Welcome to the Decade’s Weekly! Every week until 22 March 2015 we bring you the latest news from the International Decade for Action ’Water for Life’ 2005-2015. Please feel free to share this newsletter. You can also access this newsletter online.

Water and sustainable development: get ready for World Water Day!
In preparation for World Water Day 2015 the UN-Water Decade Programme on Advocacy and Communication (UNW-DPAC) has prepared a Focus Area and a series of Information Briefs where you can learn more on water, sustainable development, the MDGs and the SDGs.
>> Access the Focus Area
>> Access the Information Briefs

With less than two months to go to World Water Day (22 March) many organisations and groups are already preparing events and activities. The official World Water Day celebrations this year will be held in New Delhi, India, on Friday 20 March. This will also be the occasion to launch the World Water Development Report 2015 ’Water for a Sustainable World’. This year’s theme, 'Water and Sustainable Development', encourages thinking around how water links to all areas we need to consider to create the future we want. Water is fundamental to the three dimensions of sustainable development, including social needs, economic development and environmental limits, and a cross-cutting driver. Moving from a sectoral approach towards a holistic one, which captures interconnections between food, energy, health, trade, the environment and water is necessary. Each year, UN-Water provides resources to inspire celebrations for World Water Day and has just launched the 2015 World Water Day website. The website takes the visitor on a journey to learn about water and sustainable development through short informative texts and visuals before proposing ideas how to celebrate World Water Day or learn more. There is also material available for download and an events section where organisations and groups can promote and search for events happening in their regions. Share your activities, ideas, films, learning material and resources! World Water Day is marked on 22 March every year. It’s a day to make a difference for the members of the global population who suffer from water related issues and to prepare for how we manage water in the future. In 1993, the United Nations General Assembly designated 22 March as the first World Water Day. Twenty-two years later, World Water Day is celebrated around the world shining the spotlight on a different issue every year.
>> More information

Indigenous peoples’ agricultural practices typically incorporate sustainable use of land and water resources, as well as various habitats and economic, social and cultural components. Fifty representatives of indigenous peoples' organizations from all over the world gathered on 12 and 13 February at the International Fund for Agriculture Development (IFAD) headquarters in Rome to discuss traditional food systems and sustainable rural development. Kanayo F. Nwanze, the President of IFAD, opened the forum together with Victoria Tauli-Corpuz, UN Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. A unique initiative within the United Nations system, the Forum institutionalizes IFAD's consultation and dialogue with indigenous peoples' representatives at the national, regional and international levels. IFAD is the United Nations agency specialized in rural development, based in Rome - the UN’s food and agriculture hub.
>> Concept note >> Agenda >> More information

On 9 February 2015 the UNESCO Institute for Water Education published a booklet containing 50 innovative solutions in the field of water and development. The innovations were created with their global partnership network to develop, implement and validate novel solutions that ultimately aim to improve the quality of life on the planet. Innovations are often of a technological nature, but their adoption also has social, economic, environmental, governance, institutional and political dimensions. The research-based innovations originate from the six research themes of UNESCO-IHE that are aligned with relevant international and national science programmes. In addition, UNESCO-IHE has also developed a number of innovative products concerning education and capacity development.
>> More information and access to the publication

On the occasion of World Wetlands Day (2 February), the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) published a series of press briefs focusing on the value of wetlands, as well as the role of wetlands in relation to: ecosystem services; meeting the challenges of the future; the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs); and the Aichi Biodiversity Targets. The briefs point out that wetlands are some of the most important bio-diverse areas in the world and, inter alia, provide fresh water, and purify and filter harmful waste from water. According to the CBD, the proposed SDGs recognize the need to restore and manage water-related ecosystems, including wetlands, in order to address water scarcity and water risks, and wetlands are specifically mentioned in a number of SDG targets, including on: ensuring availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all (Goal 6);
>> Access the press briefs >> More information on the Convention on Biological Diversity

Date: 13-14 February 2015
Place: Cabo Verde
Organiser/s: World Meteorological Organisation, Government of Cabo Verde.

"Africa is extremely vulnerable to the increasing impacts of climate change, which will worsen food insecurity and water stress for the continent’s growing population," said Michel Jarraud, World Meteorological Organization (WMO) Secretary-General and Chair of UN-Water. The African Ministerial Conference on Meteorology (AMCOMET) will focus on how to improve the provision and use of weather and climate services which will be vital to help the continent cope with shocks caused by extreme weather and climate change. It will be preceded by a meeting from 3-9 February of Permanent Representatives of African countries at the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO), and by a Technical preparation meeting for AMCOMET on 10-12 February. Outcomes of the meetings in Cabo Verde will inform discussions on Sustainable Development Goals and feed into the 3rd World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction in Japan in March 2015 and the UN Climate Change negotiations in Paris in December 2015.
>> Read the full press release

Date: 19-21 February 2015
Place: Delft, The Netherlands
Organiser/s: UNESCO-IHE Institute for Water Education

’Let's Talk About Water’ is a program designed to bring film and hydrologic science together to spark meaningful dialogue amongst scientists, students and the greater public. Three feature films will be shown on 3 consecutive days at Filmhuis Lumen in Delft, this year all focusing on floods, flooding, and Disaster Risk Management, as well as infrastructure and mobility in times of flood. In addition, the Workshop Film, Scientific Visualizations and Water will be hosted at UNESCO-IHE on Friday, February 20.
>> More information
>> Access the programme

Date: 23-24 February 2015
Place: Kingston, Jamaica
Organiser/s: Ministry of Water, Land, Environment and Climate Change of Jamaica, United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), UWI Consulting Inc.

The outcome document of the 3rd International Small Island Developing States (SIDS) Conference - the SIDS Accelerated Modalities of Action (SAMOA) Pathway -endorsed green economy as an important tool for achieving sustainable development and poverty reduction, and calls upon the United Nations system to strengthen support of SIDS that want to pursue green economy policies. This Conference will bring together policymakers, civil society, academia and the private sector to discuss cross-fertilization of ideas, experiences and institutional innovations to transition to a green economy at the national and regional levels and how these efforts can help in advancing implementation of the SAMOA Pathway, which includes specific efforts in relation to water and sanitation (paragraphs 64 and 65).
>> More information on the Conference
>> Learn more about the SAMOA Pathway