Summary of the first session | Part 1 of 2
“OUR GROUNDWATER: HOW CAN WE WORK TOGETHER TO MANAGE IT SUSTAINABLY?”

by Uwem Robert OTU, Representative of African Youth Movement to the
United Nations Department of Global Communications

The below summary is included Welcoming, Opening Remarks and the two Keynote Speeches.
Part 2 of 2 covers the presentations by the Panelists.

Executive Summary: Our precious groundwater resources have been invisible to us all as they have been overused, over-extracted and polluted, while we have taken them for granted for too long. The time is now to change this!
The first of the two back-to-back sessions will cover policy, science, technology, and actionable aspects that are needed for a transformation of sustainable groundwater use and management, and the second will showcase the vital importance of water resources through art.
Organized & Presented: The Light Millennium, Charitable Global Human Advancement Organization
Associated with the United Nations Department of Global Communications | #LMGlobalOrg
Sponsoring Mission: Permanent Mission of Costa Rica to the United Nations | #CostaRicaONU
Contributing Organizations are: Water Policy Group (GPG) | African Views (AV) | Global Policy, Diplomacy, Sustainability (GPODS) | Africa Youth Movement (AYM)
Description & Concept Note |  FLIER (pdf) |  BOOKLET with the Bios of the Speakers & Presenters

The Programme started with a Welcoming Remarks by Bircan Ünver, founder-president of The Light Millennium, Charitable Global Human Advancement Organization (LMGlobal.Org). She briefly welcomed to the two keynote speakers and all the panelists, namely to:
Prof. Olcay Ünver, Arizona State University; Former Vice-Chair, UN-Water, Opening Remarks and the Moderator of the first session;
Keynote Speakers:
H.E. Mr. Rodrigo A. Carazo, Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Costa Rica to the United Nations in New York, former Vice-President of UNICEF’s Executive Board, and the 2022 President of UNICEF’s Executive Board; and
H.E. Mr. Taye A. Selassie Amde, Ambassador, Permanent Representative of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia to the United Nations
And the Panelists:
Ms. Mercedes Castro, Member, Water Policy Group
Mr. Shammy Puri, Director, Centre for Sustainable Solutions with Practical Hydrogeology
Ms. Phelisa Nkomo, Development Economist and Social Activist]
Mr. Dursun Yıldız, Director, Hydropolitics Association
Mr. David Eduardo Guevara Polo, Water Sciences, Ph.D. Candidate Universidad de las Américas Puebla, Mexico
Mr. Uwem Robert Otu, Representative, African Youth Movement to the United Nations Department of Global Communications.

Bircan then proceeded to give the floor to the musical rendition of Korkmaz Can Sağlam, “Reflets Dans L’eau” by Debussy. She extolled the young talent’s virtues and emphasized that the pianist selected water related pieces by Debussy and Ravel, and performed for this particular program. For the closing of the first, and as the transition to the second session, Korkmaz Can Sağlam also performed “Boat in the Ocean” by Ravel.

She introduced the first session’s title as “Our Groundwater – How Can We Work Together to Preserve it Sustainably?”, while the second session is on “Celebration of Water as the Source of Life.” She went further to introduce the different speakers and thanked the Permanent Mission of Costa Rica to the United Nations for sponsoring this event. 

Bircan briefly introduced the current status of the LMGlobal.Org as a “Charitable” organization with the status 501-c-3, and formed in New York in 2001. It has been associated with the UN Department of Global Communication (formerly UN Department of Public Information) since 2005. LMGlobal.Org mainly promotes human rights and advancement and encourages culture and global communication among others. She announced that the Organization’s 2022-2024 Board of Elections is scheduled on June 18, 2022, and invited all to join in.

Following, she introduced Professor Olcay Ünver at Arizona State University, a former Secretary-General and Vice President of International Water Research Association (IWRA) and Board Member of World Water Council with outstanding numerous of experiences in the water sector as well as being a former Vice-Chair of UN-Water. A global expert on water and food security with Ph.D. in Water Security.
She emphasized that Prof. Olcay is the lead person for the WWD sessions in two years in roll, and welcomed to deliver his Opening Remarks and take over the session for his moderation.

Professor Olcay thanked Bircan for this opportunity for the second year in a row and mentioned that he was in Dakar, Senegal currently attending the World Water Forum and he was honored to be the moderator of this session with 2 keynote speakers and 6 panelists. He said water was becoming more restrictive and critical of efforts toward Sustainable Development.

