Water is one of our most precious resources. On the one hand, it is essential for our survival. On the other hand, we need large quantities of it to sustain our agriculture, energy and economy. But as this 'blue gold' becomes increasingly scarce due to the climate crisis, we urgently need to find solutions for how to best manage our water. That is why we need an EU Blue Deal that secures the future of our water and guarantees the human right to water. At the same time, we need to ensure that we build resilient and sustainable water management. This means not only ensuring fair distribution and guaranteeing priority of human use. It also means improving our infrastructure to reduce water losses and create an integrative and digitalised water management. This requires the necessary funding and management. An EU Blue Deal that puts people first must therefore include a 'golden rule' for investment, a focus on tackling water poverty, and respect and defend the exemption from the Concessions Directive for water.

Keynote:

Marthe Wens, Assistant Professor, Water and Climate Risk group at the Institute for Environmental Studies, VU Amsterdam

Commentary:

Jan Willem Goudriaan, General Secretary, EPSU

Panel:

Thomas Kattnig, Vice-President of Group II and Vice-President of TEN Section, EESC

Claudia Olazábal, Head of Unit "Sustainable Freshwater Management", DG Environment

Ben Lennon, Advisor, ETUC

Gudrun Winkler, Senior Advisor, "Management Systems and Technologies", HAMBURG WASSER

Moderation:

Michaela Kauer, Director of the Brussels office of the City of Vienna

Languages: German and English (with simultaneous translation).