10th Water Research Horizon Conference 2019

Water security – the reliable availability of an acceptable quantity and quality of water – for health, livelihoods, ecosystems, agricultural and industrial production, defining and dealing with an acceptable level of water-related risks, is emerging as a serious global sustainability challenge. In many ways, food security – the reliable availability of an acceptable quantity and quality of food – is based on water security for food production at local level or beyond, combined with the affordability and security of food trade and transport. While world population is rapidly increasing from 7 billion to over 9 billion by 2050, the use of freshwater for human consumption, agriculture, industry, and other uses has already increased six fold. To feed the growing number of people, food production will have to double while water and arable land remain limited.

A water secure world is an indispensable requirement for sustainable development. It integrates a perspective of the intrinsic value of water with a concern for its use for human survival and well-being. A water secure world maximises the efficiency and productive power of water and minimises its destructive force through water-related hazards. Water security addresses both; environ-mental protection and the negative effects of poor management. It ends fragmented responsibility for water as well as integrates water resources management across all sectors – finance, planning, agriculture, energy, tourism, industry, education and health. Water security has a complex political and governance-related momentum that reaches far beyond the traditional water sector.

The 10th Water Research Horizon Conference will bring together national and international scientists, practitioners and policy-makers with diverse backgrounds. Participants will engage in a multi-lateral and multidisciplinary exchange about the role of research in addressing the challenges of water security and food security in the face of global change. Focus will be on the science needed to make informed decisions about water allocations and uses now and in the future. The vision is a world without hunger and a sufficient quantity and quality of water for the various needs of the people, without compromising the vitality of ecosystems. This perspective will guide the presentations as well as discussion panels that are organised in six thematic sessions.

You can find a first draft of the programme here!