1st World Water Summit on Leaving No One Behind – Human Rights Based Solutions for Access to Water and Sanitation, Geneva, 7-8 February, 2019, WIPO Conference Centre

The 1st World Water Summit on “Leaving No One Behind,” will be jointly organized by WaterLex, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), the International Water Resources Association (IWRA) and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) at Geneva on 7-8 February, 2019. It will provide a dynamic platform for the discussion of technical and governance solutions for the topic “Leaving No One Behind,” by bringing real projects, governance leaders and funding agencies together in an engaging manner.  The outcome will set off a stream of chosen projects that can help to solve some of the challenges for people which are being left behind in least developed countries. These projects and their tangible outcomes will be presented as workable solutions at forthcoming high-level events. It is planned to run this Summit annually, teaming the “Leaving No One Behind” topic with the annual UN-Water theme, such as Climate Change in 2020.

Sustainable Development Goal 6 (SDG 6) on water to “Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all” highlights the overarching principle of “Leaving No One Behind”. In committing to the realisation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, UN Member States have recognised that the dignity of the individual is fundamental, and that the Agenda’s Goals and targets should be met for all nations and people and for all segments of society. This summit, of which the focus is on human rights to water and sanitation, and on finding and implementing workable solutions with support from sponsors, intends to fill a need that is not yet met by other water conferences and to provide a kick-off event as part of the 2019 UN-Water campaign on this theme. The event is planned to be held annually for the next 11 years, for the duration of the SDG Agenda, and to form part of the wider campaign to achieve SDG 6. The outcomes from these events will be interlinked with other global water events, such as the High-Level Panel on Water (HLPW), the World Water Forum (WWF) and World Water Week (WWW), and form part of the UN-Water annual campaigns.

The summit invites innovative research through a competitive call for abstracts, culminating in a prestigious Awards Dinner. For more information, click on https://www.waterlex.org/summit/