Professor Kareem Hassan Alwan, Dean of the Center for Urban and Regional Planning for Graduate Studies, participated in the scientific symposium entitled “Integrating Water Conflict Sensitivities into Academia,” held by the UNESCO Institute for Water Education under the theme “Water, Peace, and Security.” The symposium brought together presidents of the universities of Wasit and Basra, professors from the University of Technology, water specialists from the Ministry of Water Resources and Agriculture, foreign affairs, and several civil society organizations.
The symposium aimed to examine how the results of the Water, Peace, and Security Partnership in southern Iraq (Wasit, Maysan, Basra, and Dhi Qar) can contribute to comprehensive, integrated, and informed responses to water-related instability.
At the beginning of his participation, Dr. Alwan conveyed the greetings of the President of the University of Baghdad, Professor Bahaa Ibrahim Insaf, to the symposium organizers. He discussed with them the local reality of the water crisis and conflicts in the midst of global climate change, the role of the environment and regional geography in water policy, and the agreed-upon quotas, both locally and internationally.
The morning sessions included a meeting with a select group of academics from various Iraqi universities, along with international organizations, to discuss activating solutions based on the tools and methods of partnerships for water, peace, security, and local action. They also discussed opportunities for cooperation between governorates on common water-related challenges, with the participation of the federal government and local authorities.
