Water Risks Spell Opportunity

Discussion

De-risking the world Water management as leverage of prosperity Design as catalyst for change

- Henk Ovink 

We still have time to save the planet but the change has to come from us collectively

Javier Arpa: What does the Special Envoy for International Water Affairs for the Kingdom of the Netherlands do? What are your concerns and objectives?

Henk Ovink: As a water envoy, I have three tasks. The first is to help raise awareness of global water challenges and the opportunities these challenges bring. Raising awareness starts with increasing the understanding of the challenges by research and education and through political activism and collaborations with many partners across the world. Water is connected to all challenges of inequality, insecurity, fragility, environmental degradation, unsustainable urbanisation and health problems, and our lack of understanding of this complexity increases the risks across all the Sustainable Development Goals. Water ticks all the boxes and if we understand, value and manage water right, we can help de-risk the world.

My second priority is focused on “risks and rewards”. There is an increase in water disasters worldwide, with more and worse floods and droughts. Because of these, more conflicts are triggered by water crises. Worsening pollution, a massive lack of safe water availability and sanitation increase inequality and undermine emancipation, with devastating health and security risks. We want to move the world and the communities at risk from a permanent crisis response mode towards real preparedness — resilience by sustainability through water security. We must try to rethink the future so that disasters become opportunities for lasting change. This triggers my third priority where I develop — in different coalitions — projects with transformative capacity for climate impact and water security, to be scaled and replicated across their regions and the world.