The Clean Water America Alliance has been hosting a series of meetings around the country to discuss important water topics. The most recent event, the Urban Water Sustainability Leadership Conference, was a traditional face-to-face meeting of industry leaders but was also streamed live on the Internet for those who couldn't attend the event in Philadelphia.
The alliance has held three national "dialogue" meetings. The first focused on "The Need for an Integrated National Water Policy" and it resulted in a call for a national water policy based on sustainability. It looked into the details of how such a policy would address such pressing issues as the energy/water nexus, water quality and water quantity, green infrastructure, and watersheds.
The second dialogue, "What's Water Worth?", examined the economic, environmental and social consequences of continuing to significantly undervalue this precious asset.
The most recent event, convened in September, focused on "Managing One Water." It brought together over 40 of the best thinkers and doers in the water community to continue the Alliance's exploration of how to achieve a more comprehensive, integrated approach to managing our water resources.
Discussions focused on breaking down the silos within the clean water community to better integrate drinking water, wastewater, groundwater, reuse, and stormwater management; improving stakeholder relations; and advancing regional water sustainability. It brought together a variety of water policy experts, including representatives from state water authorities, the federal government, municipal water and wastewater agencies, engineering firms, academia, energy, industry, green infrastructure interests, agriculture, and conservation.
Detailed reports on each dialogue are available at www.cleanwateramericaalliance.org.
The Urban Water Sustainability Leadership Conference, held Dec. 6-7 in Philadelphia, brought together urban leaders in water sustainability. Attendees innovations, strategies, and best practices for making green infrastructure the centerpiece of the urban water world. Leaders from the fields of philanthropy, water, sustainability, infrastructure, planning, politics, and science were on hand to identify the policy and system changes needed for substantive progress toward water sustainability.
The event was streamed live on the Internet. For those who weren't able to participate in the live event, the conference's presentations have been broken into six 2-hour modules that have been archived at www.waterworld.com/index/webcasts.html. They can be purchased individually for $35 each, or the whole conference for $95.
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