UNESCO-IHE, in close collaboration with UNESCO-IHP, hosted the UNESCO Water Education regional workshop on 26-27 February, focusing on North American and European regions. The workshop was part of a cycle of similar workshops that are taking place in different regions of the world.
Topics covered were:
- Tertiary education and the professional development of water scientists, engineers, managers and decision-makers
- Vocational education and the training of water technicians
- Water education in schools / k-12
- Community and stakeholder education
- Water education and mass-media professionals
The aim of the workshop was:
- To identify examples of best practices on water education in the region at all educational levels
- To analyse examples of best practices to identify barriers and opportunities
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To propose recommendations to enable effective water education in the region at all educational levels for:
(1) the international community, in particular for UNESCO
(2) National Governments, in particular the ministries in charge of education and freshwater
(3) local authorities
(4) educational practitioners, including academics, researchers, trainers, teachers and mass media professionals
Approximately 60 high-level experts from various disciplines (of whom 50 were external partners) participated in the discussions and gave firm recommendations for future actions.
Inputs into World Conferences
Together with the outcomes of the regional workshops being organised in Latin America and the Caribbean, Asia and the Pacific, the Arab States and in Africa, this event will provide direct inputs into the UNESCO World Conference on Education for Sustainable Development (Bonn, Germany, March 2009), and the 5th World Water Forum (Istanbul, Turkey, March 2009).
Results will be taken along in the 7th phase of the International Hydrological Programme (2008-2013) in the context of the United Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (2005-2014), to which UNESCO-IHE is a key contributing partner.
Outputs
Concrete outputs already include a recently established LinkedIn group on Water and Education and a Facebook Group for Global Water Communicators.
The Workshop organisers are in the process of updating the UNESCO-IHE dedicated webpage for the Workshop for the possibility of downloading keynotes, recommendations and event photos. Please visit the UNESCO-IHE website for more information.
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