Topic: ‘​‘Deciphering Interlinkages of SDG6 through Multi-sector Partnerships”

Webinar ID: ​​820 9080 2430
Passcode: ​275511 

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INTRODUCTION

​Water is a fundamental part of all aspects of life. Due to its cross cutting nature, water underpins all three dimensions of sustainable development and supports the achievement of many SDGs through intimate linkages with climate, the environment and health, among many others. The UN 2023 Water Conference vision statement, for example, acknowledges that “without a functioning, resilient water cycle for all people everywhere,” human health, environmental integrity and a sustainable, equitable future “will remain out of reach.” Understanding the linkages is a first step towards active management and will help governments establish intersectoral mechanisms and procedures to address these issues, including partnerships, coordinating committees, consultation mechanisms, integrated monitoring and data management and evaluation criteria for inclusive and sustainable development. Water is associated with many sectors and affects the increases and decreases in production of sectors. Water stands out as the most critical sustainable development challenge since it deals with the most valuable and limited resource on earth. If water becomes scarce or threatened, it causes risks to economic, social, and environmental sustainability. Moreover, water also influences the increases and decreases in SDG indicators. Water can help us find a more sustainable path. Since water connects all the 17 SDGs and offers opportunities for partnership for the Goals. When viewed this way, it soon becomes apparent that many new approaches to water will effectively address several of the goals simultaneously.

OBJECTIVE

​The primary objective of this high level policy dialogue is to highlight the interdependency between the targets under Goal 6 on water and sanitation and other social, economic and environmental Goals and targets in the 2030 Agenda. Therefore, the intention is to capture the transversality of SDG6: incorporating water and sanitation in other Goals is necessary for the achievement of Goal 6, and implementing targets under Goal 6 enables the achievement of a number of other targets across the 2030 Agenda.

 

CHAIR ADDRESS
Sh. Gajendra Singh Shekhawat 
Sh. Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Hon’ble Union Minister of Jal Shakti, Ministry of Jal Shakti, Government of India is an active politician from Rajasthan. He has keen interest in Cooperatives, Social Work, Education, Sustainable water resource development, Industry, Rural Development etc.

SPEAKERS 

Eminent Speaker
Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus
Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus was elected WHO Director-General for a five-year term by WHO Member States at the Seventieth World Health Assembly in May 2017. He is the first person from the WHO African Region to head the world’s leading public health agency. After taking office as WHO Director-General on 1 July 2017, Dr Tedros initiated the most significant transformation in the Organization’s history, which has generated a wide range of achievements.

 

Dr. Arvind Kumar
 Dr. Susan Gardner
Dr. Arvind Kumar is a strategist and key-influencer in development sector with more than 28 years of experience as an author, columnist, Water activist, and specializes in concepts like ecosystem-based adaptation, water-energy-food nexus, with specific emphasis on Transversal approach of inter-linkages between water, environment and SDGs. He has published over 500 plus research articles and several books. He is a proud recipient of Achievers Award for his contribution to the Environment from International Human Rights Organization in collaboration with United Nations Information Centre, India. Dr. Susan Gardner with over three decades of experience is Director of the Ecosystems Division of the UN Environment Programme where she leads global programmes to promote nature-based solutions for sustainable development including for food systems transformation, climate resilience, global biodiversity protection and disaster risk reduction.  She was awarded the Gold Medal for Exceptional Services from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the highest national honor award this agency bestows. 
Dr. David Cooper Dr. Mark Smith
Dr. David Cooper is Acting Executive Secretary of the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity. David has more than 30 years of experience in environmental and agricultural science and policy, and international negotiations, including more than 20 years with the CBD. He has built strong and productive working relationships with Parties in all regions and with partners in civil society, international organisations, and the scientific community.

Dr. Mark Smith, Director General, IWMI brings more than 25 years of research and program management experience in water resources, agriculture, climate and sustainability. He was formerly Director of the Global Water Program at the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), He led IUCN advocacy of water-related policies and strategies in UNFCCC, Ramsar Convention, Rio+20 and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). As a scientist at the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology (CEH), Mark worked in partnership with ICRAF on projects investigating the impacts of agroforestry on water resource management and productivity in smallholder farming systems. 
Mr. Satya Tripathi Dr. Eddy Moors
Mr. Satya S. Tripathi is Secretary-General of the Global Alliance for a Sustainable Planet. A development economist, lawyer and changemaker with over 40 years of varied experience, Mr. Tripathi is also the Chancellor of Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences – and Senior Distinguished Fellow on Innovative Finance at the World Agroforestry Centre. He has served with the UN for more than two decades in key positions and was most recently the UN Assistant Secretary-General, Head of New York Office at UN Environment and Secretary of the UN Environment Management Group.
 Dr. Eddy Moors is Rector of IHE Delft Institute of Water Education. Professor Moors was head of the research team ‘Climate change and adaptive land & water management’ at Wageningen Environmental Research (Alterra). He is also Professor of Water and Climate at he VU University Amsterdam. Eddy Moors specialized in the research of climate change mitigation and adaptation. Earlier in his career he worked for the World Meteorological Organization in Africa and in the Caribbean.
Dr. Rajan Sudesh Ratna Dr. Katsuo Matsumoto
Dr. Rajan Sudesh Ratna is a Ph.D in Economics from Indian Institute of Foreign Trade, New Delhi, India; M. Phil. in Environmental Science from Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi and done an Executive Programme on Trade Policy and Negotiations from Harvard University, Boston, USA. Presently working as Deputy Head of South and South-West Office of UN ESCAP, New Delhi  and leading research, policy advisory and capacity building on helping countries accelerate progress towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. Dr. Katsuo Matsumoto is the Director General, Infrastructure Engineering Department, JICA, He has been the Chief Representative, JICA India office from June 2018 to August 2021.  He has worked for the Official Development Assistance (ODA) projects in ASEAN and the South Asian countries, including regional corridor projects for the past 30 years. He graduated from Hitotsubashi university, and has worked with Overseas Development Cooperation Fund (OECF), Japan International Cooperation Bank (JBIC) and Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). He obtained a master’s degree from Columbia University in the U.S. and a Ph.D. from University of Tokyo. 
 Mr. Vishwaranjan Sinha Ms. Shweta Tyagi (Moderator)
Mr. Vishwaranjan Sinha is working as a Programme officer, Water and Wetlands, South Asia, and is based at IUCN Asia regional Office in Bangkok. He has more than 12 years of experience working on regional water governance issues in the Ganges, Brahmaputra, Meghna and the Mekong region and has co-authored many IUCN publications. Ms. Shweta Tyagi is Chief Functionary, India Water Foundation. She is results-focused development sector professional with a 22 years of demonstrated history and a proven ability to manage project teams to deliver multiple projects and programmes across diverse sectors of sustainable Development, Water and Sanitation, Social Development, Livelihood Generation, climate change etc.  Excellent knowledge of project management and strategic planning of partnership creation and coordination, as well as advising decision-makers and strengthening capacities. Experience of Natural Resource management among rural communities for implementing community based projects with an objective towards strengthening sustainable livelihoods.