Championing the Use of Water for Peace from Geneva
We were honoured to be joined by distinguished speakers from UNECE - United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, Geneva Call, the Office Cantonal de l'Eau (Canton de Genève), and the Senegal Basin Development Organisation (OMVS), under the theme "Think the Present, Lead the Future."
Key takeaways from the discussion:
- We live in a decade of war — with around 130 armed conflicts worldwide, water is increasingly withheld, contaminated, and attacked.
- At the heart of every water crisis is a crisis of governance. Climate stress alone does not cause wars; it is inequitable governance of water under stress that turns scarcity into confrontation.
- Peace is the thread running through all six Interactive Dialogues of the upcoming UN Water Conference, with water at the centre.
- Shared basins, shared futures: three billion people depend on water that crosses borders, yet only about 60% of transboundary basin area is covered by operational arrangements. Every basin agreement is an opportunity for preventive diplomacy.
On this occasion, we presented our policy brief "Flowing Towards Peace", developed together with Pôle Eau Dakar and TRENDS Research & Advisory ahead of the 2026 UN Water Conference in the UAE, offering 30 action-oriented recommendations with peace as the connecting thread.
Join us next in Abu Dhabi for our side event at the UN 2026 Water Conference: Water as a Tool for Peace — Turning Recommendations into Action: Water for Mediation and Cooperation.
🔗 https://www.genevawaterhub.org/events/water-tool-peace-un-2026-water-conference-turning-recommendations-action-water-mediation-and
