The Water Institute and Society of the Water Institute Graduate Students (SWIGS) hosted their annual World Water Day Celebration on Wednesday, March 22.
For the first time since 2019, participants gathered in person, this year in the Black and Gold Room of the SLC/PAC expansion, creating a fresh new feel which complimented the UN theme of Accelerating Change!
The morning session - WATER: Life, History, Art - featured a fireside chat that explored our intricate relationship with water; how it has shaped civilizations, reconfigured landscapes, formed political institutions, and inspired culture and art.
Giulio Boccaletti, Author of Water: A Biography, Ulrike Al-Khamis, Director and CEO, Aga Khan Museum and Dustin Garrick, Professor and University Research Chair in Water and Development Policy, School of Environment, Resources and Sustainability shared thought-provoking and unique perspectives that pushed well beyond academia into stories of universal origin, cultural and spiritual concepts of water.
“It's only in the past century that we have had conversations about water that are not cultural and political in nature.” – Giulio Boccaletti
Photo L to R: Dustin Garrick, Professor and University Research Chair in Water and Development Policy, School of Environment, Resources and Sustainability, Giulio Boccaletti, Author of Water: A Biography, Ulrike Al-Khamis, Director and CEO, Aga Khan Museum.
The afternoon panel - Water Careers of the Future - provided diverse practitioner perspectives on current and emerging water sector issues and shared invaluable insight and guidance with students and early career professionals embarking on their careers as water management professionals.
Featuring Monica Emelko, Professor and Canada Research Chair in Water Science, Technology and Policy, Bill Malyk, Vice-President Water Sector Lead Canada, WSP Golder, Carla Torchia, Manager Great Lakes National Programs Office, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Krystyn Tully, Owner, President and CEO, Entremission, panellists reflected on their personal journeys which led to current roles. They each reflected on critical life and career mentors who came in all different forms, partnerships that worked well and insight on things they may have done differently.
“You become the cumulation of all of the knowledge, skills, practices and techniques of the people you meet along the way, and you get to decide which ones you want to keep.” – Krystyn Tully
Photo L to R: Monica Emelko, Professor and Canada Research Chair in Water Science, Technology & Policy, Bill Malyk, Vice-President Water Sector Lead Canada, WSP Golder, Carla Torchia, Manager Great Lakes National Programs Office, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Krystyn Tully, Owner, President & CEO, Entremission.
Society of the Water Institute Graduate Students also hosted their popular evening social event in Uptown Waterloo providing an opportunity to network and socialize in-person with other event attendees.
On Sunday, March 26, the Aga Khan Museum in Toronto, held a World Water Day companion event entitled “Global Conversations” hosting a second talk by Giulio Boccaletti.
The Waterloo community was invited by the museum to reflect on the significance of this elemental substance with Boccaletti and journey through the museum collections gallery with an introduction to the themed installation, Waterby Associate Curator Bita Pourvash.
Special thanks to our 2023 World Water Day volunteers. If you were unable to join us this year, please visit our YouTube channel to view recordings of the events.
WATER: Life, History, Art
Water Careers of the Future
Snapshots from World Water Day 2023