Water security for all

Water security, defined as a sustainable and adequate quantity and quality of water, is essential to all life on our planet. Water is integral to food production, energy, health and wellbeing, economic activity, social stability, and human life. Yet nearly 80% of the world’s population lack basic access to water, living in areas where water security is thwarted by pressures such as climate change, conflict, ecosystem damage, extreme weather, gender inequalities, land degradation, over-abstraction, pollution, poor governance, and uncontrolled urbanisation. 

Achieving water security is a global challenge, requiring a multi-layered, integrated approach across multiple sectors, and the integrated and indivisible nature of the SDGs means the way we deal with issues of water security will affect and be affected by our ability to achieve other SDGs. The Water Security and Sustainable Development Hub brought together an international, interdisciplinary team that worked collaboratively over five years to tackle threats to water security and contribute to achieving UN Sustainable Development Goal 6: Clean Water and Sanitation. 

Our vision was to enable global water security through developing and demonstrating a systems and capacity building approach that better understands water systems; values all aspects of water; and strengthens water governance to enable integrated water management for all. Our aim was to build capacity across the water sector, empowering communities, water supply managers and operators, decision makers, and other stakeholders in the water sector to be able to tackle water security challenges beyond the scope and duration of the Hub. Our diversity - of ideas, cultures, and experiences - was one of our strengths, shaping our research and ability to influence change. Inclusion, diversity, transparency, representation, and equitable partnerships - the key principles underpinning our research programme - are crucial to tackling water security globally, providing the building blocks for collaboration, learning, knowledge exchange, innovation, and action.