Vision and Mission
Water insecurity is increasingly a cause of social and political instability threatening peace and security at all levels. The Geneva Water Hub aims at better understanding and preventing water-related tensions between competing uses, between public and private actors, and between political entities and countries. The Geneva Water Hub is Centre of the University of Geneva, as well as a joint project with the Swiss Confederation (Agency for Development and Cooperation, Global Programme Water Division).
Sustainable water resources management is a major global challenge of the 21st century. In its 2015 Global Risks report, the World Economic Forum ranked water crises as the highest global risk. Water is essential for public health, food security, energy, and ecosystem services. This vital resource is facing unprecedented challenges, and is more and more linked to insecurity at local, regional and global scale; this is illustrated by growing tensions around large dams, mining operations and various disputes over land and water.
However, despite the complexity of the challenges, water can become a theme for collaboration and can be transformed from a source of potential crisis into an instrument of peace. It is with this positive vision that the Geneva Water Hub was established to help prevent water conflicts at an early stage and to promote water as an instrument of peace and cooperation.
Our brochure is available below.
