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【JWF News Vol. 192】21 October 2020
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◇ Contents ◇
・Forward Spin-offs in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic
・Announcement from the Japan Water Forum
– The 4th Asia-Pacific Water Summit (4th APWS) will be held on 23rd and 24th April 2022
– The 3rd APWF Webinar will be organized in 10th November
・Report from the Japan Water Forum
– The 3rd Joint Executive Committee (JEC) Meeting of the 4th APWS
– Launch of the APWF Webinar for the 4th APWS
– JWF Fund 2019: Improvement of health conditions through pump installation and WASH training (Papua New Guinea)
– AQUA PROGRAM 2019 Completed!
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・Foreword Spin-offs in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic
By Dr. Kotaro Takemura, Secretary General of the Japan Water Forum
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New Schedule for the 4th Asia-Pacific Water Summit (APWS)
All through 2020, humanity has been fighting the novel coronavirus. The 4th APWS, which was scheduled for this October, has been postponed nearly a year. On September 18, the 3rd Joint Executive Committee meeting of the 4th APWS took place online with the participation of 16 members. It was the second online meeting.
At the committee meeting, the secretariat proposed that the 4th APWS has been rescheduled and will be held in April, 2022. This was presented after careful consultations with the relevant organizations, taking into account various other events at home and abroad. The proposal was agreed by the committee.
The agenda item of how to reflect water and COVID-19 in the summit’s theme was discussed as well. The committee, composed of prominent figures from the region, exchanged opinions on a variety of subjects, including guidelines for a post-COVID-19 society.
A summary of the proceedings will be posted on the JWF website soon. In addition, new initiatives proposed and made public as part of preparations for the 4th APWS were an APWF Webinar Series and a new initiative for the youth.
Proposal for a spin-off: A new initiative for the youth
A new initiative for the youth is aimed at promoting exchanges between high school students, particularly with regards to the water sector, and encouraging them to acquire the fundamental knowledge needed by internationally oriented people.
Many high school students have been involved in a variety of water-related activities such as the conservation of the river environment. Though there have been several occasions to honor and publicize their significant activities, the youth initiative has several purposes: The first is to encourage high school students to exchange opinions over the Internet, especially focused on water issues. The second is to encourage them to pay renewed attention to water in their own communities after gaining an understanding of current conditions in other places through exchanges. The third is to urge them to understand that water is a critical factor underlying broader challenges in a time of climate and environmental change. The last is to give them an opportunity to deepen their insight into the future through various exchanges.
High-school students belong to the Internet generation. They easily send messages and videos while taking a great interest in the situations in other places. Such exchanges need not be limited to Japan. If young people expand their exchanges to other countries in Asia and around the world, they will be able to gain vast experience as international people.
Proposal for a spin-off: APWF Webinar Series
The word “webinar” is combination of the words “web” and “seminar”. The Asia-Pacific Water Forum (APWF), organizer of the 4th APWS, has launched the APWF Webinar Series as a new initiative, in cooperation with partner organizations.
Though lecturers are requested to speak in front of a camera without a live audience, they can ask and answer questions. Contrary to a usual seminar held in a venue, there are nearly no restrictions on the number of participants and the location. If recorded videos are posted on the Internet, everyone can watch them without a time constraint.
Everyone around the world can watch lectures by prominent experts from all over the world and acquire a high degree of water-related knowledge. If videos of the APWF Webinar Series are stored as a video library, they will form a collection of great speeches worth handing over to the next generation.
Two webinars have already been held: on September 23 and October 7, attracting more than 100 viewers. The Japan Water Forum, secretariat of APWF, intends to focus on this Webinar Series.
Mainstreaming spin-offs
People throughout the world are making strenuous efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic. Stakeholders in the water sector, including the JWF, are no exception. We have been seeking new activities related to solving water problems, such as water and sanitation, which is an integral part of infectious disease prevention, and water-related disasters, which have become more obvious during the pandemic. The web conference of the 3rd Joint Executive Committee meeting of the 4th APWS was one such effort. Youth initiatives and webinars are other examples.
The word “spin-off” may give the inadequate impression of a less important by-product. However, I believe that the youth initiative will become mainstream in the field of human resource development and education, and webinars will also become mainstream in creating new partnerships in a sustainable society.
The staff of the JWF will continue its efforts, and instead of being defeated by the coronavirus, will use it as a spring-board.
