UNESCO to Host Crucial Dialogโ on Overlooked “Green Water” Resource
PARIS, FRANCE – November 28,โ 2025 โ- UNESCO will convene a pivotal โฃdialogue today focusedโข on โ”green water” – the moisture โstored in soil and absorbed by vegetation – a critical yet frequently enough overlookedโ component of global water โขsecurity โand climate resilience. The “Green Water Dialogue,” taking place from 15:00 – 18:00 (CET) at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris (Room XI), aims to elevate the importance of green water โwithin international water governance and climate frameworks.
While traditional โwater management has largely centered โon “blue water” sources like rivers, lakes, and aquifers, experts โคincreasingly recognize the essentialโค role green water plays in sustaining food production, ecosystem โhealth, and overall climate stability. As climate change exacerbates droughts, land degradation, and ecological stress, effective green water management is becoming paramount to achieving the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, particularly supporting Sustainable Development โGoals 2 โฃ(Zero Hunger), โ6โ (Clean Water and Sanitation), 13 (Climate Action), and 15 (Life on Land).
The event, held immediately following the extraordinaryโฃ session of the IHP Council, will gather representatives from UNESCO Member States, leadingโข water and climate experts, development partners, and stakeholders from the private sector and academia. Discussions will directly inform UNESCO’s future work on water and resilience under the Intergovernmental Hydrological โคProgramme.
Key โspeakers include Abou Amani, Secretary of the IHP and Directorโค of the water Sciences Division at UNESCO, and the newly elected Presidentโ of the PHI (to be confirmed). โ henk Ovink, Executive Director of the Global Commission on Adaptation, will deliver the keynote address.
A distinguished panel will further explore the integration of green water into policy andโ practice, featuring ร se Johannessen (Deltares), Anna Tengberg (International โCenter for Water Cooperation), Anastassia Makarieva (St. Petersburg Institute of Nuclear Physics), an AWARe Expert from Egypt (to be confirmed), and Johan rockstrรถm (Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research – tbc).
The dialogue seeks to: promote open discussion on the meaning of green water; explore pathways for โขits integration into existing water governance, climate strategies, โand the SDG framework; and foster collaboration between diverse stakeholders to bridge the gap between scientific research and policy implementation.
