as my duty to make these practical solutions clear and understandable, so they lead to actual implementation.
Encouraging innovation in the water sector is vital. How important do you consider the role of SMEs in this regard and what are the existing opportunities for the uptake of their innovations to the next level both inside and outside of Europe?
Innovation alone does not lead to change; it must go hand in hand with implementation. Larger organisations are conservative. This is also true in the water sector, where there’s almost a natural resistance to change. SMEs are, by definition, the flexible organisations that are the driving force behind the implementation of innovations. It is very important that the legislative framework encourages the implementation of sustainable technologies. And the role of politicians is to push in this direction. The success of the blue transition depends less on the development of new technologies, but rather on the creation of favourable conditions to increase the adoption of current solutions and benefit from their widespread implementation.
Based on our vision, Water Europe aims to build a Water-Smart Society. From your point of view, which actions shall we put forward to make this happen and how could the solution providers contribute to that?
The recent publications of “The Value of Water” and “Manifesto” are, in my opinion, tremendous steps forward in promoting Water Europe’s vision for a water-smart society. These publications can also be understood by non-academics. I believe it’s important, and I will make an effort within Water Europe, to release more publications that provide insight into practically applicable solutions for creating a water smart society.
Last March, I was involved in creating a movement: the Global Expert Group Circular Water, that published a “Blueprint for a Circular Water Smart Society”. This Blueprint, with tangible solutions for the practical implementation of circular water, was officially launched during the UN 2023 Water Conference in New York. Water Europe was one of several international organizations that endorsed and supported this publication and it was accepted into the official UN Water Action Agenda. Currently, we are working on the 2024 version of the Blueprint, that will have a successful follow up with an event at COP28 this December. If anything, it shows that actions like these, and collaborating together, enhances visibility of Water Europe’s vision and mission: to build a Water-Smart Society.
