Teaching

Our educational resources have been developed specifically to support how the moderator interacts with their audience. The objective is to encourage and structure debate and lead to an increased understanding of the issues of water governance. Within the teaching category of resources, you will find three key types (sorted by alphabetical order):

  • Case Studies
    The Geneva Water Hub’s Case Studies offer teaching material as a base to facilitating discussion. The complete information is available for download in PDF format. It is generally composed of two documents. The first one “Problematic and Visuals” is addressed to the public. It is designed for projection and includes various short texts and visuals (maps, infography, graphs…). The second one “Teaching Annex”) is structured for the facilitator and helps to structure the discussion. It provides a train of thoughts for the presentation. The correspondence between the parts treated in both documents is indicated by the symbols of different colours from the Geneva Water Hub logo: blue, green and black. This symbolism allows the facilitator to structure his remarks and finally to start a discussion with his audience.
  • Distance learning course on International Water Law and the Law of Transboundary Aquifers
    The online course in "International Water Law & The Law of Transboundary Aquifers" is implemented in partnership with DiploFoundation. This course has the main objective to examine the principles and norms of international law that apply to transboundary water resources. The course emphasizes current legal developments in the context of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In particular, SDG-6 aims “to ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all” and to “implement integrated water resources management at all levels, including through transboundary cooperation. " Instruments and norms of international water law are critical to achieve this goal in the coming years. The course provides knowledge and legal skills to professionals who negotiate and implement legal and institutional frameworks on transboundary water resources. The course is composed of 7 modules and corresponds to 4 ECTS credits.
  • Distance Learning Course « Droit international de l’eau douce »
    Developed by the Geneva Water Hub and the Platform for International Water Law of the University of Geneva, the online course in "Droit international de l’eau douce" has been designed for professionals working full-time and run for six weeks. Participants have free access at all times to course content, assessment activities and learning materials. By the end of this training, participants will be able to 1) Interpret and apply the legal instruments, principles and rules of international water law and transboundary aquifers’ law; 2) Explain how instruments and norms of international law can contribute to the achievement of Goal 6 of Agenda 2030; 3) Identify the linkages between the right to water and international economic law, international humanitarian law and human rights; 4) Identify appropriate mechanisms to prevent and settle conflicts related to water use and the sharing of this resource.
  • MOOCs
    The objectives of the first MOOC supported by the Geneva Water Hub - Education and Knowledge component is to understand the issues surrounding "Water Resources Management and Policy". The course firsty defines what is a resource and more particularly water resources, their uses, their related activities, as well as possible conflicts. The course then focuses more on details around water governance, analysing the types of rules and rights at stake around water governance, such as the development of a multi-sector regulation and a watershed based approach. The second MOOC deals with "Ecosystem Services: A Method for Sustainable Development". Ecosystem services are a way of thinking about – and evaluating – the goods and services provided by nature that contribute to the well-being of humans. Examples include marketable goods such as timber and fish, as well as non-market services like the natural purification of water by wetlands, the inherent value of species, and cultural value of traditional landscapes. The third one on "International Water Law" aims at providing the foundations required to understand and examine the regulation that applies to transboundary freshwater, especially to rivers, lakes and aquifers; It presents the principles and legal standards governing the use, the sharing, the management and protection of these resources.
  • Serious Games
    A fictional framework firmly grounded in reality is mapped out for participants.  This simulated situation - a problem or issue linked to the management of water - is created enabling participants to reflect fully on the different roles that are involved. Participants are encouraged to consider first-hand the strategic decisions that need to be taken to reach a conclusion or objective.
    The material includes a full briefing on the general context, specifics on the situation under consideration and an outline of the different roles that need to be assumed within the serious game. There is also helpful advice included on how to moderate the game and how to encourage discussion. As participants will soon discover, water management issues can quickly lead to very tense situations. This education tool helps to focus attention on the problem or issue at hand and also the steps that are necessary to ensure a resolution is reached.
  • Summer School in Water Governance: Framework and Negotiations
    The Summer School in Water Governance: Frameworks and Negotiations has been developed by the Education and Research component of the Geneva Water Hub and targets professional acting at strategic levels and aiming to develop analytical skills on water governance processes. This programme deliver skills and analytical tools based on scientific research that are applicable in professional contexts. It is also an occasion to reflect on - amongst other - water governance stakes and uncertainties in a multidisciplinary perspective and analyse hydro-diplomacy and actors’ strategies. The training is usely spread on two weeks in the months of May and/or June each year.
  • Webinars in International Water Law
    As part of the 2016-2018 editions of the online course on “International Water Law and the Law of Transboundary Aquifers”, the Platform for International Water Law and the Geneva Water Hub, in collaboration with DiploFoundation, organized a series of webinars. International experts from different disciplines, including law, political science and natural sciences, participated in these webinars. Various topics have been discussed such as the cooperation on transboundary water resources, the prevention and resolution of water conflicts, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM).