2023 World Water Week: 3 Key Takeaways & Personal Reflections

2023 World Water Week: 3 Key Takeaways & Personal Reflections

By Dawn McGregor, Sophie Lam 20 October, 2023

Back in-person at World Water Week after 5 years, CWR's McGregor & Lam share key takeaways & reflections on the conference, for one 10 years on & the other on her first

The last time CWR was in person at World Water Week (WWW) was 2017, it’s been online after that. A lot has happened in water, water related and globally since then – more frequent extreme weather events, record high temperatures, catastrophic bursting dams, dumping of raw sewage in developed countries , war++ – so, we thought it was time to go back to Stockholm and check the pulse on all things water.

CWR back in-person at WWW after 5 yrs with a Talk Show, seminars & more

The theme for 2023 was, “Seeds of Change: Innovative Solutions for a Water-Wise World”. It was encouraging to see the conference was well attended in person but also online with a combined total of 15,000 participants – the majority online. It’s reflective of our post-covid world where virtual attendance is common but there is still value and enjoyment in attending in person; it’s something we need to balance to rein in emissions.

CWR’s McGregor co-convened a Talk Show and was a panellist at two seminars while CWR’s Lam was a junior rapporteur:

• Making Net-Zero Possible For The Water Sector & The World: CWR co-convened this Talk Show with the RSK Group. The Talk Show is a newer style event consisting of 20mins of guided discussion (which was between Mark Smith, Water Sector Director at RSK Group & CWR’s McGregor), and then opens up to the audience for 20mins of conversation/ questions/ thoughts. Our Talk Show was on the emerging topic of net zero emissions water utilities – we were one of the handful events on the topic. We did this because this crucial piece of the net zero puzzle is not getting enough attention from industry, governments as well as finance, who could be investing in the transition to fast-track action and help limit warming. See more about the event here and soon you will be able to watch it free on YouTube, stay tuned!;
• Accelerating Water Sector Action to Net Zero Emissions: CWR was a panellist in this seminar that was hosted by AGWA, IUCN, IWMI et al. It was one of the few other sessions on net zero for the water sector – see more details here; and
• Riding the Wave: How Companies are Seizing Water Opportunities: CWR was a panellist in this seminar that was hosted by CDP. The session focused on corporate action on water, where the opportunities & challenges are and the impacts of changing disclosure requirements & regulations – see more details here.

Below are our 3 key takeaways from the conference and after that, some personal reflections from CWR’s McGregor for which it has been 10 years since she her first WWW and from CWR’s Lam for which it was her first.

1. Everyone on the same page that a holistic approach within and between water and other sectors like finance is the only way forward and that water is at the centre of delivering on climate change, the Sustainable Development Goals, food security & more

Across the sessions, side-events and conversations at WWW, there is now an understanding and consensus that to progress on water be it supply, scarcity, access, pollution, climate mitigation & adaption, whatever, a holistic approach is a must and not just within water but with other sectors too. Side note, it was positive to hear from our colleague who recently attended the World Water Congress that this holistic approach was also embedded in conversations there. This need for a holistic approach is a conversation CWR has been pushing since we were started, especially between water and finance – in 2015 we co-convened an event with HSBC at WWW – and so it is rewarding to see this approach now established. Indeed, this year the Stockholm Water International Water Institute (SIWI), along with The World Bank, the Development Bank of Latin America (CAF) et al., did a 3-part seminar series on water and finance, “What sparks and fuels innovations in financing water?”. It was a popular series with packed rooms and engaging conversations.

Water’s core role recognised…

…“if we fail on water then we actually also fail on the Paris climate agreement and we fail on the SDGs.” – Johan Rockstrom, Research Director at Postdam Institute for Climate Impact

Also encouraging is the growing understanding that water is at the centre to limiting climate change, to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), to food security and it goes on. As Johan Rockstrom, Research Director at Postdam Institute for Climate Impact, put it “We can conclude, if we fail on water then we actually also fail on the Paris climate agreement and we fail on the sustainable development goals. There is no prosperity and equity in the future unless we sustainably manage water from local to the global scale.”

What needs to happen next is to get these approaches and understanding embedded at other events, in other sectors, which is what will ultimately help to fast-track action.

2. Innovative solutions don’t have to be tech savvy or costly; instead, we need to better manage existing solutions and utilise indigenous knowledge

When we talk about solutions, many think the answers lie in new and flashy tech that is usually costly. However, with climate hell on the loose already many of the panellists and attendees were questioning the allocation of funds and investments towards tackling our water and climate challenges. Afterall, how do 2 billion people still not have access to safe drinking water?

What became clear during the week is that “innovative solutions” – one of the conference themes – doesn’t need to mean new, to mean flashy, to mean tech, to mean expensive. Instead, there are plenty of existing low-cost solutions that can be deployed, we just need better management. This isn’t a new conversation but to see it at such scale is and hopefully that leads to this better management.

Solutions conversation shifting to better management of existing solutions than the need for innovation & costly tech…

… and new this year, is to integrate Indigenous People & their knowledge

An example of this came from Pual Strong, who founded 33 Buckets, “After working on the grounds [in Nepal], I realised the technical solution is not always the most important part with ensuring sustainable access to safe water, we found that the technical solutions the community needed were already available and in the country…what was lacking was the resources and the training.”

