Summary

News

   - Joint initiative on water and peace for UNESCO-IHE and UPEACE
   - UNESCO workshop on "Addressing Water Quality Challenges in Africa", Nairobi, Kenya, 14-16 March 2011
   - UNESCO-IHP releases new brochure on Urban Water Series
   - Netherlands National Commission for UNESCO and partners organize workshop on water and governance

Events

UNESCO Water Family (*)
   - 24th ICID European Regional Conference: GroundWater 2011
   - Second International UNESCO/UCI 2011 Conference on Groundwater Resources Management: Adaptation Measures to Water Scarcity – Science and Policy Responses

Featured International Events
   - 6th IWA Specialist Conference on Efficient Use & Management of Water
   - 2nd IWA Development Congress

Vacancies

   - Lecturer in Environmental Policy – UNESCO-IHE

Did you know?

Facts and figures about water and cities (part 2)

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News

Joint initiative on water and peace for UNESCO-IHE and UPEACE

Left to right: András Szöllösi-Nagy, Rector of UNESCO-IHE, Marius Enthoven, Chairman of the Alliance for UPEACE in the Netherlands and John J. Maresca, Rector of the University for Peace

UNESCO-IHE and the UN-Mandated University for Peace (UPEACE, based in Costa Rica) have decided to combine their expertise and knowledge on water and conflict resolution by establishing a joint initiative on the topic of Water and Peace.

Two globally renowned experts in the field will be appointed by both institutes to lead the development of a complementary research agenda on water and peace, the exchange of teachers in relevant postgraduate programmes and joint supervision of research students (postgraduate and doctoral) on projects of mutual interest.

A joint lecture series will allow for further integration of the specialisations of UNESCO-IHE (water) and UPEACE (conflict resolution), from which students of both institutions would benefit.

A Memorandum of Understanding between the two institutions was signed on 10 February 2011 in Delft.

This is an outcome of the colloquium on the right to water and water rights in a changing world, organized on 22 September 2010 in Delft by the Netherlands IHP Committee, UNESCO-IHE, CPWC and other partners.

Initiative flyer

UNESCO workshop on "Addressing Water Quality Challenges in Africa", Nairobi, Kenya, 14-16 March 2011

The Secretariat of UNESCO’s International Hydrological Programme and UNESCO Regional Office in Africa will organize UNESCO workshop on "Addressing Water Quality Challenges in Africa" in Nairobi, Kenya, from 14-16 March 2011. The workshop is organized in the framework of the implementation of Focal Area 4.1 "Protecting water quality for sustainable livelihoods and poverty alleviation" of the 7th phase of the International Hydrological Programme (IHP-VII, 2008-2013) of UNESCO.

The main goal of the workshop is to assist African countries in addressing water quality challenges for sustainable water resources management. The workshop will aim at identifying the critical problems related to water quality and water pollution, assessing their causes and trends and developing recommendation for solutions and strategies to tackle the water quality challenges in African countries.

The regional focus of this workshop on Africa is aligned with the UNESCO’s overarching priority on Africa for 2008-2013. The workshop will bring together water experts, nominated by IHP National Committees of African countries and other stakeholders from regional and sub-regional water-related institutions.

The workshop will focus on:

• Water quality and water pollution challenges in Africa and their relationships with human health, the environment and socioeconomic issues;
• Policies and strategies at national, sub-regional and regional levels regarding water quality/pollution management in African countries;
• Identifying solutions to address water quality and water pollution problems;
• Developing recommendations for approaches, policies and strategies to support the integrated water quality management towards sustainable water resources management in Africa;

For further information about the workshop, contact:

• Dr Sarantuyaa Zandaryaa - UNESCO International Hydrological Programme
• Dr Abou Amani - Regional Hydrologist for Africa, UNESCO Nairobi Office

UNESCO-IHP releases new brochure on Urban Water Series

The UNESCO-IHP Urban Water Series, comprising a set of books on urban water management, addresses fundamental issues related to the role of water in cities and the effects of urbanization on the hydrological cycle and water resources. Focusing on integrated approaches to sustainable urban water management, the Series provides valuable scientific and practical information for urban water practitioners, policy-makers and educators throughout the world.

The brochure outlines the current publications in the series and informs on the upcoming release of several new titles in the series. The Urban Water Series is edited by Cedo Maksimovic of Imperial College (UK) and J. Alberto Tejada-Guibert and Sarantuyaa Zandaryaa of UNESCO-IHP.

UNESCO-IHP Urban Water Series brochure

Netherlands National Commission for UNESCO and partners organize workshop on water and governance

On 22 March 2011, World Water Day, the Netherlands National Commission for UNESCO, Netherlands National Committee IHP-HWRP, UNESCO-IHE Institute for Water Education, Delfland Water Board, Co-operative Programme on Water and Climate (CPWC) and the Water Governance Centre will organize a workshop that examines conceptions and implementation of water governance at different governance levels.

More information, including registration

Events

UNESCO Water Family (*)

24th ICID European Regional Conference: GroundWater 2011
14-16 March 2011: Orléans, France

Second International UNESCO/UCI 2011 Conference on Groundwater Resources Management: Adaptation Measures to Water Scarcity – Science and Policy Responses
30 November – 3 December 2011: Irvine, California, USA

Featured International Events

6th IWA Specialist Conference on Efficient Use & Management of Water
29 March – 2 April 2011: Dead Sea, Jordan

2nd IWA Development Congress
21-24 November 2011: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Access a complete list of water events around the world

Vacancies

Lecturer in Environmental Policy – UNESCO-IHE

The candidate is responsible for (supporting) the continued development and integration of environmental policy aspects in the activities of the Environmental Policy and Management core, mainly through education, projects and research within the international field and context of operation of UNESCO-IHE. Fields of interests and abilities: integrated river basin management, policy making, environmental impacts, compliance and enforcement, and stakeholder participation. Both qualitative and quantitative research interests should be covered. More specifically the position entails:

• To develop and deliver content for postgraduate education in the field of environmental policy (including distance learning);
• To contribute to scientific research proposals, execute scientific research and supervise MSc research projects.

Preference is given to candidates with both academic and practical experience, who are able to integrate water management experiences into the wider context of environmental policy making.

More information

Did you know...? Facts and figures about water and cities (part 2) in honor of the upcoming World Water Day

• Every second, the urban population grows by 2 people.
• 95% of the urban expansion in the next decades will take place in the developing world.
• In Africa and Asia, the urban population is expected to double between 2000 and 2030.
• Between 1998 and 2008, 1052 million urban dwellers gained access to improved drinking water and 813 million to improved sanitation. However, the urban population in that period grew by 1089 million people and thus undermined the progress.
• One out of four city residents worldwide, 789 million in total, lives without access to improved sanitation facilities.
• 497 million people in cities rely on shared sanitation. In 1990, this number was 249 million.
• 27% of the urban dwellers in the developing world do not have access to piped water at home.

The section "Did You Know…?" is taken from the UN-Water Decade Programme on Advocacy and Communication (UNW-DPAC) publication "Water and Cities: Facts and Figures".

UNESCO's Water Family consists of the following:

- International Hydrological Programme
- World Water Assessment Programme
- UNESCO-IHE Institute for Water Education
- Water-related Institutes and Centres under the Auspices of UNESCO
- UNESCO Water-related Chairs

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