Author: Rahel Künzle
Photo credits: Skat Foundation

In light of the UN-Water Conference in New York in March 2023 – the first UN-Water Conference in over 40 years – the topic of water and sanitation for all gains traction. Within this context, HEKS/ EPER (a member organization of SWSC), in cooperation with Skat Foundation, the City of St. Gallen, the University of St. Gallen (HSG), the Blue Communities and the Eastern Switzerland University of Applied Sciences, organised a public event on the topic of human rights to water and sanitation, which took place on 18.01.2023 in the city of St. Gallen. The event was supported by the Swiss Agency for Cooperation and Development (SDC), Solidarit’Eau Suisse and Eawag.

The event comprised a keynote speech from the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation, Pedro Arrojo-Agudo, and an input from the City Council St. Gallen, Peter Jans. The inputs were followed by a panel discussion with representatives from the government, academia and civil society. They addressed the challenges and opportunities for action related to the promotion of human rights to water (short biographies of all speakers and panellists can be found here).

The discussion highlights included:

• There are tensions between different government levels when it comes to accountability and responsibility for ensuring that the human rights to water are met.
• Sensitisation campaigns for the sensible use of water are crucial – in Switzerland and other countries with large water resources it is necessary to deconstruct the mindset that water is largely available and inexpensive.
• People need to realise that their local consumption habits may pose adverse effects on foreign country water resources, especially those related to food, clothing and electronics. The production might use water which is lacking locally.
• Citizen initiatives are an essential part of the path towards achieving the human rights to water. This includes educating on the human rights and demanding accountability from the government.
• We need to work towards circular systems, to foster the synergies between the different water framework components, such as drinking water and sanitation, for instance.

After the panel discussion, Pedro Arrojo-Agudo shared his main reflections:

• In his keynote, he highlighted that today the majority of people without access to safe drinking water are not suffering due to physical water scarcity but because of polluted water sources. Therefore, it is crucial to restore the environmental quality of rivers and aquatic ecosystems, to protect them and to recognise and value the ecosystem services they provide.
• We need to promote the democratic governance of water as a common good: laws must be based on ethical priorities; the basic human water needs for a decent living standard must be the first priority and water needs who pollute water bodies and the environment must be prohibited
• We must promote global laws that are effective at regulating global companies: companies need to be held accountable where headquartered for the adverse effects their actions cause on foreign water resources.

The event was greatly attended, counting with over 100 registrants. The organisers hope to have encouraged the reflection of all who joined, as to how we can act collectively and also individually to promote the human rights to water and sanitation. Local actions do matter for tackling global water challenges!

Read more about the event on the website of Skat Foundation or on Linkedin.