Reframing Global Water Governance Ahead of the UN Water Conference 2026

As global water debates accelerate ahead of the United Nations Water Conference, a clear shift is emerging in how water challenges are being framed.

While international water forums have long been shaped by engineering and modelling approaches, a growing coalition of actors is now calling for a deeper transformation: placing governance, law, accountability and peace at the centre of water discussions.

Together with partners such as the International Water Resources Association (IWRA) and the International Association for Water Law (AIDA), and in collaboration with academic institutions including the University of Lavras, Texas A&M University, as well as European partners such as the University of Vigo and the University of Twente — alongside UN and governmental actors — recent high-level exchanges have reinforced a shared conviction: water challenges cannot be addressed without confronting power asymmetries, territorial inequalities and legal uncertainty.

This is precisely where the Geneva Water Hub positions its work.

Through the engagement of its experts Mara Tignino and Imane Messaoudi-Mattei, including their contributions at the World Water Congress in December 2025, the Hub contributes to reframing global water debates, from transboundary aquifers to the protection of water in armed conflicts, not as technical questions alone, but as matters of stability, accountability and peace.

As the international community moves towards the UN Water Conference and other global water processes, this integrated, coalition-based approach is no longer optional. It is becoming essential.

Water governance is not only about managing resources. It is about managing relationships, responsibilities and resilience.