Celebrating World Water Day 2023 at the United Nations Water Conference

Amy Syvrud and Noah Kaiser from Aither, a Ricardo company, are on the ground in New York City for the 2023 UN Water Conference!

Here, Amy and Noah share their insights about what the conference sets out to achieve and how they will be contributing during the week.

"Water is a dealmaker for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, and for the health and prosperity of people and planet. However, progress on water related goals and targets remains off track, jeopardizing the entire sustainable development agenda."

"The UN Water Conference 2023 promises to set an ambitious global water action agenda by bringing together world leaders, policymakers, and experts to set new commitments, pledges and actions by Governments and all stakeholders towards achieving Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6: Clean Water and Sanitation – which is one of eight Sustainable Development Goals which Ricardo supports –  and other water-related goals and targets."

"The Conference runs from 22 – 24 2023 at the United Nations Headquarters in New York City. We’re also excited to be taking part in two side events and one special event. Please see below for more details." 

We look forward to sharing updates and key insights from the event. If you are attending and would like to get in touch please feel free to contact us: Amy or Noah.

The Urgent Case for Action: Setting up the Water Agenda for Resilience

Date and time: 22 March; 18:30-19:45 EDT

Location: UN Headquarters (New York City, USA), ECOSOC Chamber

The world currently faces a set of global challenges that are interconnected and require an integrated response. The World Economic Forum’s 2016 Global Risk Report has identified water as both a ‘global megatrend’ and a ‘key driver of human progress, prosperity, health and quality of life’. It is therefore essential for nations to work together to set up a water agenda that supports societal resilience.

For the UN 2023 Water Conference, the Governments of Malaysia, Egypt, and the United Kingdom, together with the Alliance for Global Water Adaptation and the Aither, a Ricardo company, team is proud to present a high-level panel discussion to deliver keynotes and strategic direction to support the implementation of the Water Action Decade 2018-2028 and explore a global water framework for resilience.

Find out more.

Governance as a Gamechanger

Date and time: 24 March 24 · 13:15 – 14:30 EDT

Location: Conference Room of the Permanent Mission of Australia to the United Nations at 150 East 42nd St, Floor 33, New York, NY 10017.

Governance establishes the conditions under which societies develop, manage and use water resources and infrastructure. Governance encompasses laws, regulations, policies, institutions and processes. It is central to determining how societies invest in, and act in pursuit of, improved water management and use. A recent survey of global water sector leaders identified governance as the primary issue to address to achieve water security and related outcomes, underscoring that governance is a critical enabler for achieving all Sustainable Development Goal and Water Action Agenda priorities.

Despite this, water governance is an undervalued aspect of the global water agenda. This side event highlights the centrality of governance in improving outcomes from water management. It highlights the practical importance of governance in achieving all other priorities, including as a critical enabler for maximising the benefits of investments in water planning, information and infrastructure.

Find out more.

Special Event 4: Water Leadership – Uniting for a Sustainable World

Date and time: 24 March 2023, 10.00 EDT

Location: Conference Room 2, UNHQ in New York

The special event on Water Leadership: Uniting for a Sustainable World will focus on developing mechanisms and opportunities to ensure that the voices of youth, women, local authorities, Indigenous Peoples, and discriminated and marginalised communities, are appropriately reflected and integrated into all aspects of water leadership at the local, regional and global levels. All people are impacted by, and impact on, our planet. Thus, all people must have a role in contributing to a sustainable future.

This special event is designed to determine actionable commitments that each participant can implement to support critical engagement with underrepresented groups. It will co-create inclusive leadership mechanisms for the follow-up and monitoring of the Water Action Agenda that will put at the forefront the voices of marginalised communities. It will identify priority intergenerational, intersectoral, gender and geographically inclusive partnerships and commitments to scale up engagement. In doing so, the event will recognise the need to expand financing mechanisms with strong accountability, especially federal and state funding to invest in youth education and innovation.

Find out more.