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Bureau International des Expositions (ed.)

Le legs intellectuel des Expos, La Tribune de l’Eau, Expo 2008

The intellectual legacy of Expos, The Water Tribune, ZARAGOZA

© Bureau International des Expositions 34, avenue d’Iéna, 75116 Paris

Le BIE remercie les auteurs dont les textes figurent dans ce recueil de lui avoir donné l’aimable autorisation de les reproduire. Tous droits de traduction, de reproduction et d’adaptation réservés pour tous pays (à des fins commerciales), la loi du 11 mars 1957 n’autorisant, aux termes des alinéas 2 et 3 de l’article 41, d’une part, que les « copies ou reproductions strictement réservées à l’usage privé du copiste et non destinées à une utilisation collective », et, d’autre part, que les analyses et les courtes citations dans un but d’exemple et d’illustration, « toute représentation ou reproduction intégrale, ou partielle, faite sans le consentement de l’auteur ou des ayants droit ou ayants cause, est illicite » (alinéa 1er de l’article 40). Ne peut être vendu.

Les points de vues exprimées par les auteurs n’engagent que la pensée de ceux-ci et non les avis et opinions du Bureau International des Expositions. The points of view expressed by the authors represent their way of looking at things and not the opinions or convictions of the International Exhibitions Bureau.

© 2009 Bureau International des Expositions

3 4 Préface

M. Vicente González Loscertales, Secrétaire Général du Bureau International des Expositions

Cette année, le Bureau International des Exposition a choisi de consacrer son Bulletin annuel au thème: « Le legs intellectuel des Expos - La Tribune de l’Eau, Expo 2008 Zaragoza »

Le legs des Expos est un des éléments les plus importants qui permet à celle-ci de faire perdurer leur message international bien après leur clôture. C’est pourquoi nous avons décidé de dédier ce numéro du Bulletin au legs de l’Expo 2008 Zaragoza, à la Tribune de l’Eau et au legs des Expos futures.

La Tribune de l’Eau fut l’un des évènements les plus remarquables de l’Expo 2008 Zaragoza. Cette Tribune avait pour but d’engager un dialogue autour du thème de l’Expo 2008 « Eau et développement Durable », de provoquer des rencontres entre responsables, experts et citoyens du monde entier afin qu’ils réfléchissent ensemble sur les problèmes et leurs solutions.

Ce rendez-vous offert par Expo 2008 Zaragoza a rencontré un grand succès et nombre de personnalités, plus de 2000, ont contribué à sa réussite. Cette formidable plate-forme a permis d’unir à la fois des scientifiques, des techniciens, des responsables d’entreprise, des politiciens, des chercheurs et des écrivains et bien d’autres. Au cours de 10 semaines thématiques, les débats se sont suivis de manière presque ininterrompue sur des sujets tels que : « Eau et Terre », Eau et Ville », « Eau pour la Vie », « L’Eau ressource unique », « Service d’approvisionnement et d’Epuration », « Changement climatiques et Phénomènes extrêmes », « Economie et Finances de l’Eau », « Eau et Société », « Eau et Energie » et « Nouvelles sources d’Eau : Réutilisation et Désalinisation ».

La Tribune de l’Eau a pu faire en sorte que des propositions, des solutions et des réponses soient discutées et partagées avec l’ensemble de la Communauté internationale. Pour tous ceux qui ne pouvaient assister à tous les débats, des rapports complets ont été publiés afin de rendre compte à la fois de l’intérêt des citoyens du monde pour le thème et de la volonté de chacun de vouloir trouver ensemble des réponses. De même, les semaines thématiques étaient diffusées sur les cinq continents grâce à des vidéoconférences qui ont permis l’exportation du dialogue bien au-delà des portes de l’Expo 2008.

C’est pourquoi l’on peut considérer que la Tribune de l’Eau est un legs intellectuel d’Expo 2008 Zaragoza. Car Expo 2008 a su, grâce à cette Tribune, fédérer l’intérêt international, réunir les hommes et les idées et a ainsi permis de parvenir à un engagement commun synthétisé dans la Charte de Saragosse véritable aboutissement concret de tous les débats.

5 Il ne faut pas omettre de rappeler aussi l’importance aussi de l’Agora, l’espace de participation citoyenne à la Tribune de l’Eau qui a permis de recueillir les pensées et commentaires des citoyens et qui a souvent donné l’occasion d’élargir les débats. De même que n’oublions pas non plus le programme « Cinéma et Eau » qui a présenté quelques 180 heures de film sur l’Eau et le Développement durable grâce à la participation de plus de 50 pays. Enfin, un ensemble d’essais uniques a été publié par Expoagua dans la collection « Paroles d’eau ». Cette collection destinée au grand public traite des questions fondamentales sur l’Eau et a été éditée en trois langues afin sensibiliser le plus grand nombre. Les auteurs ne sont autres que : V. Shiva, physicienne, épistémologue, écologiste, écrivain, docteur en philosophie des sciences et féministe indienne, R. Menchu, prix Nobel de la paix et ambassadrice de bonne volonté auprès de l'ONU, M. Da Silva, ancien Ministre de l’Environnement au Brésil, W. Maathai, Prix Nobel de la Paix, A. Garrigues, Juriste espagnol et fondateur du Chapitre Espagnol de Transparence Internationale, S. Georges, Politologue et auteur de travaux très influents sur les questions sociales, économiques et environnementales, R. Petrella, Politologue et économiste , P. Arrojo, Économiste et Président de la Fondation Nouvelle Culture de l’Eau , I. Restrepo, Académicienne, experte en environnement, membre du CINARA (Université del Valle, Colombie), E. Anglarill, Journaliste de RTVE, spécialiste des questions environnementales, J. Solana, Haut Représentant pour la Politique Extérieure et la Sécurité Commune de l'Union Européenne (UE), entre autres écrivains.

