European citizens deliver declaration for sustainable water management

On 10 June representatives of local water management authorities and ministries of environment from Italy, Estonia, Latvia, France, and Belgium met in Brussels to discuss public participation in coastal water management policies.

The meeting, organised by adelphi, directly followed the Conference “Linking research to policy in the water sector” on 9 June, which culminated the participatory knowledge brokerage of the AWARE project with a "Citizen Declaration for Sustainable Coastal Water Management".

The European Economic and Social Committee hosted the conference, which was attended by members of several European Commission Directorate Generals and the Committee of Regions, as well as local decision makers. Participants appreciated the content and commitment of the AWARE Citizen Declaration and agreed that increased connectivity between science and policy is necessary; this conference added the importance and potential role of lay citizens to bridging this gap.

The thirty AWARE citizens, coming from five different countries and representing three European coastal zones spoke out, among others for more active involvement of citizens in policy making; for more focused education and awareness raising on environmental issues; for scientific ‘ambassadors’ to help policy makers and the public understand ecosystem challenges; for a balanced assessment of social, environmental and economic criteria; for immediate actions toward ecosystem health; and for more active involvement of all actors in coastal water management challenges.

An evaluation workshop with European water managers on 20 October will consolidate ideas for replicating the participatory knowledge brokerage of the AWARE project and identify further entry points for sharing and discussing the project results.