News

Source: World Water numero Jan-fev

Fine bubble aeration saves up to 70 percent in energy consumption
An Italian-Palestinian-Israeli initiative worth US$526 million will provide sewage treatment in the Palestinian territories. Part of this major project begins with a pilot plant in Uja that will use Mapal’s floating fine-bubble  aeration system instead of mechanical surface aerators. The new technology could save up to 70 percent in
energy consumption and up to 80 percent in maintenance costs, and can be used in municipal and industrial biological reactors with no need for a concrete basin or draining prior to installation.

by Sigurd Neubauer,Foreign affairs specialist, 31 January 2011

As the only surviving organization of the "Oslo Accords," MEDRC was established as a research and capacity building institution in 1996 to share expertise on desalination technologies and clean fresh water supply with the people from the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), the most arid region in the world. While emphasizing how the converging of interests brought the opposing parties together in Tel Aviv, the MEDRC director noted that "cooperation beyond water is just a matter of political will.

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By  Juanita During- Source www.allafrica.com

lll too often I have seen latrines built and used as broom cupboards or goat sheds while the people carry on the way they have always known - using the great outdoors. Those trying to help scratch their heads and wonder why the latrines aren't being used. If only it were that straightforward, then we would probably have made a lot more progress on the sanitation MDG target than we have so far. Local knowledge is everything.

version francaise plus bas

The African Union Research Grant open call for proposals  is now OPEN  UNTIL 30Th APRIL 2011 17.00pm (+3GMT)  (Reference: HRST/ST/1/1270.12.10)

The African Union Commission through its department of Human Resources Science andTechnology (HRST) will launch specific calls for research proposals. This is an open call for proposals, where all documents are submitted at one stage (Concept Note and full proposal) The First Call for Research Proposals for 2011 research grants will be launched in January 2011.
Based on experiences derived from the first call, a second call will be launched before the end of 2011 and the third before the end of 2012.

El Colegio de Ingenieros de Caminos Canales y Puertos (CICCP) publica este mes un interesante monográfico sobre las Naciones Unidas y el agua, la versión electrónica de la revista puede consultarse en: http://www.ciccp.es/revistaIT/portada/index.asp.



Source :http://www.footprintnetwork.org

The report reveals humanity’s Ecological Footprint has more than doubled since 1966. In 2007, the most recent year for which data are available, humanity used the equivalent of 1.5 planets to support its activities.

Even with modest UN projections for population growth, consumption and climate change, by 2030 humanity will need the capacity of two Earths to absorb carbon dioxide waste and keep up with natural resource consumption. The figures released in the report illustrate the scope of the challenges humanity faces not only for preserving biodiversity, but also for halting climate change and meeting human development aspirations, such as reducing worldwide hunger and poverty.

he Arab world is facing severe water shortages as early as 2015, as the annual per capita share will be less than 500 cubic meters. This is below one-tenth of the world’s average, currently estimated at over 6,000 cubic meters of water per capita per year, according to a report [1] released by the Arab Forum for Environment and Development (AFED).

By John Sutter, CNN October 25, 2010

That's the seemingly obvious idea behind a new smartphone app, called Flow, that lets people in the developing world snap pictures of water pumps that are broken.

The smartphone app, which is designed on the Android platform, will help everyday people and field workers illuminate problems in installed water systems, he said. New financial schemes and perhaps technology should be able to help remote villages care for these foreign water treatment systems, he said, so that their aid isn't just temporary.

The Flow app -- which is an acronym for "field level operations watch" -- is available from the group's website only, but it should be posted on Google's Android Market app store within a month, Breslin said.

Full Article

El Congreso tendrá lugar en El Salvador del 21 al 25 de Febrero 2011. Para mayor información y detalles pueden consultar la Web: http://hidrocara.org/.

Se buscan profesionales para la realización de una consultoría cuyo objetivo es:

Elaborar un diagnostico de la situación actual del financiamiento de las inversiones en agua y saneamiento, así como una proyección de las inversiones necesarias y los mecanismos de financiamiento actuales en El Salvador, Nicaragua, Guatemala y Honduras.

