Suvarna Garge (Editor)

International Water Association

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Location
  
London, United Kingdom

Area served
  
Worldwide

Type
  
Professional association

Origins
  
IWSA, IAWQ

Founded
  
1999

International Water Association httpsuploadwikimediaorgwikipediaenccbIWA

Focus
  
Sustainable water management

Method
  
Conferences, publications, interest groups, task forces, forums

Key people
  
Ger Bergkamp (Executive Director)

The International Water Association (IWA) is a non-profit organization and knowledge hub for the water sector, with over 60 years experience connecting water professionals worldwide to find solutions to the world's water challenges. As a network of water professionals and companies, IWA has a membership comprising utilities and leading companies in the fields of water services, infrastructure engineering and consulting as well as more than 7,000 individuals. IWA works across a wide range of issues covering the full water cycle, with three programmes (Basins of the Future, Cities of the Future, Water and Sanitation Services) that work towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals and addressing the threat to sustainable water supplies posed by climate change. The IWA is headquartered in London, with a global secretariat based in The Hague and offices in Beijing, Bangkok, Nairobi and Singapore.

Contents

History

IWA has its roots in the International Water Supply Association (IWSA), established in 1947, and the International Association on Water Quality (IAWQ), which originally formed as the International Association for Water Pollution Research in 1965. The two groups merged in 1999 to form the IWA, creating one international organisation focused on the full water cycle.

Scope

The group's mission is to serve as a worldwide network for water professionals and to advance standards and best practices in sustainable water management. The association has four member types: individual, student, corporate, and governing members. There are about 10,000 individual and 500 corporate members, with governing members in approximately 80 countries.

IWA annually hosts more than 40 specialist conferences and workshops on various aspects of water management. Events organised by the IWA include the World Water Congress & Exhibition and the Water Development Congress & Exhibition.

Programs

There are four programs at IWA:

  1. Basins of the future(water security)
  2. Cities of the future (urban metabolism, sustainable city)
  3. Water and sanitation services(wastewater management)
  4. Water policy and regulation

AquaRating

AquaRating is the world's first rating agency for the water sector. The agency has been jointly developed by the Inter-American Development Bank and the IWA. The rating system has already been piloted in thirteen utilities in nine countries in Europe and Latin America and the Caribbean. A worldwide market introduction is planned during 2015.

IWA Publishing

IWA Publishing, the wholly owned subsidiary of the International Water Association (IWA), provides information services on all aspects of water, wastewater and related environmental fields.

The publishing programme includes The Source (the IWA membership magazine) and a broad range of journals, books, research reports, manuals of best practice, and online services.

References

International Water Association Wikipedia