The United Nations Water Conference, held in March 2023 in New York, highlighted the fundamental role of water in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. It took 46 years since the last UN Water Conference in Mar del Plata (Argentina) for nations and scientists to come together again to define the future strategy for water resources and the effects of climate change.
It was an intense week filled with conferences, events, and meetings focused on water, with more than 10,000 delegates and representatives from around the world in attendance.
It is important to highlight that, despite the high number of attendees, the private sector and the Global North were much better represented than experts and communities from regions facing greater water insecurity—those on the frontlines of the Global South’s water crisis. Unfortunately, some of these experts and communities were unable to attend due to visa issues and financial barriers. Additionally, there was a noticeable lack of organization, as outdated registration and management systems led to long queues for event access.
While many media outlets emphasized the lack of binding commitments and fragmented debates, we should see this historic event as an opportunity for action rather than simply adding to the criticism. It is true that the global water crisis is extremely complex, but the conference resulted in over 600 commitments in key areas, including water management, sanitation, hygiene, climate change adaptation, ecosystem protection, and the involvement of civil society and Indigenous peoples. These commitments aim to accelerate progress toward the UN Sustainable Development Goal of universal access to safe drinking water and sanitation by 2030. What each of us must do is treat these commitments as a blank page to start writing the future.
Regarding the conference’s conclusions, key takeaways include the need for a global “Paris Agreement” for water, the development of national water plans for each country, and the implementation of regional water plans for each shared basin and aquifer.
Additionally, discussions ended with a broad consensus that water should be treated as a global common good and that the global approach to water must be less isolated, considering its close links to climate change, food security, energy, and national security.
However, without a legally binding international agreement, experts fear that these commitments may fade, as it will be challenging to hold governments, industries, and financial institutions accountable.
Given this scenario, there is no doubt that environmental education will be our greatest ally, as we need future generations to be better-prepared leaders than those of today.
During the International Desalination Association (IDA) and U.S. Chamber of Commerce side event, “Why Water Reuse and Desalination are Important for Water Security,” participants concluded that we must universalize knowledge about unconventional water resources, such as desalination and water regeneration. Some countries are still reluctant to embrace these technologies or have outdated legislation that prevents their integration.
The Middle East has already demonstrated that desalination is both sustainable and competitive, and that it can also contribute to food security by producing desalinated water not just for drinking water supply but also for agriculture—an application in which Spain is a global leader.
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