Over the past months, there have been many important reports including the 6th assessment report of the intergovernmental working group 2 of the intergovernmental panel on climate change entitled ‘impact adaptation and vulnerability’, which Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) says increasing frequency and intensity of climate change through floods and droughts which reduces prospects for food security. UN Food and Agriculture Organization (UN-FAO) report on the same premise in ‘state of land and water resources for food and agriculture” of December last year also collaborates with the IPCC report. IPCC leads to more pressure on water and land resources and “Unsustainable use of land resources leads to land degradation/conversion accelerating climate change“. The report of the water policy group shows that water world leaders are aware of this fact and Prof. Olcay referred his colleague of Mercedes Castro that who will be speaking more in details on the report and the impacts of climate change, increasing competition for water resources, floods, and droughts. Prof. Olcay also provided a sample that there are several ongoing key issues including scarcity and water shortages in Arizona where he teaches. Via his Opening Remarks, he provided this framework to support the session and open up to the discussion.

“Drinking water as a human right to strengthen the link between health and the ecosystem.”

With his Moderator hat, then Prof. Olcay introduced the first keynote speaker – His Excellency, A. Rodriquez Carazo, Ambassador of Costa Rica and Permanent Representative to the UN, the 2022 President UNICEF Executive Board. 

His Excellency Carazo‘s statement centered on his appreciation of the introductory remarks of Prof Olcay particularly his quest for a better world which they have had throughout history in his country where water is seen as a blessing and a human right to be preserved for the future generation. They’re proud to sponsor this event for LMGlobal.Org for the second time in a row. 

Article 50 of the constitution of Costa Rica provides a right to environmental sustainability for all citizens and was amended last year to have drinking water as a human right to strengthen the link between health and the ecosystem. In 1884, 220 years ago, the first water law was passed in Costa Rica to strengthen the common management of watersheds to provide security and resilience for the adjourning lands. Since 1942, there was the creation of the legalization of communal entities administering the water for the different communities with over 2000 such associations managing the water resource and such as the waste and sewage water management too.

They incorporate many hours of work to give the best water to the communities. There’s recovery of contaminated watersheds and working in a rainwater harvesting system and artificial recharge of water in collaboration with Peru. They depend on renewable electricity and now there’s wind, solar and biomass. But the water resource sustains the economy and nowadays they believe the world has to work together to preserve the water resource for everyone since it is affected by the climate catastrophe. His Excellency Carazo emphasized that they work for this principle to become multilateralism for the safe and healthy use of water and in Costa Rica safe water gives good health to the people. He urged all to work on strengthening transboundary water association. Water is for a global public and he said let’s work on that.

As the second Keynote Speaker of the session, Prof. Olcay briefly introduced of His Excellency Taye A. Selassie AMDE, Ambassador, Permanent Representative of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia to the United Nations, and invited to deliver his Keynote Speech.

His Excellency Selassie Amde proceeded to deliver the second keynote statement, and starting off with the following phrase: “life has never been easy“
H.E. Selassie Amde thanked the pianist for the water music he delivered. This, he said, reflects how we are very much related to survival and humanity. He thanked LMGlobal.Org for seeking to deliver this keynote address. This year is an important year for the water agenda being a year away from the UN conference and many more are ongoing such as the one in Dakar ongoing at the moment. The declaration will show how water is a source of cooperation with the significance of partnership and the safe management of transboundary basins and aquifers. 

His Excellency Selassie Amde stated the theme of 2022 WWD, which centers on “groundwater”, is critically important to shed light on one of the most vital resources and the challenges of its use since almost all the study indicates that all liquid fresh water on earth is groundwater, and in terms of utility, agriculture 40% of this water for irrigation comes from this source and population growth drives the need for food production making it relevant for its sustainable use and management worldwide. 

In Ethiopia, a country with diverse climate topography, groundwater supports the entire rural way of life, especially in arid and semi-arid areas. It is a buffer for rainfall seasonality. As he speaks some 40 Million people in the Horn of Africa Kenya, Somalia, Djibouti, and Ethiopia are affected by drought and it is important to preserve groundwater. 

There are increasing global challenges such as Underground water pollution deserves attention and is critical for community survival. At the current rate more groundwater is being used than it is being recharged. 

Rapid population growth, gaps in water governance and institutional arrangement, and deforestation are challenges to this issue. They have launched a million afforestation Legacy Programme and planted close to 15 billion seedlings in the last 3 years to reclaim what has been lost but still a long way to go. 

Attempts to address these challenges should be informed that over 50% of the SDGs target have a link to groundwater and promotion of investment in water in line with the Addis Ababa Finance agenda is imperative and instrumental in meeting SDG-6 targets. His Excellency Amde concluded that this forum will enrich the deliberation on the significance of groundwater issues and promote ideas on food security and sanitation.

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Part 2 of 2 covers the summary of all the presentations by the Panelists.