Obtaining data on the water status at a given time and place is crucial for effective management. New technologies make it possible to develop transboundary monitoring programs that disseminate scientific knowledge, promote a common understanding of the problems, and convince us that we can do better together.

The IPCC forecasts continue to be fulfilled, and droughts are affecting regions where they were rare. The Mediterranean Basin, especially in its western area, is experiencing an exceptional lack of rainfall. A new climatic frontier is emerging there, and the solutions generated will be of utmost importance for future water management on Earth.

Healthy soil is the best tool for addressing the climate crisis and food insecurity. Regenerative agriculture and proper water management make it possible to reverse the alarming deterioration of agricultural land worldwide. It is a critical element in the fight against desertification and the empowerment of the most disadvantaged farmers.

The pollution of water by intensive agriculture and livestock farming has a high health and environmental cost. This problem's solution is as complex as it is urgent. We must be able to provide food security for 8 billion people without damaging the environment. Water free of pollutants will indicate that we have achieved this.

The search for solutions to the pollution caused by mercury used in artisanal gold mining reveals how difficult it is to deal with a semi-clandestine activity widespread in many developing countries, often generating an informal economy. Mercury causes death and keeps more than one million people worldwide chronically and silently ill. Developing global ethics for the gold market is essential to end dumping and provide justice for miners.

A new project in Sierra Leone shows us the importance of ensuring water and sanitation in schools to reverse the impoverishment of neglected rural areas. Passing on to students the ability to manage the facilities turns them into educational agents in their communities, ensures sustainability, and gives them an empowered future.

COP15 on biodiversity has been the first in which the private sector has participated. It is a realistic and practical step forward that reverses the flow of pressure from citizens and companies to political power and promotes the understanding of natural capital as an irreplaceable value that must be preserved.

They have been our partners in evolution, and now they are under threat. Wetlands represent the subtle link between land and water, which is why they suffer the consequences of climate change, overexploitation, and pollution. They should be considered internationally as carbon sinks and crucial ecosystems for 40% of the world's biodiversity. They are the best sustainability advisors we have.