World Water Day 2018

Nature-based Solutions for Societal Challenges Related to Water

Nature-based solutions (NbS) generally refer to the sustainable management and use of nature for tackling societal challenges such as climate change, water security, food security, human health, and disaster risk management.
Nature-based approaches to addressing water quality impairment, ensuring water supplies, and mitigating water-related hazards have the potential to address trade-offs in the water-energy-food nexus and provide the foundation for sustainable water and energy in the 21st century. However, investments in natural infrastructure for water are dwarfed by investments in hard or engineered infrastructure – can nature-based solutions be scaled up to significantly impact water, food and energy challenges?

The World Water Day 2018 Colloquium organized by the Anton & Petra Ehrmann-Stiftung Graduate School "Water - People - Agriculture" was held in the castle of the University of Hohenheim under the topic "Nature based solutions for Societal Challenges Related to Water".
Three invited speakers introduced rivers, coasts and deltas as hot spots for areas where land-use conflicts and climate change are affecting ecosystem functions and where nature based solutions could be an option for sustainable improvements.
Of course the scholars of the Water - People - Agriculture graduate school were introducing their projects with selected talks and poster presentations to the visitors. Drinks and snacks after the presentations provided a relaxed atmosphere for discussions about "nature based solutions" and the topics of our graduate school. We are looking forward to the next World Water Day 2019,  with a colloquium scheduled for March 26th and featuring the topic "Leaving No One Behind (Human Rights and Refugees).

This was the WWD 2018