This session addresses the growing challenges of water resources management under accelerating climate change and intensifying anthropogenic pressures, with a primary focus on Africa and Mediterranean region, complemented by insights from other climate-vulnerable contexts. Climate variability, rapid urbanization, agricultural expansion, ecosystem degradation, and population growth are placing increasing pressure on already stressed hydrological systems, underscoring the urgent need for equitable, cooperative, and climate-resilient water governance frameworks.
The session explores how action-oriented research, innovation, modelling, capacity development, and multi-stakeholder cooperation can support more adaptive and inclusive water management pathways. It emphasizes translating scientific knowledge into institutional strengthening, system thinking, policy processes, and practical implementation, while moving beyond monosectoral approaches toward integrated strategies that address equity, allocation trade-offs, and governance under a changing hydrological cycle.
We invite interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary contributions advancing water management under climate stress, with broader relevance through comparative or transferable lessons. Contributions may include:
- Climate-resilient and equitable water management case studies,
- Capacity development initiatives in water governance and climate adaptation,
- Cross-sectoral partnerships and co-production processes,
- Innovative tools and methodologies, including monitoring, Earth observation, modelling, digital twin, and decision-support systems,
- Governance and policy instruments promoting fairness and resilience.
By combining insights from African and Mediterranean experiences, the session seeks to identify scalable and context-sensitive pathways for cooperative and sustainable water resources management. Through dialogue and synthesis, it aims to generate actionable insights for water policy and practice and contribute to global debates on water governance and climate resilience.
All session participants are invited to attend a townhall (splinter) meeting associated with this session. Further details will be communicated in due course.