• IHE Delft Institute to Host Forum On Valuing Water from A Human Rights Perspective

• Theme of the forum is “Water is a human right, not a commodity”.

• Speakers at the forum will be featuring global voices in water justice.

Islamabad:  IHE Delft Institute for Water Education is the largest graduate water education and research facility in the world will host forum focusing on valuing water from a human rights perspective on 22 May 2025, 16:00–17:30 (GMT+2), IHE Delft – Auditorium.

IHE Delft Institute for Water Education is the largest graduate water education and research facility in the world

Interested participants are invited to join the insightful conversations, helping shape the future of water.

Theme of the forum is “Water is a human right, not a commodity”.

Speakers at the forum will be featuring global voices in water justice.

Valuing water

What does it mean to value water from a human rights perspective? This question is more urgent than ever, considering increasing water shortages, inequality and environmental degradation. Join top global experts, practitioners and academics in exploring how human rights frameworks can inform and challenge dominant economic, technical and governance approaches to water. Whether you’re a policymaker, academic, student, or practitioner, this event will inspire new ways of thinking about water—not just as a resource, but as a right. The event is open to the public and will be followed by networking drinks.

Commodity or common good?

The forum will dive into the tensions between water as a commodity and water as a common good. Speakers and participants will discuss how marginalized voices can be better included in decision-making and explore how the right to water and sanitation can guide more just and sustainable futures. The key question is not just about how we manage water—it’s about who gets to decide? Whose values count?  How do we ensure social justice and environmental sustainability?  But also: What responsibilities come with rights and where do rights end?  The event will offer real-world situations and examples to spark an open discussion with leading voices in the field. Discussion points will include the Global Commission on the Economics of Water report The Economics of Water – Valuing the Hydrological Cycle as a Global Common Good.

At heart, managing and governing water are about critical decisions to determine where, how and to whom water flows. At IHE Delft, we are interested in unravelling such decisions and their impacts, with a keen eye for what they mean for justice, peace and sustainability. Water distribution priorities do not just happen through formal decision-making processes with transparent procedures – they are also implicitly set by through infrastructures, technological designs, or how water is measured and accounted for. This is why our studies and teachings include the analysis of the technological, administrative and financial systems through which water flows or is made legible.

The term water governance has rapidly gained popularity in the last three decades. This can be traced to two related meanings and uses of the term. First of all, in water policy circles – which used to be dominated by natural scientists and engineers – it indicates a broad acknowledgment that water is not just natural, but also importantly social. The term governance thus marks a change in policy emphasis from infrastructure (engineering) to the organisational, financial and institutional arrangements needed to regulate and order flows of water.

Speakers

• Pedro Arrojo-Agudo, UN Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
• Joyeeta Gupta, IHE Delft Professor of Law and Policy in Water Resources and Environment; Co-Chair of the Global Commission on the Economics of Water, and Professor at the University of Amsterdam
• Maarten Gischler, Senior Water Adviser at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Netherlands
• Moderator
• Nora van Cauwenbergh, IHE Delft Associate Professor Water and Societal Transitions
• Host
• Jonatan Godinez Madrigal, IHE Delft Researcher, Water Allocation and Institutions

Programme

• Introduction: Jonatan Godinez Madrigal
• Opening statements:  Pedro Arrojo-Agudo, Joyeeta Gupta and Maarten Gischler
• Forum discussion moderated by Nora Van Cauwenbergh
• Audience questions
• Closing statement: Jonatan Godinez Madrigal
• Drinks and networking

Registration

You can register here.