IDA Leaders Summit

IDA World Congress
Leaders Summit

October 11, 2022

The effects of climate change, combined with the ever-growing demand for clean water across the globe, underscore the urgency of sustainable water solutions. We must chart resilient water solutions and enlist the global community in this mission.

The Leaders Summit takes us one step closer to addressing such solutions. Bringing into dialogue executives from various sectors including finance, legal, project development, public and private utilities, industrial water users, and technical solution providers, the Summit will provide a common space for meaningful conversations to happen. Addressed topics include how to be Water Positive, ESG Criteria and Ensuring Water Sector PPPs fit the 2030 UN Agenda, how water will drive hydrogen, capturing the value of water, how to innovate the water sector, net zero and water positive goals for industry, the looming water crisis and the effect on food security, and the water energy-food nexus.

Schedule

Emcee Morning Session: Mr. Imad Mahkzoumi, IDA Board Member, CEO, ENOIA, UAE
09:00 – 09:15
Welcome Remarks
  • Ms. Shannon McCarthy, IDA Secretary General, Italy

  • Mr. Carlos Cosin, IDA President and CEO of Almar Water Solutions, Spain

09:15 – 09:30
Keynote: Addressing the Energy-Water Nexus
  • H.E. Eng. Ahmed Mohammed Belajar Al Rumaithi, Under Secretary for the Department of Energy, Abu Dhabi, UAE

09:30 – 10:30
Panel 1: The Looming Water Crisis and the Effect on Food Security

As the global population grows from 7 billion in 2010 to 9.8 billion in 2050, and incomes steadily grow across the developing world, despite current sluggish rates, overall food demand is on course to increase by more than 50%, and demand for animal-based foods by nearly 70%. Cropland area has been slightly rising over the last decades (only as the outcome of the expansion of agriculture and cattle breeding in emerging economies, which offset the decrease in the most advanced economies). Cropland per capita, though, has collapsed. Producing more calories in less land per capita is only feasible through significant increases in yields per land unit. Some productivity improvements have actually been observed, yet at a pace that would not allow us to hit the target. This has driven major pressures on water resources and soil, thus showing that enhanced water security (including through the diversification of water supply sources) within the context of climate change adaptation is a binding condition for food security.

This Leaders Summit session will look at this critical linkage from three atypical standpoints: the emphasis on food and water systems (rather than just on their long-term security), the importance of taking a long-term perspective from the regulatory point of view to pave the way for dialogue and to facilitate adaptation, and next generation marketplaces for water.

Moderator:

  • Dr. Gonzalo Delacamara, Director, IE Centre for Water & Climate Adaptation, Spain

Panelists:

  • Prof. John H. Lienhard V, Professor and the founding Director of the Abdul Latif Jameel Water and Food Systems Lab J-WAFS, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), USA
  • Mrs. Katrina Donaghy, CEO of Civic Ledgers, Australia
  • Mr. Adam Wilson, CEO, Essential Services Commission of South Australia (ESCOSA)
10:30 – 11:00
Refreshment Break
11:00 – 12:00
Panel 2: ESG Criteria and Ensuring Water Sector PPPs fit the 2030 UN Agenda

This panel brings developers, regulators, and lenders together to discuss the outcomes and success stories of PPP projects in the water sector and how this model has helped meet ESG criteria. World-class investors are conscious of the importance of sustainability to the success of long-term projects, which PPP projects are.

Moderator:

  • H.E. Eng. Khaled Al Quershi, CEO, SWPC, Saudi Arabia

Co-Moderator:

  • Dr. Tariq Nada, Vice President, ACWA Power Water CTS, Saudi Arabia

Panelists:

  • Mr. Robert Bryniak, CEO, Golden Sands Management Consulting, UAE
  • Mr. Roch Cheroux, CEO, Sydney Water, Australia
  • Mr. Paul Sciuto, CEO , Monterey One Waer, USA
  • Mr. Jose Diaz Caneja, CEO, Acciona Agua, Spain
12:00 – 13:00
Panel 3: The Future of Clean Energy through Green Hydrogen is Non-conventional Water

While solar and wind are well established in the renewable energy mix with significant market share, Hydrogen is now taking an innovative step towards opening a new path as a clean, local, and efficient energy source with commercial viability. Clean water is a critical resource for the electrolysis process, and it will (no doubt) take a distinct role in redefining the energy, mobility, and other vital sectors by producing green Hydrogen.

Moderator:

  • Mr. Carlos Cosin, IDA President, CEO, Almar Water Solutions, Spain

Panelists:

  • H.E. Eng. Ahmed Mohammed Belajar Al Rumaithi, Under Secretary, Department of Energy, Abu Dhabi, UAE
  • Dr. Juan Carlos de Pablo, Managing Partner, Ecoinversol, Spain
13:00 – 14:30 Lunch
Emcee Afternoon Session:

Mr. Borja Blanco, IDA Board Member, CEO, Aqua Advise, Spain

14:30 – 15:15
Panel 4: Capturing the Value of Water

Moderator: 

  • Mr. Gavin Van Tonder, Water Sector Head, NEOM, Saudi Arabia

Panelists:

  • Mr. Johnny Obeid, Vice President, Veolia Water Technologies, MENA
  • Dr. Hu Fleming, Partner, Upwell Water, USA
15:15 – 15:30
Keynote: H.E. Eng. Abdullah Ibrahim Al-Abdulkarim, Governor of SWCC, Saudi Arabia
15:30 – 15:45 Refreshment
15:45 – 16:00
IDA Talk: Future of Industrial Water
  • Mr. Devesh Sharma, IDA Vide President, CEO, Aquatech International, USA
16:00 – 16:15
IDA Talk: Building an Innovative Future
  • Dr. Marshall Davert, Head of Innovation, Stantec, USA
16:15 – 16:30
IDA Talk: The Red Book
  • Mr. Eduardo Orteu, Counsel, Gómez-Acebo & Pombo Abogados, Spain
16:30 – 17:15
Panel 5: Net Zero and Water Positive Goals for Industry

The global community’s dedication to ESGs has reached new levels. Industry represents a key stakeholder in this process and the growing commitment to reach net zero carbon and water positivity is a daily conversation. But… can this really be done? Join panelists represnting industrial water to discuss the various challenges and approaches to achieving this very important target.

Moderator:

  • Mr. Fady Juez, Managing Director, Metito, UAE

Co-Moderator:

  • Mr. Alejandro Sturniolo, Global Head of Water Reuse & Strategic Partnerships, H20 Innovation, Canada

Panelists:

  • Mrs. Eva Jalon, CEO, Sacyr Water, Spain
  • Mrs. Marta Verde, CEO, GS Inima Environment, Spain
17:15 – 17:30
Closing Remarks: Outgoing and Incoming IDA Presidents
18:30 – 20:30
Cocktail Reception (Invite Only)

ida world congress leaders summit 2019

In Pictures

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