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Cities are at the forefront of this year’s World Water Day, which has the theme ‘Water for Cities: Responding to the Urban Challenge’. The event will take place in Cape Town, South Africa, from 20 – 22 March 2011.
ICLEI would like to take this opportunity to encourage all members to step up their efforts for more sustainable water management. Water is only lent to us from nature – it has to be dealt with carefully to ensure that its sources are protected and the benefits it provides to all forms of life maintained.
Click here to find out more about sustainable water management in the city of the future
Many cities worldwide apply water management policies and practices that are worth sharing with other cities. Have a look at ICLEI Africa’s past and present projects within water and sanitation. In addition, below is a list of European case studies:
· Rotterdam www.rotterdam.nl/home_english
The low-lying Dutch city of Rotterdam has chosen to view the threat of climate change and sea level rise as an opportunity to boost its attractiveness and economy through innovation, and is spearheading a global network of delta cities that are sharing knowledge and good practice on adaptation to climate change.
· Stockholm www.international.stockholm.se/
Stockholm has encouraged the application of its integrated view of urban planning in new urban developments such as Hammarby Sjöstad and Norra Djursgårdsstaden, where waste from one urban sector becomes the resource for another, contributing to the city’s justified reputation as one of the most environmentally-friendly capital cities in the world.
· Hamburg www.english.hamburg.de/
The city-state of Hamburg is embarking on an ambitious urban development phase as a response to its economic and population boom, focusing on the disadvantaged island of Wilhelmsburg as a test bed for the implementation of Integrated Urban Water Management and Water Sensitive Urban Design.
· Zaragoza www.zaragoza.es/sedeelectronica/en.html
The city of Zaragoza has implemented an ambitious water conservation programme targeting businesses, industry and the local population; by mobilising key stakeholders and residents, the city has succeeded in significantly reducing its water consumption despite continued population growth and an expanding economy.
· Birmingham www.birmingham.gov.uk/
Birmingham sees sustainable urban drainage as one of its main priorities in the field of water management, given both climate forecasts and planned increases in urban density, and is focusing on practical implementation with its green roofs and decision support with its development of the City Water Balance tool.
ICLEI would also like to hear about your own achievements!
Contact: water@iclei.org
During World Water Day, Margaret Pageler, Member of the ICLEI Executive Committee, will speak on behalf of ICLEI at the global event taking place on 22 March 2011 in Cape Town, South Africa. Margaret also regularly represents the interests of local governments as a Governor of the World Water Council and is Co-Chair of the 6th World Water Forum Local and Regional Authorities’ process.
Also in Cape Town on the morning of 20 March 2011, ICLEI is organising a side event together with the SWITCH Consortium and UNESCO-IHE on ‘Radical versus incremental change - how to SWITCH urban water systems to meet current and future challenges?’ This activity is part of the project ‘SWITCH – Managing Water for the City of the Future’ of which ICLEI is a partner.
For professionals interested in urban water policy and management in Europe, ICLEI has organized the event ‘European Cities for Water – How cities can contribute to safeguarding Europe’s water resources’ which will take place in Brussels at the premises of the Committee of the Regions from 14:00 to 17:00 on World Water Day.
As a city, make a local commitment to manage your urban water sustainably by signing the Istanbul Water Consensus. More than 650 mayors from 33 countries world-wide have already done so.
ICLEI Africa Secretariat hosted the Local Climate Solutions for Africa 2011 Congress in Cape Town, South Africa, 27 Feb – 3 March 2011. The key output of this congress was the African Mayors Climate Change Declaration, which highlights the key role of water on the continent.
Follow the outcomes of World Water Day 2011 on the ICLEI Africa website.
Coming to an end soon, the SWITCH project will be publishing its main results in a number of books that are of high interest for urban water managers and others working in the field of water. See www.switchurbanwater.eu for further details.
Make sure that your staff is up-to-speed on latest approaches and solutions for integrated urban water management.
You can discuss your training needs with Barbara Anton at the ICLEI European Secretariat. Please drop a line to water@iclei.org.
Also check out the SWITCH Training Kit which will soon be available for download from the SWITCH Training Desk.