The United Nations (UN) offers a unique framework for global governance. With 193 member states, its decisions have an impact on the whole world, but it’s not always easy to get consensus resolutions adopted. If France wishes to exert influence, it must itself convey clear messages that meet with consensus. With this in mind, the French Water Partnership [1] (PFE) was born in 2007, with the aim of bringing together the voices of French players in the water (and sanitation) sector and harmonizing their messages.

The PFE has thus become the benchmark platform for French public and private players in the international water sector. For the past 17 years, it has been lobbying at international level to make water a priority in sustainable development policies.

Because water is a complex, cross-cutting, multi-dimensional subject, one of PFE’s missions is to raise awareness of global water issues. Daniel Zimmer’s second book, L’Eau et la planète, un avenir au compte-gouttes (Éditions Charles Léopold Mayer[2]),

is fully in line with this ambition, and we were delighted to be invited to take part in its distribution.

Daniel Zimmer trained in agronomy and hydrology, then became interested in a wide range of system-related subjects: water, soil, forestry, agroforestry, climate and energy. This keen observer is a long-standing collaborator of the PFE. When the FWP was founded, he held a central position in the world of water, that of Director of the World Water Council. Always at an international level, Daniel Zimmer then turned his attention to the climate, and more recently to the implementation of concrete, innovative solutions.

Daniel Zimmer’s book provides us with an overview, but also leads us to broaden our perception of the water cycle. He invites us to better consider the role of green water, the water that is stored each year in the soil and biomass, and not limit ourselves to that of blue water, the water we can pump.

Back in 2013, in his book l’Empreinte Eau (Éditions Charles Leopold Mayer), the author spoke of the major role played by green water. Despite the term’s appearance as early as 1995, Daniel Zimmer reminds us that green water is still too often ignored and little or not at all measured. And yet, green water plays a major role in the water cycle, as it evaporates and joins atmospheric water, accounting for a significant, even majority, share of precipitation on the continents. The book details how it contributes to the recycling of continental water.

Another topic addressed by Daniel Zimmer is that of planetary boundaries. The concept of planetary limits has introduced many people to the term “green water”. Recent research by the Stockholm Resilience Centre [3],

widely reported in the media, announced in September 2023 that the planetary green water limit had been exceeded. While we at PFE consider such a statement to be premature, we do admit that we have entered a period of high variability.

The second part of the book deals with the difficulties, or “nightmares”, as he calls them: shortages, pollution, climate disruption, extreme events, loss of biodiversity, and so on.

While the French have seen the issue of water rise in their concerns in recent years (increasing periods of drought, flooding), the water crisis has in fact become global. This was one of the findings of the UN World Water Conference to be held in New York in March 2023 [4].

Despite the importance of water, this conference was held 46 years after the first one in Argentina. This frequency seems to reflect the fact that water was not a central concern. In March 2023, the situation is glaringly obvious: countries are facing major water-related problems, with too much or too little water, the crisis is global and the forecasts are not reassuring.

That same year, the new UN report (WHO/UNICEF) [5] reported that 27% of the world’s population – over 2 billion people – still had no access to safely managed water. According to this report, efforts would have to be multiplied by 6 to achieve the Sustainable Development Goal in question. As for sanitation, more than 1.5 billion people have no access to the most basic services, and efforts need to be multiplied by 5.

Water plays an increasingly important role in climate change issues. In the final text adopted by COP28 on climate in December 2023, a Global Adaptation Goal was formulated. The very first of the seven paragraphs mentions water and sanitation, clearly characterizing their preponderant role in climate change adaptation. Water is again mentioned directly in the fourth.

As mentioned above, it took 46 years for the UN to organize a world conference specifically dedicated to water. In March 2023, the FWP therefore put forward the need for regular meetings dedicated to water to other countries and stakeholders. The FWP welcomed the UN General Assembly’s decision to organize two further conferences, in 2026 and 2028. Things now seem to be speeding up.

Kazakhstan and France have also announced the holding of a One Water Summit in September 2024 in New York. PFE is looking forward to organizing the event and is participating in its steering committee.

A wind of optimism is blowing over global water governance, and the FWP will of course be working to reinforce the usefulness of these meetings, in collaboration with France and French water stakeholders.

The third part of Daniel Zimmer’s book focuses on optimism, the optimism of will. While he is interested in solutions, and in particular in nature-based solutions, the author speaks more generally of the need to find the optimum balance between efficiency, sobriety and resilience in the way we use water. Regenerative approaches could well help us achieve this, as they draw their inspiration from ecosystems that have been striving to find such optimums for millions of years.

The PFE also reminds us that one of the main lines of action for water will be to break down silos. Water must not speak only to Water. The PFE wants to collaborate, to count among its members players from finance, insurance, construction and other industries, and so on. The challenges of water concern us all, and it’s up to all of us to contribute to the debate.

 

[1] https://www.partenariat-francais-eau.fr/en/

[2] www.eclm.fr. Publishing house of the Charles Léopold Mayer Foundation for Human Progress (FPH), Éditions Charles Léopold Mayer (ECLM) publishes works on ecological, economic and social transition. It supports those involved in the transition so that they can develop, format and disseminate their advocacy through books.

[3] https://www.stockholmresilience.org/research/planetary-boundaries.html

[4] https://sdgs.un.org/conferences/water2023

[5] https://www.unwater.org/publications/who/unicef-joint-monitoring-program-update-report-2023

 

Sophie Thomasset 

Deputy Director, French Water Partnership

Sophie Thomasset holds a degree in hydrology-hydrogeology from the Université Pïerre et Marie Curie -Paris VI. She was EAH (Eau, Assainissement Hygiène) project manager with Action Contre La Faim and Oxfam for five years. Her longest assignments were in Liberia, Haiti and Sudan, but she was also part of the “emergency group”, on short-term assignments.

Sophie then joined the world of Foundations (Fondation Ensemble, Fondation Yves Rocher), where for 10 years she supported international projects in the fields of water and sanitation, sustainable agriculture and agroforestry, and forestry.

Sophie joined the French Water Partnership in 2022 as Deputy Director.

 

Discover the PFE website : www.partenariat-francais-eau.fr/en/