Welcome to the April 2007 edition of the IWC eBulletin.

In this Issue

1. Message from the CEO
2. New IWC office for South Africa
3. IWC to host South African PhD student with $20,000 scholarship
4. IWC to train for Chinese representatives from the Yellow River
5. Masters Program Open for Enrolments
6. Register for the 2007 RiverSymposium and Environmental Flows Conference
7. Young Water Professionals Workshop at IWA ASPIRE Conference
8. A call for Australia to increase its regional water and sanitation funding
9. International News: Stockholm Water Prize Winner Announced
10. Partner News: UniWater initiative launched
11. IWC universities in Research Alliance to secure Southeast Queensland’s water future

Enrolments are now open for the new IWC Masters of Integrated Water Management for Semester 1, 2008, and we’re also happy to announce the IWC is on track to establishing an office in South Africa.  We will also host a South African PhD student with a $20,000 scholarship to study water issues in Australia.

In this edition we also bring you the winner of the Stockholm Water Prize winner, Professor Perry L McCarty of Stanford University along with other news from here at home, and abroad.

Mark Pascoe
CEO

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The International WaterCentre is proud to announce it is establishing an office in South Africa. Queensland Premier Peter Beattie and IWC CEO Mark Pascoe announced the new office in Johannesburg on the 21st March.

The IWC office will be situated within the Monash University campus in Johannesburg and will provide a base for South African students enrolled to study in the Integrated Water Management Masters program.

IWC is allocating significant resources to its South African office to develop its applied research and training activities there.

South Africa has devolved water resource management to catchment management agencies, and IWC partner strengths in regulation, water governance and integrated water resource management are particularly relevant to South Africa.

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With the Queensland Government, the IWC will host a South African PhD Student to study water issues in Australia.

The $20,000 scholarship will allow a postgraduate student from the University of KwaZulu-Natal to complete a research project at an IWC partner university in Brisbane.

Premier Peter Beattie announced the State Government will contribute $10,000 to the exchange program, stating the management of the world’s water resources, waterways and catchments has become one of the most critical issues of the 21st Century. Queensland Education and Training International will also contribute $10,000 to the program.

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IWC has been successful in securing Fellowships for ten professionals from the Chinese Yellow River Conservancy Commission through the inaugural round of the Australian Leadership Award Fellowships program managed by AusAID. The ALA Fellowships are a component of Australian Scholarships, a $1.4 billion initiative of the Australian Government.

IWC will host the Chinese Fellows for a period of seven months and will provide training in whole-of-water-cycle integrated river basin management approaches.

With a growing awareness that China urgently needs to balance unprecedented economic growth with greater attention to environmental sustainability, water management is a high priority for the Chinese government.

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Enrolments are now open for the new Master of Integrated Water Management, which will commence in Semester 1, 2008. The IWC launched the program in December last year and has received an excellent response from the water industry.

The course is another initiative of the IWC to improve the capacity and build the skill sets of water professionals and future leaders in water resource management in response to the water crisis, both in Australia and abroad.

The course is designed for mid-career water industry professionals working in Australia and across the globe, particularly in developing countries. It will focus on some of the most pressing issues facing these countries and the necessity to balance water management with other areas of human development. 

To enrol or for more information on the Masters program, visit the IWC website at
http://www.watercentre.org/education/masters.

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The 10th International Riversymposium & Environmental Flows conference, held in partnership with The Nature Conservancy will be held in Brisbane from 3 to 6 September 2007. This year’s symposium will focus on the emerging field of river management and Environmental Flows. Register at http://www.riversymposium.com.

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The International WaterCentre will sponsor the Young Water Professionals Workshop at the International Water Association’s ASPIRE Asia Pacific Regional Conference.  The workshop will focus on Career Development and Community Water Development and Relief. Register at Aspire 2007.

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In order to make a significant contribution to poverty reduction in South East Asia, Australia must increase its investment in the water sanitation industry, according to a recent publication, Getting the Basics Right: Water Sanitation in South East Asia.

The joint article, from NGOs World Vision and WaterAid Australia, expresses the need for Australia to increase its development aid assistance.  The article calls for more action on water development and sanitation management to improve the health of people living in the South East Asian region.

You can access the full article at the news section of our website, at www.watercentre.org/news.

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We extend our congratulations to Professor Perry McCarty of Stanford University who won the 2007 Stockholm Water Prize last month. Professor McCarty has been recognised for his pioneering work in developing a scientific approach for the design and operation of water and wastewater systems.

Professor McCarty has helped define the field of environmental biotechnology that forms the basis for pollution control and the safe supply and treatment of water.

Professor McCarty’s work has led to more efficient biological treatment processes, in particular anaerobic (oxygen-less) treatment systems for municipal and industrial wastewaters, biological nutrient removal, and the development and use of biofilm reactors.

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World Water Day on 22 March marked the official launch of UniWater, the University of Melbourne-Monash University research-driven response to the current water crisis.

Victorian Minister for Water, John Thwaites officiated at the launch which sees the two universities join forces to contribute more than $1 million each over three years to undertake water-related research.

UniWater’s research will focus on Melbourne and the Goulburn Valley, Victoria’s food bowl and part of the Goulburn Murray river system.

The research initiative has a number of strategic objectives including maximising environmental return on investment in the repair of rivers and catchments, realising the potential of irrigated and dryland agriculture using less water and providing a reliable and sustainable water supply to Australia’s growing cities.

Professor John Langford who has headed the University of Melbourne’s Melbourne Water Research Centre is the founding Director of UniWater.

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Griffith University and The University of Queensland have joined an alliance with CSIRO and the Queensland Government as members of the Urban Water Security Research Alliance. The Queensland State Government has committed $50 million to the alliance, with Premier Beattie saying that could more than double the water recycling capacity of Australia's capital cities.

“This work will make a significant contribution to securing a sustainable water supply for SEQ in the face of climate change and population and economic growth,” Mr Beattie said. "This Alliance will take Queensland to a world-class level in this field of research and is a clear indication of our determination to address the growing challenge of water supply."

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IWC Contacts

Mark Pascoe, CEO
p 07 3321 1772 e m.pascoe@watercentre.org

Bronwyn Powell, Executive Manager
p 07 3221 1772 e b.powell@watercentre.org

Sharon Phillips, Executive Assistant
p 07 3221 1772 e s.phillips@watercentre.org

For more information contact:
International WaterCentre
Phone +61 7 3221 1772
Fax +61 7 3221 1727
PO Box 15056, City East, Brisbane 
Queensland 4002, Australia
www.watercentre.org