2018 Forums

The Forum focused on the resilience of water supply, drainage and wastewater systems in cities. It was a unique opportunity to learn about the Japanese experience from the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011 in recovering the functions of their water and sewerage works. The sessions also shared practical experiences of several cities in the world on building water resilience strategies, understanding resilience as the capacity to recover after a disruptive event (disaster or crisis) or slow changes (diminishing resources, social changes, climate change). Lessons learned on how to assess the risks, how to reduce the risks and prepare for the emergency response were shared throughout the three complementary sessions on the following topics:

1. Lessons learned from the Great East Japan Earthquake, The recovery of water and sewerage works
2. Enhancing Water Security
3. Wastewater and Drainage as opportunities to enhance resilience

The 5th International Water Regulators Forum (IWRF) welcomed high level regulatory authorities and officials with regulatory and supervisory functions related to the provision of water, sanitation and wastewater management services. This year we continued facilitating peer-to-peer dialogue and learning across regulatory functions –economic, health, environment and quality of service–; and bridging regulators across the sector and, especially, with the research, science and technology communities to enable the innovation and collaboration for the water wise world we want.

The 5th edition of the IWRF addressed the SDG challenge towards water-related ecosystems and their services, as basis for resilient and sustainable universal access to water and sanitation for all. The one day Forum was complemented by a series of activities throughout the congress, connecting regulators to other water champions.

Science and technology development is needs-driven and existing potentially disruptive technologies could help to accelerate innovation and adoption activities in the water sector. The main purpose of the Science to Practice forum was to identify mechanisms and processes on translating science & technology into practice. Through this forum we wanted to identify elements during this translation process such as challenges and barriers, necessary elements to lead to success, lessons learned, etc. We also exchanged ideas on how science and tech can be translated into practices by different organizations and individuals from different segments (academia, utility, government, etc.) and in different areas and regions. The forum aimed to be summarized into a report on the translation of science into practice with recommendations in terms of a set of general and specific challenges/barriers we might face (and how to overcome), what key factors lead to success, etc. The main audience of this forum were researchers, utilities, consultancy and all other individuals and organizations interested in translating science into practice.

Urban stakeholders have a critical role to play in preserving the freshwater resources on which they depend. A disruption in supply of freshwater resources to cities can have significant economic, environmental and health consequences. The Basin-Connected Cities Forum will explore what actions by cities need to be taken today to achieve sustainable management of basins into the future.

Join cities, regulators, utilities, industry, and basin leaders in exchanging experiences and determining how to become better water stewards in their watersheds to secure the water resource, protect water quality and prepare (and respond) to extreme events.

The Forum was an open event and also launched the Basin-Connected Cities Action Agenda which aims to influence and activate urban stakeholders to protect and invest in water resources with basin and catchment organisations.