Small Island Developing States (SIDS) are deemed to be some of the most vulnerable countries in the world to climate change. This is in part attributed to sea-level rise, coupled with the small size of these territories amidst growing populations and other development challenges. Of these development challenges, achieving water security remains an enduring issue which will only be further exacerbated by the threat of climate change.
Decentralised small water retention measures are important sources of water during dry periods in Central and Eastern Europe, according to drought experts who met on 28-29 October in Warsaw, Poland.
Cameroon’s Ministry of Environment, Protection of Nature and Sustainable Development (MINEPDED) in collaboration with Global Water Partnership (GWP) Cameroon and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) Cameroon country office organised a national workshop to present and validate the country’s National Adaptation Plan (NAP).
At a time of increasing water demand and the prospect of climate change, the problem of water scarcity in the Mediterranean region and in particular the Greek islands deepens and becomes more critical. Hence, there is an urgent need to enhance water efficiency and to explore further alternatives to ensure water availability using innovative approaches. The revival of traditional water harvesting and management techniques, which have been overlooked in favour of modern technologies, sometimes less sustainable, appears to be one of the most promising alternatives for supplying freshwater in the face of increasing water scarcity and escalating demand.
In an effort to address the twin challenges of water security and climate change, the African Ministers Council on Water has produced the following resources on Water Security and Climate Resilient Development in English, French and Portuguese.
The material has been developed as part of the Water, Climate and Development Programme (WACDEP), an AMCOW programme implemented by Global Water Partnership (GWP). It has evolved through a strong collaborative relationship between AMCOW and its Technical Advisory Committee, GWP and the Climate Development Knowledge Network (CDKN) who funded the work.
IUCN China Office launched a new pilot project on protecting drinking water source with Danone Ecosystem Fund and Danone Waters China on January 20, 2014 in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province. The Launch event was sponsored by IUCN, International Forestry Cooperation Center of State Forestry Administration, Guangdong Provincial Forestry Department, and Danone Waters China, and co-supported by South China Agriculture University and Guangdong Provincial Academy of Forestry.
In August, sixteen (16) lecturers and researchers from universities across the globe gathered in Stockholm, Sweden for the first Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) Knowledge Centres workshop.
On 19 November 2014 in Seoul (Korea), GWP CACENA Regional Coordinator Vadim Sokolov took part in the 16th Governing Council meeting of Asia-Pacific Water Forum (APWF) and the 2nd meeting for preparing the 7th World Water Forum.
Complex environmental, social, economic and political structures make the Nile hard to manage. The Nile basin states have, because of these issues, collectively recognised the need to protect, manage and utilize the Nile basin in an integrated sustainable manner through a close co-operation. Action was taken and the Nile basin states formed the Nile Basin Initiative. This illustrate the opportunities created by multidisciplinary networks to solve complex environmental problems, stemming from their broad platform.
The Ruzinov Strkovec Lake has been subjected to severe pollution due to contaminated by illegal sewage pipes. The Association of Industry and Nature Protection took action and initiated and organised a project to both revitalise the lake and draw the attention of local people to its flora and fauna. The key lesson learnt is how the partnership between an NGO and municipality can result in a successful revitalisation of local water resources.