Location

Water security is a defining challenge for society in the 21st century. The ancient struggle to cope with water access and shocks is now magnified by complex and uncertain processes of global change to societies, economies and climate at multiple scales. Water security in this context refers to societal goals of specific water outcomes, for example ensuring reliable access to particular water quantity and quality for people, agriculture, industry and ecosystems, as well as a tolerable level of risk of unpredictable water-related events, such as floods and droughts. This goal necessarily cuts across scales from individual access to safe drinking water and sanitation facilities, to local water service providers for various uses, to transboundary river basins, and to regional and global water fluxes.

The symposium seeks to advance scientific inquiry and inform policy choices by developing an evidence base about the status of and pathways to water security in terms of multiple risks, scales, and actors. The symposium will address water security challenges in developed and developing countries and regions, seeking to identify and elucidate global interdependencies between different socio-economic and cultural contexts.

Aims, Objectives, and Outcomes

This symposium will convene leading scientists and members of industry and government to advance the water security agenda and build partnerships across theory, policy and practice.