The Young Caribbean Water Entrepreneurs Shark Tank is an initiative of the Global Water Partnership-Caribbean (GWP-C) and was first launched in 2019. The competition provides a unique opportunity for young persons from the Caribbean between the ages of 18 to 34 years, to pitch innovative and impactful water project ideas.
In the words of Margaret Mead, “Never doubt that a small, group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” In that spirit, we are delighted to share the personal journeys from 78 Water ChangeMaker semi-finalists who have changed the world for the better.
Darío Soto-Abril took up his new role as GWP Executive Secretary and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) on 1 March. In this interview, he shares his vision for the network at a time when GWP celebrates its 25th Anniversary. He also reflects on his personal view of water, as he answers the World Water Day 2021 question on what water means to him. Going back to childhood memories of growing up in Colombia, he has two words for this: happiness and equality.
The devastating floods in Western Europe highlight the serious weather extremes that are now affecting many parts of the world. Until recently, it was easy to overlook these events, thinking they only happened in poor and remote communities in less developed countries. Not anymore. The flooding last week shows that climate change is real, it is hitting close to home, and it’s affecting all of us.
World Food Day is celebrated annually around 16 October. The 2020 edition is calling for global solidarity to help all populations, and especially the most vulnerable, to recover from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, and to make food systems more resilient and robust so they can withstand increasing volatility and climate shocks, deliver affordable and sustainable healthy diets for all, and decent livelihoods for food system workers.
The 2021 European River Symposium will focus on building connections between institutions, organizations and companies with an interest in rivers and whose activities affect the health and quality of river water and ecosystems.
Social inclusion and gender equality are long-established, core values of the GWP Network and manifested in the GWP Gender Strategy and the GWP Gender Action Piece. In a series of inter-regional discussions, GWP Senior Gender & Social Inclusion Specialist Liza Debevec sets out to identify what GWP as an institution can do to apply the concepts in these documents. Her first discussion is with Amy Sullivan and Andrew Takawira, who are both involved in a large Pan-African project on gender transformative water and climate investment. The discussion topic is institutional leadership and commitment, which is the first of 4 action areas in the Gender Action Piece. Their message is clear: leadership makes all the difference.
Mr. Malik Fida A. Khan is the Executive Director of the Center for Environmental and Geographic Information Services (CEGIS) in Bangladesh. In this interview he shares an overview of the Center and its collaboration with GWP.