What was new this year, was the spotlight on Indigenous People and their knowledge. There were 7 focused sessions and representatives from 20 Indigenous groups from around the world. The purpose of this was to highlight that there is a wealth of knowledge and solutions that have worked for hundreds of years but has been ignored in the development of solutions, in allocation of funds/ investments, in the development of policies. As Te Huia Taylor from the Maori Advisory Board of Taumata Arowai said, “Indigenous Peoples’ knowledge systems have all the solutions that we need… but in this kind of space, we are ignoring this massive body of knowledge and solutions because it doesn’t make sense in the Western context.”

3. What happens at WWW needs to not stay at WWW; need to amplify conversations and increase action

As mentioned above, conversations, approaches, solutions and more have advanced at WWW, though more work still needs to be done – Asia is still absent, still heavily WASH focused, saltwater/ sea level rise/ coastal protection discussion missing (like at the recent World Water Congress in Beijing) – but if what happens at WWW stays at WWW then how much impact is it really having? Water is at the centre of so many global challenges and we are working against the clock having already hit 1.2°C of warming so we need for leading events like WWW to translate to more.

Need WWW & other key events to be more impactful…

…and need to plug gaps like sea level rise & missing Asian voices

It’s a bit like the second ever UN Water Conference in March earlier this year (see our takeaways); the first one was in 1977. There was excitement, events were over-attended and there was hope that this would lead to more momentum and global action on water but at least for now, it hasn’t really. As Henk Ovink, Special Envoy for International Water Affairs for Netherlands said, “I have an app on my phone that tells me it’s been 150 days since the closing of the UN Water Conference and still we haven’t heard back from the UN system… The momentum to do this was 149 days ago… We must push to make them act, and they will fail which is fine, it can’t be perfect, because perfect is the enemy of the good and politics has become the enemy of progress…”

And now, some personal reflections from CWR’s McGregor and Lam on their very different WWW.

CWR McGregor’s reflections on attending WWW 10 years on

This WWW marks 10 years since I first attended – WOW, time has flown by. And while it’s been flying some major developments in water and climate have happened and I am happy to see those reflected at WWW and in the conversations. However, while conversations have advanced and the good are still fighting the good fight at WWW and beyond, it feels like we are still far from where we need to be and ‘the fire’ apparently isn’t big enough for us all to be acting. But it should be, the world is ‘on fire’ or flooding or freezing or melting; it’s already life or death in some cases so what is it going to be going forward? WWW remains a comprehensive reflection of global water conversations, I just wonder how we can take those conversations and turn them into action points because that’s what we urgently need, effective and timely action.

CWR Lam’s reflections on her first WWW

WWW was my first overseas conference. It was a great platform to get on top of all things water. Plus, as a Junior Rapporteur (JR), I was able to get even more exposure with behind-the-scenes meetings and events. One such meeting was with Ovink, who shared insights into the UN system and challenges he faced being at the driving seat for water – “we need radical change, but people are scared of fighting against the current system because it’s baked in vested or political interest”.

Another aspect of my JR role that I enjoyed was working and engaging with the other JRs who were from all over the world and focused on different water challenges. It was invigorating to be discussing all sorts of topics and sharing frustrations like climate injustice. There is still a long way to go to on many fronts. Nonetheless, I would love to come back in a few years to see how the water conversation has progressed.

Further readings

• It’s Time to Hit the Accelerator on SDG 6, and Hard! – We are woefully off-course from SDG 6. We have driver-less cars & ChatGPT but not drinking water & sanitation for all… CWR’s McGregor reflects on this World Water Day calling for accelerating change

• UN 2023 Water Conference: 3 Key Takeaways – The second ever UN Water Conference (last one was in 1977) wrapped on March 24th. Did it deliver meaningful action? What interesting programmes were launched? What’s next? Check out CWR’s McGregor’s 3 takeaways
• 2021 World Water Week: 3 Key Action Takeaways to Build Resilience Faster – 2021 World Water Week gives 3 important action takeaways for us to charge forward & build resilience faster – CWR’s Soomin Park breaks them down
• 2018 World Water Week: Key Takeaways – World Water Week 2018 saw exciting issues discussed from financing nature-based solutions to advancing water stewardship & valuing water. Check out more in our key takeaways from China Water Risk’s Woody Chan & Yuanchao Xu
• 2017 World Water Week: Key Takeaways – The theme for World Water Week 2017 was ‘Water and Waste: Reduce & Reuse’ and perhaps unsurprisingly textiles was a key focus area along with circularity. China Water Risk’s Dawn McGregor shares both water and textile takeaways from Stockholm
• 2016 World Water Week: Key Takeaways – Business, risk assessment & linkages with SDG 6 were key issues at World Water Week 2016, fitting given the theme “Water for Sustainable Growth”. China Water Risk’s Dawn McGregor on our three key takeaways from Stockholm
• 2015 World Water Week: Key Takeaways – What’s water’s role in sustainable development? How can we ensure water for all? China Water Risk’s McGregor on this, how Asia is fairing, the Sustainable Development Goals & more from World Water Week 2015

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• 5 Key Takeaways from World Water Congress in Beijing — Can we secure our planet’s water future? CWR’s Low spotlights 5 key takeaways from the 18th World Water Congress in Beijing, unpacking critical discussions on climate urgency, holistic water management & coastal protection