Success stories in the fight for access to basic sanitation are a source of lessons to attain the SDG 6. The webinar “Valuing toilets beyond visible” showcased three experiences that provide valuable knowledge on the complex relationship between defecation and sanitation: the fight against open defecation, the use of feces and the healthiness of slums.

The awareness of the importance of water and sanitation moves forward. The impact of the World Water Day events organized by the Foundation all around the world proves that the civil society is increasingly taking up the challenge for humanity that no one is left behind: to achieve effective, global and inclusive governance.

Never before has the survival or our life pattern depended on water. The water crisis, exacerbated by climate change, affects us all, but it will affect new generations even more. There is an urgent need for dialogue to find accurate diagnoses that will lead to effective solutions. With this goal in mind, the We Are Water Foundation gathered experts in meteorology and water treatment on World Water Day for a debate on the crucial issues all of us and the coming generations will need to face.

Will the current growth model allow a fair access to water and sanitation in Latin America? The sociologist José Esteban Castro presented the conclusions of his decades of work on the water issues in disadvantaged areas of the world in the last talk of the series “Water and metropolis”, organized by the We Are Water Foundation and Casa Amèrica Catalunya.

The new Construction manual of latrines and wells is based on the experience gained by the We Are Water Foundation in its sanitation projects all around the world.

In 2015, the severe water crisis in São Paulo showed the imbalance in the access to water in most large cities in Brazil and changed the way water is managed in a country with over 12% of the reserves of the planet. The expert Marussia Whately explained this in the series of conferences “Water and metropolis”organised by the We Are Water Foundation and Casa Amèrica Catalunya. Brazil reacts and the planet heavily depends on it. 

Urban expansion, the demand of agricultural production, the need to evolve in political management and climate change define a crucial moment in the progress of Latin American countries, which depend on water more than ever. Sergio Bitar, Chilean engineer and former minister, explained this in the series of conferences “Water and metropolis” organized by the We Are Water Foundation and Casa Amèrica Catalunya.

The treatment of waste water brings to light the fundamental problem of the water cycle management in the industrialised world. The basic problem is identical in the poorest areas but the social consequences are catastrophic. The conclusions of the experts gathered at the debate “Reuse of water, Are we ready?” organised by the We Are Water Foundation, point to the action of citizens that are well informed of the integral water cycle. There is a great deal at stake.