On 10 & 11 March 2020, more than 20 experts, water managers, scientists and representatives of authorities joined a training on Drought Management in the Drin Basin, organised by GWP-Med. An online platform was used to virtually bring together participants from Albania, Greece, Kosovo*, North Macedonia and trainers from Slovenia. The focus was on enhancing capacities for a proactive approach to integrated drought planning, adaptation and management.
“My journey in the water and development sector began through a simple internship for a small China-based NGO named Thirst”, says Alex Whitebrook, Fundraising Team Manager of Geneva-based NGO Water Inception and Focal Point Oceania for the World Youth Parliament for Water (WYPW). Whilst studying international relations in Shanghai, Alex took on a role with Thirst to teach high-school students about China’s water challenges. One thing led to another, and now, as part of the GWP-WYPW youth storytelling initiative, Alex looks back and shares the story of his first on-the-ground experience, which took place in a tiny village in Mexico.
Liza Debevec joined the global GWP secretariat in May 2020 as Senior Gender & Water Specialist. This is the first time GWP has a full-time person dedicated to gender, and Liza’s task will be to operationalize the gender dimensions of GWP's 2020-2025 Strategy, and more specifically the GWP Gender Strategy and Gender Action Piece. In this Q&A interview, Liza shares thoughts on her new role: “The biggest gender and social inclusion challenge in every sector, not just in water resources management, is that of access, or the lack of access to relevant resources that women and vulnerable communities face.”
Kholoud Al-Ajarma is a Programme Manager for Lajee Center in Palestine, a Winner of the Water Heroes Contest, and collaborator to GWP Mediterranean. “My interest in water started from a human rights perspective. I believed that water is not only a science concern, but to have a better future in water management, all segments of society should collaborate to ensure water access to everyone and to raise awareness about water management and consumption among local communities,” she says. Today, her main motivation in is to ensure environmental justice for everyone. She shares her story in celebration of International Women’s Day (IWD2020).
Kholoud Al-Ajarma is a Programme Manager for Lajee Center in Palestine, a Winner of the Water Heroes Contest, and collaborator to GWP Mediterranean. “My interest in water started from a human rights perspective. I believed that water is not only a science concern, but to have a better future in water management, all segments of society should collaborate to ensure water access to everyone and to raise awareness about water management and consumption among local communities,” she says. Today, her main motivation in is to ensure environmental justice for everyone. She shares her story in celebration of International Women’s Day (IWD2020).
In their support to the Government of Togo GWP WA, UNICEF and UNDP have recruited consultants for a mission to develop a high-quality concept note and conduct a pre-feasibility study for the project: "Strengthening the resilience of vulnerable communities in Togo through IWRM and Climate Sensitive WASH Services".
The 2020 edition of the Korea International Water Week is being held on 21-23 September in Daegu, Republic of Korea. The main theme is "Sustainable Water Management for Humans and Nature".
For the second part in our series of partners speaking about why their communities should submit their change journeys to the Water ChangeMaker Awards, we spoke with WaterAid’s Dr Virginia Newton-Lewis, Director of Policy and Advocacy at WaterAid Sweden, highlighting the role of the WASH community.