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・Announcement from the Japan Water Forum
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– The 4th Asia-Pacific Water Summit (4th APWS) will be held on 23rd and 24th April 2022
Last April, considering the complex difficulties caused by the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic, we regrettably announced that the 4th Asia-Pacific Water Summit (4th APWS) was postponed. However, after careful consultations with the relevant organizations, it is our great pleasure to announce that the 4th APWS has been rescheduled and will be held on 23rd and 24th April 2022.
▼Please visit the following website for details▼
https://www.waterforum.jp/all/policy_recommendations/apws/2020/1007/?p=15570
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– The 3rd APWF Webinar will be organized in 10th November
The 3rd APWF Webinar will be organized in 10th November 2020, 13:30 to 14:30
(JST).
The Speaker: Prof Shahbaz Khan, Director, UNESCO Regional Science Bureau for
Asia and the Pacific
Topic: Re-Charting Water Pathways for Greener Recovery Options
▼Please visit the APWF website for more detail▼
http://apwf.org/3rd-apwf-webinar-re-charting-water-pathways-for-greener-recovery-options/
▼The Registration▼
https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_X6_d-Y3ATF2EOaNukKdL5w
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・Report from the Japan Water Forum
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– The 3rd Joint Steering Committee (JEC) meeting of the 4th APWS
The 3rd JEC meeting took place on 18 September, 2020 via web conference with the participation of 16 JEC members from Japan and overseas including two Vice-Chairs, Dr. Norihito Tambo (former President of Hokkaido University and President of River Center of Hokkaido), and Mr. Kazufumi Onishi (Mayor of Kumamoto City).
The secretariat has presented the draft of a new schedule for the 4th Asia-Pacific Water Summit (APWS). All participants have agreed to the proposal.
Assuming that the 4th APWS will be held according to the new schedule in 2022, the secretariat has revealed two initiatives to make the summit more productive. One is an APWF webinar series, in which APWF member organizations including UN organizations will provide the latest information about water issues, including countermeasures against COVID-19. Another is the launching of youth initiative, targeted at high school students.
▼Please visit the following website for details▼
https://www.waterforum.jp/all/policy_recommendations/apws/2020/1007/?p=15523?tag=en,rep_en
(Reported by Shigenori Asai, Director)
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– Launch of the APWF Webinar for the 4th APWS
The Asia-Pacific Water Forum (APWF), which Japan Water Forum is the secretariat, launched the APWF webinar series as a part of the important preparation process for the 4th APWS. The objective of the APWF webinar series is to widen and deep-dive into the knowledge of government officials from 48 countries in Asia and the Pacific, including those working in Japanese embassies, and to hold discussions on the latest water and water-related issues from different perspectives. The speakers will be invited from the network of APWF member organizations as well as from other international organizations. We aim to organize one webinar per month until the 4th APWS.
The APWF webinars held twice to date. We had roughly 100 listeners, respectively.
▼Please visit the following website for details▼
https://www.waterforum.jp/all/policy_recommendations/apwf/2020/1021/?p=15745tag=en,rep_en
(Reported by Yumiko Asayama, Manager)
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– JWF Fund 2019: Improvement of health conditions through pump installation and WASH training (Papua New Guinea)
Under the JWF Fund 2019, seven projects in six countries were selected and funded out of 302 applications submitted from 36 countries.
The completed project report will be posted monthly.
▼Project in Papua New Guinea▼
https://www.waterforum.jp/all/grass_roots_projects/jwf/2020/1020/?p=15686tag=en,rep_en
(Reported by Shigenori Asai, Director and Miyo Tabata, Assistant Manager)
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– AQUA PROGRAM 2019 Completed!
AQUA PROGRAM is a joint project with a jewelry brand “4℃” and Japan Water Forum.
It aims to bring “beauty” and “inspire” the women of developing countries who face serious water and hygiene problems by supporting water issues.
As the twelfth-year program, aiming at freeing women from burden of fetching water as well as securing safe drinking water, we have installed rainwater harvesting tanks at 50 households and carried out training sessions on operation and maintenance in a rural village, Morrelganj Upazila, Khulna Division, Bagerhat District, Bangladesh.
▼Please visit the following website for details▼
https://www.waterforum.jp/all/grass_roots_projects/yondoshi/2020/0917/?p=15297tag=en,rep_en
(Reported by Shigenori Asai, Director and Miyo Tabata, Assistant manager)
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JWF News Vol. 192 / 21 October 2020
Japan Water Forum
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