Bringing together scientists, operators, policy makers and civil society to address water security and global challenges in Megacities

The conference, initially scheduled for December 2021 is postponed to January 2022.

COVID-19 : Following the postponement of the conference, some of the papers selected were presented by their authors during the online pre-conference on 7-11 December 2020. However, the technical and special sessions, round tables and other components of the physical conference were postponed to 2022.

Paris, New York, Beijing, Mumbai, Tokyo, Buenos Aires, Mexico, Lagos… all Megacities – urban centers which accommodate more than 10 million inhabitants - are facing “mega”-challenges related to providing water services for their inhabitants, while managing their environment. Climate change effects of intensifying magnitude and global challenges such as sea level rise, increasing temperatures or urbanization, threaten these cities. Now, there is a need for action to achieve resilient cities.

A transversal and multidimensional solution is proposed, based on the collaboration among scientists who advance knowledge, operators (in both the public and private sectors) who innovate technically and socio-politically, and local politicians who can support new, fairer and more efficient models of water governance, in constant interaction with civil society.

The Second International Conference on “Water, Megacities and Global Change”, will take place from 11 to 14 January 2022 at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris, to bring all these actors together, 6 years after its first edition, also known as EauMega 2015.

Objectives of the conference

Ω Produce a scientific and technical overview of water challenges and solutions that Megacities face and use to mitigate the effects of climate change, by concretizing the exchange of their expertise in the specific field of water

Ω Strengthen the dialogue between science and policy actors at local level

Ω Officially launch the Megacities Alliance for Water and Climate (MAWAC) and its cooperation platfom based on IHP-Wins

MAWAC aims to provide a platform for Megacities to share their experiences and challenges, propose solutions, and to obtain access to technical and financial support for programmes and projects, enabling them to successfully overcome the challenges of climate change.