The IWA Programme Committee got together in Vienna in late February/early March to review the large number of submitted papers as well as input received from the IWA Management, based on which a proposal for the final technical-scientific programme of the 2008 World Water Congress in Vienna was drafted. Sixteen international experts received vital support from representatives of the IWA Headquarters and IWA Publishing. What complicated the task was that the conference programme has to respond to various different needs: its quality must live up to the high reputation which the conference enjoys all over the world and it must also attract as large an audience as possible. The following aspects were tackled to satisfy the 2,500 visitors expected to attend the Vienna conference in autumn:
- laying special focus on the Danube Region;
- meeting the requirements of possibly all relevant water management stakeholders – in particular those involved in science, administration, planning, operation, asset management, controlling and manufacturing of technical equipment;
- fostering know-how and experience exchange among experts at international level – in particular in areas with overlapping water-related issues (e.g. climate change, river basin management, etc);
- providing enough time in between sessions to promote personal contacts among conference participants, since strong and interdisciplinary networks are absolutely essential in science and economy;
- presenting the IWA to decision-makers and the public as a vital point of orientation in global water management.
An incredible number of 1,350 papers submitted to the World Water Congress jury by authors from seventy countries in all continents is convincing evidence of the reputation IWA has already gained despite its relatively short existence. All submissions have meanwhile undergone a thorough evaluation, with each paper being carefully reviewed by at least two high-ranking members from the pool of IWA experts. The best papers selected were classified into six main themes (further subdivided into 80 themes) as announced in the Call for Papers. The congress tracks are:
- water treatment (approx. 220 submissions),
- wastewater treatment (approx. 520),
- water resources and river basin management (approx. 180),
- managing & planning water services (125),
- design & operation of water systems (approx. 140),
- health and the environment (approx. 180 submissions).
Based on this comprehensive programme, the best 35 % of papers were selected as Long Oral Presentations of 15 minutes duration each and 17 % were chosen as Short Oral Presentations (5 minutes each). 35 % of the papers are posters, the five best of which will be awarded in a contest. The Vienna World Water Congress is the first that encouraged submission of interdisciplinary works on three selected themes already in the Call for Papers. After a thorough quality review, 48 submissions on these three Cross Cutting Themes – (a) adapting to climate change, (b) sustainable solutions for developing countries and (c) managing urban water metabolism in large cities – were eventually accepted.
In each session hall four subsequent sessions of ninety minutes each will be held on each conference day, with two coffee breaks and a lunch break offering refreshment between sessions. Conference participants are invited to use these breaks to look at the trade exhibition and poster presentations. In theory, participants will have the opportunity to attend 200 sessions in 13 different conference rooms throughout the 3 1/2 days of the conference.
Each conference day starts with two parallel Keynote Speeches held by in all eight highly reputed experts. Due to the overwhelming response to such speeches at the last IWA World Water Congress, the Vienna event is offering two halls for keynotes accommodating an audience of 450 each. Each Keynote Speech will be complemented by at least one workshop on such topics as water, climate, and energy; boundaries of science, research and technology; water, food production and nutrient management; one workshop will be held in conjunction with the World Bank and deal with wastewater systems “as judged by eye”.
The workshop format is particularly popular among managers of water management enterprises and administrative and industrial decision-makers. The Vienna conference programme comprises in all 35 workshops, which are scheduled to last between ninety minutes and a whole day. Like the oral presentations, the workshops account for half of the scientifictechnical programme.
The Danube Region will be presented on two entire days. One day is organised by the International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River (ICPDR), the other by the International Association of Water Supply Companies in the Danube Catchment Area (IAWD) as the conference co-organiser. The Mayor’s Day will be hosted by Vienna’s mayor Michael Häupl, who is also President of the Council of European Municipalities and Regions.
The opening and closing of the Congress are marked by special sessions at the Austria Center Vienna (ACV). The gigantic water event ends with a festive gala dinner at the Vienna Town Hall hosted by Mayor Häupl. Following the Programme Committee’s recent get-together in Vienna, the final programme will be available in mid- June. All scientific papers are published in the IWA journals.
Contributions will be available in electronic format already during the conference. Rather than complementing the IWA Specialist Group Meetings, IWA’s World Water Congresses are much more intended to bring together all those players that seek to contribute to a more reasonable use and protection of water resources, involving the support of a variety of different sectors.
Your participation in an IWA World Water Congress will without doubt help you increase your competency, broaden your personal network and strengthen your position within the network. At the same time, you make your knowhow available to those who urgently need it for solving their water problems.
At the very top of the agenda is the formation of expert teams; only they have the potential to find the best solution to each specific problem. But before the building of such efficient teams, a “common language” needs to be found. And this is exactly what the programme of the 2008 IWA World Water Congress in Vienna caters to!
(Sources: aqua press Int. 1/2008, Univ.-Prof. Dr. Helmut Kroiss)
o. Univ.-Prof. Dr. Helmut Kroiss
Chairman of the
IWA Programme Committee
