SCELG joins leading international partners in Montevideo, Uruguay to discuss future of groundwater governance in Latin America and the Caribbean
Groundwater governance in Latin America and in the Caribbean
Countries from the Latin American and Caribbean region are gathering in Montevideo to discuss ways to take groundwater governance further. Representatives from the region will reflect on the recently concluded project dedicated to Groundwater Governance – GWG. The goal of the meeting is to develop possible outlines for future projects aimed at enhancing groundwater governance in the region. Dr Francesco Sindico has been asked to join the meeting that will take place at the UNESCO premises in Montevideo on 6 and 7 of June 2017 as part of a team that also includes experts from UNESCO-IHP, FAO and the IAH (International Association of Hydrogeologists). Francesco was a member of the legal experts group during the GWG project and has been collaborating with CEREGAS (the UNESCO regional centre for the management of groundwater in Latin America and in the Caribbean) since 2015. This collaboration led to a Newton fund workshop on groundwater governance co-organised by SCELG and CEREGAS in February 2016 in the city of Salto, Uruguay, which itself led to a SCELG working paper on groundwater governance.
Working closely with international partners
Dr Sindico, commenting on his participation in the meeting, maintained:
I am honoured and delighted to have been invited to this meeting. Good groundwater governance is crucial for sustainable development and climate change adaptation, amongst other aspects. The Latin American and the Caribbean region are at the forefront in many ways when it comes to groundwater management, but more can be done. Building on the results of the Groundwater governance project and on its Framework of Action in particular, there is a lot of potential for countries in the region to drive forward groundwater governance. SCELG is excited to be part of this endeavour and looks forward to collaborating with potential partners on groundwater governance in the future.”
Research-led teaching
Freshwater is one of the twelve areas of expertise of SCELG with recent wok focusing on the Guarani Aquifer System in Latin America. Groundwater governance and transboundary aquifers are topics dealt with in the LLM in Global Environmental Law and Governance, directed by SCELG Co-Director, Prof Elisa Morgera. Innovations in the field of groundwater governance will also feature prominently in the 2018 IUCN Academy of Environmental Law Colloquium hosted and organised by SCELG
