On 21 March 2025, the CEI-Executive Secretariat participated in the workshop the “Role of Science Diplomacy in Water Supplies”, held in Venice in the framework of the UN World Water Day and the World Day for Glaciers.
The event was jointly organised by the CEI, the University for Continuing Education Krems, the Institute for the Danube Region and Central Europe, as well as by the host UNESCO Regional Bureau for Science and Culture in Europe.
Enhancing sustainable water management through international cooperation is a pressing challenge on a global scale, thus addressing the entire membership of the CEI. Therefore, the CEI has been actively engaged in this field since several years. Among the actions that are currently ongoing, the CEI is leading the Interreg IPA ADRION project ASAP (aiming to enhance maritime protection against pollutant spills, especially in large-scale accidents that cannot be managed by a single country); and, through its Know-how Exchange Programme (KEP), it is financing the project TRUE BLUE (aiming to develop capacities in sustainable blue economy in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro).
The programme of the workshop envisaged a thorough presentation of the latest “United Nations World Water Development Report”, as well as an open reflection on the nexus between scientific research and diplomatic practice to improve transboundary water governance. Successful experiences and common challenges from strategic areas such as the Danube, the Black Sea and the Adriatic-Ionian basins were discussed by experts through a holistic and multidisciplinary approach, which touched upon also the role of art and culture for positive social and environmental transformations.
For more info: lombardo@cei.int