ESTE DOCUMENTO ES UN BORRADOR Y SOLO ES VISIBLE A LOS MIEMBROS DEL GRUPO RALCEA PARA COMENTAR!!!!

http://aquaknow.net/ralcea-centros-de-excelencia-en-america-latina/document/minutas-de-la-reunion-de-lanzamineto-ralcea-quito-2010

LA VERSION DEFINITIVA CONSTARA DE LA COMPILACION DE LOS DIFERENTES COMENTARIOS DE LOS PARTICIPANTES Y DELEGACIONES DE LA UNION EUROPEA.

Source GWP

Several sessions were on the Water and climate change adaptation:

Call for papers for the new Journal for Water, Sanitation and Hygiene for Development
The Journal of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene for Development, being launched cooperatively by the IWA and the Water institute at UNC, fills a critical gap and compliments other publications in the areas of WaSH and development. It is a peer-reviewed journal devoted to the dissemination of high-quality information on the science, policy and practice of drinking-water supply, sanitation and hygiene at local, national and international levels. The journal publishes original contributions including research, analysis, review and commentary. It emphasizes issues of concern in developing and middle-income countries and in disadvantaged communities world-wide.
www.iwaponline.com/washdev

Chris Hughes, a Facebook founder, has launched Jumo, a social network that aims to connect donors and their charities, rather than facilitate donations. Jumo.com launched in beta on the 30th of November 2010, a Facebook-style site that allows users to “follow” charities and causes.

Not surprisingly, the site requires a user to login using his or her Facebook account, then select categories of causes that the user wishes to support. Spotlighted issues include climate change, clean drinking water and disaster relief, with partners such as Partners in Health and the Akshaya Patra Foundation.

Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) and the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs are pleased to inform that their shared database called Researchers for Development Analysis (REDA) is now available. The database is intended as a tool in the process of strengthening the role of research in Swedish development cooperation. The database will increase the accessibility to existing experts in all academic disciplines and in research management, for Sida and the Ministry for Foreign Affairs. Researchers that register in the database will be considered for peer-review processes, commissioned tasks and research, evaluations or direct consultations.

PCCP and UNESCO-IHE are to organize short courses on "Negotiation and Mediation for Water Conflict Management" in 2011. The 2011 courses will take place in The Hague and Delft, The Netherlands, from 7 to 25 February and from 28 February to 18 March 2011.
These courses are part of a joint MSc in Water Management – specialization Water Conflict Management, LLM in Water Governance and Conflict Resolution. Regularly organized by PCCP and UNESCO-IHE, they can also be followed by external candidates who are interested in a short, effective and dynamic training in water and conflict management.

Presentations made during The 15th International Africa Water and Sanitation Congress and Exhibition are available online

Over 1.3 million people have been affected by the drought which started in 2006, according to the UN. Last month UN Special Rapporteur Oliver de Schutter said 2-3 million people had been pushed into extreme poverty in Syria, with many thousands having left the northeast region for the cities, with no source of income.

How's your water? Share knowledge and explore solutions to ensure momentum and continuityof water developments up to and beyond 2015. This conference is the product of teamwork between ADB and many water partners that have contributed ideas, effort, and resources to plan a better water future for the Asia and Pacific region.

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Source: Africa and Europe partnership http://www.africa-eu-partnership.org/

The African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) States Observatory on Migration is a new institution created to provide reliable data and information on migration flows in ACP countries. The objective is to design better policies to enhance the migration contribution to development. The Observatory will be officially launched in a ceremony foreseen for 25-27 October 2010 which will gather relevant figures from the political, economic and cultural fields both in the EU and the ACP countries.

The European Commission and the Secretariat of the ACP Group of States have partnered in the establishment of an intra-ACP Migration Facility aimed at fostering institutional capacity in the ACP countries and strengthen the civil society with the ultimate aim to include migration issues into national and regional development policies and strategies.

Organised by AMCOW, www.amcow.net

The theme will be Africa’s water and sanitation challenges and opportunities to implement Africa Water Vision and the MDGs. It will be open to any organisation or individual.

Venue: UN Conference Centre, ECA, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Registration fee : 100 euros

Contact:secretariat@amcow.net

The Nature Conservancy and IBM will launch a free Web site this fall called Rivers for Tomorrow, where watershed managers can map, analyze and share detailed information about the health of local freshwater river basins to inform clean up programs.