IAH will see a particularly busy year in 2022, with the World Water Day (WWD) theme, being: “Groundwater: Making the invisible visible” coming to fruition, seeing IAH continuing its contribution to the World Water Development Report. IAH will prepare a comprehensive list of activities to commemorate WWD across the year and will contribute to several international conferences, including:
- World Water Forum in Senegal, at which the WWDR 2022 will be launched
- International Conference: “Groundwater, Key to the Sustainable Development Goals” (May, IAH France NC, Paris)
- SIWI World Water Week (August, Stockholm)
- IAH 49th World Groundwater Congress (September, Wuhan), with the theme “Groundwater Sustainability and Poverty Reduction”.
- Groundwater Summit (December, Paris)
Conferences and other events will be held by IAH national chapters and commissions and networks, with the inclusion of outreach activities to inform and engage the wider community.
A Session at the EGU Conference is proposed by our SHG Network on a transdisciplinary approach to groundwater science. Eurokarst will take place in Malaga, supported by IAH Karst Commission. The MAR Commission will support the 11th International Symposium on Managed Aquifer Recharge (ISMAR11), in Long Beach, California.
We will publish a new book in our International Contributions to Hydrogeology series on ‘Groundwater for Sustainable Livelihoods and Equitable Growth’. IAH will publish new Strategic Overview Series papers on ‘Poverty reduction and groundwater’ and ‘River basin agencies and groundwater’. Translation of the series into multiple languages will continue. Building on initiatives led by IGRAC more than a decade ago, our Groundwater Quality Network proposes to produce a first groundwater salinity map for Africa.
We will continue to highlight the role of groundwater in meeting Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), especially SDG6, including promoting groundwater in integrated water resources management (IWRM) and river basin management planning globally.
Last but not least, after making calls to members and collaborators for input in 2021, IAH’s strategic plan for the period to 2030 will be published.