The InterEcoForum's 8th annual event was held on the 21st and 22nd of March in Marbella, Spain. The conference, supported by the UN Water Department, focused on Water for Sustainable Development and its key objective was to work towards an innovative future for the water sector. Conference topics included water pollution, the freshwater crisis, sustainable water management, innovation in the fields of water recycling, conservation and consumption, sustainable and affordable solutions for water scarcity using solar power, urban water and waste management, economic value of water & financial innovation, and water and energy development strategy.

 

The conference attracted local and national companies, such as Ly Company and Zersty, local environmental councillor Manuel Cerdeñas, and international speakers and representatives from a wide variety of organisations and sectors, including Jaqueline Jackson from Trucost, part of S&P Global. She spoke engagingly about revenue at risk as a result of water scarcity and why water for sustainable development is crucial but can also be a competitive advantage.

 

Also speaking was Comrade Sunny Ofehe, an environmental and human rights activist from Nigeria who was recently declared as a Governorship aspirant in the Delta State of Nigeria. In 2005, Mr Ofehe founded the non-governmental HNDC (Hope for the Niger Delta Campaigns), headquartered in Rotterdam in the Netherlands.

 

He presented the Niger Delta as a case study for the analysis of wider issues, such as Water for Sustainable Development and the Impact on Rural Community Development.

 

“I’ve been an activist for several years now, and it’s been all talk, even at the UN level, at the EU level,” he said.

 

“In as much as my optimism is not high, I still believe that we should continue to engage. At the right time, we will find a solution to the problem that is globally affecting us.”