The 2024 Danube Water Forum "Riding the wave: Water Sector Innovations for a new Climate Reality" will convene on 29 and 30 May, 2024 in in the city of Brasov, back to back with back to back with a Board meeting of the International Water Association (IWA) as well as the annual UBP Danube Hub workshop and several business meetings.
The Forum is organised by the Danube Water Program, run by IAWD and the World Bank, and co-funded by the Austrian Government, in cooperation with the Utility of the Future – Center of Excellence. Local hosts of the event are IAWD members Compania Apa Brasov and the Romanian Water Association, ARA.
Water and climate change are inextricably linked. Extreme weather events are making water more scarce, more unpredictable, more polluted or all three. These impacts throughout the water cycle threaten sustainable development, biodiversity, and people’s access to water and sanitation. Water and wastewater utilities in the Danube region suffer from high energy costs, an aging workforce, a constant under investment into the sector, all while adapting to a new climate reality.
The Danube Water Conference will focus on the impact of a changing climate on the region’s water sector with sessions exploring recent developments and their effects on utilities and highlighting best practice examples how to face them. The conference's objective is to foster cooperation and knowledge exchange to tackle the emerging challenges faced by the Danube region's water sector. The Forum will draw more than 150 senior water professionals and provide sufficient opportunities to network and make valuable connections. The Forum's language will be English with translation into Romanian. Only physical participation will be possible.
Speakers
Session 1
2024 Danube Water Forum Opening Session
29 May,15:00 - 16:30
Introduction
Mr. Raimund Mair, Senior Water Resource Management Specialist, DWP Program Leader, World Bank, Austria
Introduction
Dr. Katerina Schilling, Head of Secretariat, IAWD, Austria
Welcome words from the Austrian Ministry of Finance
Dr. Elisabeth Gruber, Director for International Financial Institutions, Austrian Federal Ministry of Finance, Austria
Welcome words from the World Bank
Dr. Winston Yu, Practice Manager, Water, Europe and Central Asia, World Bank, Austria
Welcome words from IAWD
Mr. Walter Kling, IAWD President, Austria
Welcome words from the DWF Hosts
Mr. Teodor Popa, COO, APA Brasov, Romania
Welcome words from the DWF Hosts
Dr. Ilie Vlaicu, President, Romanian Water Association, Romania
Welcome words from the romanian local authorities
Mr. Serban Todorica-Constantin, President, Brasov County Council, Romania
Welcome words from IWA
Mr. Tom Mollenkopf AO, Director and Independent Advisor, President and Board Member, International Water Association, UK
Water Sector Innovations for a new Climate Reality
Mr. Kala Vairavamoorthy, CEO, International Water Association, UK
Framing the debate (panelist discussion including electronic voting to engage the audience)
Moderated by Dr. Monika Weber-Fahr, Senior Expert, Austria
Panelist
Dr. Kala Vairavamoorthy, CEO, International Water Association, UK
Panelist
Dr. Winston Yu, Practice Manager, Water, Europe and Central Asia, World Bank, Austria
Panelist
Mr. Gheorghe Constantin, Ministry of Environment, Water and Forests, Romania
Panelist
Ms. Vera Eiro, Vice President, WAREG, Italy
Panelist
Ms. Elsa Belba, YWP, Albania
Launch of Waterwise EU campaign
Mr. Emil Andersen, Head of Unit, European Commission/ DG Environment, Belgium
Session 2
Networking and Poster Session
29 May, 16:30 - 18:00
Chair
Ms. Antonia Püspök, Community Manager, IAWD
Co-chair
Vasilije Matijasevic, YWP, Serbia
Development of an in situ method for the removal of microplastics from the aquatic environment
Dr. Ula Rozman, University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Chemistry and Chemical Technology, Slovenia
NATALIE Project
Predicting the future of hydrological systems
Forecasting Discharge with E04AI along the Danube River
Assessing the applicability of the MARRMoT Toolbox for continuous rainfall-runoff modeling of small Hungarian catchments
Digital Twin Technology to Optimize
Operation of Water Distribution Systems
Maria Cheveresan, DHI, Romania
Session 3
Setting the Scene: The Sector's challenges in a new climate reality
30 May, 09:00 - 10:30
Chair
Dr. Winston Yu, Practice Manager, Water, Europe and Central Asia, World Bank, Austria
Co-chair
Dr. Ula Rozman, YWP, Slovenia
Climate change and droughts in the Danube region
Dr. Taher Kahil, Leader Water Security Research Group, International Institute for Applied System Analysis (IIASA), Austria
Climate resilience in EU water service directives
Mr. Michel Sponar, Deputy Head of Unit, Marine Environment & Clean Water Services, Directorate General for the Environment, European Commission, Brussels
Role of regulation to strengthen climate resilient water services
Dr. Ivaylo Kastchiev, Director for Water and Sanitation Services, Energy and Water Regulatory Commission, Bulgaria
Moldova: Challenges in the Water Services Sector and EU Accession
Mr. Sergiu Tabacaru, Head of the Directorate for WSS policies, Minstry of Infrastructure and Regional Development, Moldova
Agile policy and institutional analysis and innovative regulatory models to boost sector reform
Mr. Camilo Lombana Cordoba, Senior Water Supply and Sanitation Specialist, World Bank, U.S.
