News
UN 2023 Water Conference: March 22nd-24th
The UN 2023 Water Conference is less than a month away, taking place this year in New York between March 22nd and 24th, co-hosted by the Netherlands and Tajikistan, with the aim being to make the event a true watershed moment and drive a global momentum for accelerated implementation and improved impact to prioritise the challenges posed by water.
The conference itself will include a series of plenary meetings and interactive dialogues, with the Water Action Agenda intended to be one of the main outcomes of the event and deliver the political momentum required to get progress back on track through tangible and ambitious action.
As a collection of all water-related voluntary commitments, the Water Action Agenda aims to accelerate progress during the latter half of the Water Action Decade 2018-2028, as well as the second half of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
It was launched in June last year during the Dushanbe Conference, encouraging member states and stakeholders across all industries and sectors to forge voluntary commitments to address the water crisis on a global scale. New commitments will also be added to the Agenda after the conference comes to an end.
Currently, more than 100 countries are not yet on track to ensure sustainably managed water resources by the year 2030, which represents a serious global threat to food security, the environment, health and economic growth… and this is why propelling international efforts to deliver a water-secure world is at the heart of this year’s UN water conference.
There will be four special events put on over the course of the three days, including the Radical Collaboration for Water Resilience seminar on March 22nd.
This will explore how a collaborative approach can be rethought to tackle the climate crisis and achieve water resilience for all, with more action required on the ground, bringing together local communities and indigenous people to help make this a reality.
On March 23rd, the Reducing Inequalities event is due to be held, with the aim being to put equality and human rights at the heart of the agenda to address the global water crisis.
The main contributors will be indigenous people, peasant communities, people facing discrimination because of gender, age, race or descent and people living in informal settlements on the outskirts of large urban centres.
Later that same day, the Economics of Water event will take place, an open dialogue to discuss the criticality of the agenda, while highlighting the importance for responsible management of the global water cycle for the common good, safeguarded through effective multilateralism.
And on March 24th, the Water Leadership event is set to be held, focusing on developing mechanisms and opportunities to ensure that the voices of discriminated and marginalised communities, as well as youth, women, indigenous people and local authorities, are reflected and integrated into water leadership at local, regional and global levels.
To complement the conference, a series of inspiring activities is being put on as part of New York Water Week, taking place between March 18th and 24th.
And World Water Day 2023 is being held on March 22nd, providing businesses, communities and individuals alike with all the opportunities they need to reflect on their own water usage and consumption and hopefully inspiring one and all to enact change as and where they can.
Do you want to find out more about why water efficiency is important? Get in touch with the H2o Building Services team today to see how we can help.