More than 150 experts have met in Salamanca to participate in the XIII Iberian Congress on Water Management and Planning, organized by the New Water Culture Foundation (FNCA), the University of Salamanca and the IMDEA Water Institute. The event, held from Thursday 23 to Saturday 25 April at the Archbishop Fonseca College, focused on the just water transition under the slogan From scarcity to social and environmental reallocation of water.

The opening of the congress was attended by representatives from the academic and scientific fields, including Irene de Bustamante, director of IMDEA Agua, and Carlos Dionisio Pérez, researcher at the institute and co-chair of the organizing committee. Both addressed risk reduction in the face of floods and droughts, the interdependence between water and agricultural socio-ecosystems, nature-based solutions and the social distribution of water.

Friday’s sessions focused on the restoration and conservation of aquatic ecosystems, river continuity and ecosystem services. The day concluded with a conference on advanced water governance in times of scarcity, with presentations by renowned specialists in public policy and water management.

This congress has served as a platform for the exchange of ideas and experiences between researchers, managers and policy makers, with the aim of promoting a more equitable and sustainable water management in the Iberian Peninsula.

IMDEA Water, as an institution committed to research excellence and innovation in the field of water, has reaffirmed its leadership in the search for scientific and technological solutions to today’s water challenges.