Session 4 and 5
Circling the drain - Trends in wastewater treatment, water reuse and circular economy
30 May, 11:15 - 13:15
Chair
Dr. Enkelejda Gjinali, Lecturer, Polytechnic University of Tirana, Albania
Co-chair
Ms. Elsa Belba, YWP, Albania
Water in a Circular Economy and Resilience (WICER) Framework
Dr. Diego Juan Rodriguez, Lead Economist, World Bank
Turning wastewater into a resource - the example of Skopje
Ms. Lindita Sakiri, Ministry of Environment and Physical Planning, North Macedonia
Flowing with Nature: Sustainable Wastewater Solutions for small settlements
Ms. Alenka Zalznik, Project Manager, Limnos, Slovenia
Swiss experience quaternary treatment of wastewater
Mr. Simon Bitterwolf, position, EAWAG, Switzerland
Water reuse contributing to urban service water - the case of Madinaty WWTP
Mr. Erwin Moetz, position, country
Feasibility study in support of future policy developments of the Sewage Sludge Directive
Dr. Lukas Egle, position, Joint Research Center, Spain
Session 6
Be prepared - Proactive management of water resources in a changing climate
30 May, 11:15 - 12:15
Chair
Ms. Kathia Havens, Program Analyst, World Bank, Austria
Co-chair
Jakub Sochor, YWP, Czech Republic
Romanian Drought Risk Assessment
Ms. Elena Daniela Ghita, Water Resources Management Specialist, World Bank, Romania
Innovative managing of water resources from a supply perspective - the example of REWAG
Dr. Robert Greb, Chairman of the Board Regensburger Energie- und Wasserversorgung AG & Co KG (REWAG), Germany
What the Future Has in Store: A New Paradigm for Water Storage
Ms. Eileen Burke, Lead Water Resources Management Specialist, World Bank, U.S.
Session 7
Maximizing revenue - Minimizing loss: Strategies for climate resilient water service delivery
30 May, 12:15 - 13:15
Chair
Mr. Stjepan Gabric, Senior Water Supply and Sanitation Specialist, World Bank, Austria
Co-chair
Ms. Klaudia Negyesi, YWP, Hungary
Utility Drought Risk Assessment
Ms. Olivia Becher, Researcher, University of Oxford, UK
Challenges and Opportunities to tackle Non-Revenue Water in Bulgaria
Ivan Ivanov, President Bulgarian Water Association, Bulgaria
Navigating Water Loss & Enhancing Resilience in Croatia
Ms. Vesna Grizelj Simic, Deputy Director, Hidroprojekt-Ing d.o.o., Croatia
Performance Based Contracting as a tool to improve service efficiency
Ms. Ana Rita Santos, Coordinator of the Water Services Engineering Sector, AGS Water Solutions RAJA S.A., Portugal
Session 8
Why work with water - Creative ways to engage and grow talent
30 May,14:45 - 15:45
Chair
Ms. Elisabeta Poci, Association Development Manager, IAWD
Co-chair
Ms. Monika Sabic Runjavec, YWP
Exploring options & strategies to attract young talents into water sector
Mr. Camilo Lombana Cordoba, Senior Water Supply and Sanitation Specialist, World Bank, U.S.
Personal reflections on navigating the water sector workforce as a young female engineer
Ms. Fjolla Lasku, Head of Waste Water Treatment Plant, KRU "Gjakova" SH.A, Kosovo
Attracting and retaining young talent – the example of Apa Brasov
Mr. Teodor Popa, Financial Manager, APA Brasov, Romania
Women in Water Project – How to support everyone’s contribution
Ms. Arlinda Ibrahimllari, Representative of the IWA "Sustainability in the Water Sector" Specialist Group, Canada
Session 9
Back to the future - New approaches and technologies for sustainable utility management
30 May,14:45 - 15:45
Chair
Mr. Radoslav Russev, UMT Coordinator, Wadata, Bulgaria
Co-chair
Mr. Christian Gradwohl, YWP, Austria
Utility of the Future: Igniting processes, transformation and behavioral change in water and sanitation utilities to accelerate universal access
Mr. Federico Perez Penalosa, Senior Water and Sanitation Consultant, World Bank, Albania
UMT Graduation Project: Remote measurement of water consumption by end users based on the LoRaWAN standard
Ms. Ivana Torbica, Investment, Development and Project Engineer, PU Vodovod Gradiska, Bosnia and Herzegovina
The seeds of innovation in Sofiyska Voda, part of Veolia
Mr. Lyubomir Filipov, Strategic partnerships and regulation Director, Sofia Water, Bulgaria
Development of Aqua Monitor – a digitalisation project driven by YWP-K
Mr. Veprim Jasharaj, Senior Software Developer, YWP-K, Kosovo
Session 10
Walk the talk - Enhancing water services through effective communication & 2024 Danube Water Forum Closing
30 May,15:45 - 16:45
Chair
Dr. Monika Weber-Fahr, Senior Expert, Austria
Driving decisions through sharing data - NewIBNET's Connect and Learn Community
Ms. Ana Badhofer, Partnership and Engagement Officer, IAWD, Austria
GWP CEE Summer school – a good practice example of youth engagement and cooperation
Mr. Ionut Procop, President, GWP Romania, Romania
The young perspective - voices of the YWP co-moderators
moderated by Dr. Monika Weber-Fahr, Senior Expert, Austria
Farewell by the hosts
Dr. Ilie Vlaicu, President, Romanian Water Association, Romania
Farewell by the hosts
Mr. Teodor Popa, Financial Manager, APA Brasov, Romania
Closing of the 2024 Danube Water Forum
Dr. Katerina Schilling, Head of Secretariat, IAWD, Austria
Closing of the 2024 Danube Water Forum
Ms. Kathia Havens, Program Analyst, World Bank, Austria