Ce legs est une transmission, un don, une offrande aux générations futures. Le rôle des Expos n’est pas seulement d’informer mais aussi de transmettre pour faire progresser les idées et les actions dans l’avenir. Les Expos ne finissent pas lorsque leurs portes se ferment, elles ont une vocation de continuité et représentent aujourd’hui un réel engagement pour l’avenir. C’est avec cette volonté que le Gouvernement espagnol a remis au BIE et aux Nations Unies la « Charte de Saragosse », afin de promouvoir le legs de Expo 2008. Cette même Charte a été présentée lors du 5è Forum Mondial de l’Eau qui s’est déroulé à Istanbul, Turquie, au mois de mars 2009.

Le legs se fait d’une Expo à l’autre. En effet, Hannover fut la première Expo à engager un dialogue global et à le faire perdurer dans le temps et Aichi ainsi que Expo 2008 Zaragoza ont hérité toutes deux de cette caractéristique nouvelle et fondamentale des Expos d’aujourd’hui.

Le legs se fait aussi de pays à pays, de gouvernement à gouvernement, d’homme à homme, de conscience à conscience. Il s’agit d’un legs qui nous concerne tous et que sommes tous invité à recueillir pour le transmettre à notre tour.

Les Expos ont de nos jours une véritable vocation de legs universel. La Charte de Saragosse est aujourd’hui une référence mondiale dans le domaine de l’eau et du développement durable. Les Expos ne sont plus simplement des événements ludiques et éducatifs. Elles jouent aussi un rôle dans les interrogations de l’humanité, elles s’impliquent et s’engagent, elles participent à la construction du présent et de l’avenir.

6 Table of content / Sommaire

Vicente González Loscertales, Préface Page 5 Secrétaire Générale du BIE

Roque Gistau, Expoagua Zaragoza 2008 and its Water Tribune Page 9 Président Expoagua Zaragoza 2008 S.A.

Antonio Garrigues Walker, The Legacy of the 2008 Zaragoza Exposition Page 37 Chairman of Garrigues Law Firm David Sanz, Associate of the Garrigues Law Firm

Prof. Roberto Schmid, L’héritage immatériel d'une EXPO : de Zaragoza Page 63 Président du Comité Scientifique d’EXPO 2008 à Milano 2015 MILANO 2015

Jeremy Rifkin, A Brief Summary of the Four Pillars of the Third Page 69 Advisor to the and to Industrial Revolution several European heads of state, President of the Foundation on Economic Trends in the .

Domingo Jimenez-Beltran, The Legacy of Expo Zaragoza Page 75 Catedratico Profesor Universidad Complutense

Dalvino Troccoli Franca, Water Tribune Page 81 Director, Agencia Nacional de Aguas – ANA (National Water Agency) Maria Cristina de Sá Matos Brito, Specialist in Water Resources (ANA) Flávio Tröger, Specialist in Water Resources (ANA)

Prof. Zhou Hanmin, The Water Tribune and The Intellectual Legacies Page 97 Vice Chairman, Committee of of World Expositions Chinese People’s Political Consultative

Conference, Chinese Delegate to the Bureau of International Expositions, Deputy Director, Executive Committee of Shanghai

Ambassador Kim Il-Soo, Director General for Intellectual Legacy of Yeosu Korea Page 105 External CooperationOrganizing Committee for Expo 2012 Yeosu Korea

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Expoagua Zaragoza 2008 and its Water Tribune Roque Gistau, president of Expoagua Zaragoza 2008 S.A.

Zaragoza, February 2009

9 10 Expoagua Zaragoza 2008 and its Water Tribune Roque Gistau, president of Expoagua Zaragoza 2008 S.A. Zaragoza, February 2009

Presentation From 14 June to 14 September 2008, the age- of Zaragoza, capital of what was once the Kingdom of in , hosted the International Exposition, which under the theme "Water and Sustainable Development" housed over 100 participants including countries, international organisations, Spanish autonomous regions, private companies and non-governmental organisations, which showed to the world their contribution to the theme of Water and Sustainable Development.

Since its conception, Expo 2008’s commitment to Water and Sustainable Development was solid and consistent. Expo 2008 has represented a sensitive, intelligent and purposeful view of a great challenge for Humanity: contemplating water as a basis of life and a strategic resource for development in the context of an ethical commitment to sustainability and innovation.

This document summarises in three parts the main elements that have given form and substance to Expo Zaragoza 2008, to its physical and intangible contents, both those produced by the different participants and by the Organiser, Expoagua Zaragoza 2008, all with the aim of successfully developing the theme of Water and Sustainable Development.

1. The first part presents the fundamental ideas of the Expo 2008 project: sustainability and therefore achieving an exposition based on that vital concept. From building materials and the energy necessary to operate the exposition up to the scientific and technical conceptual approaches for developing its contents and publications.

2. The second part concentrates on the point of view or philosophy which orientated the conception, development and operation of its Pavilions and Thematic Plazas - on evoking water themes in pavilion designs, on having a scientific script that made it possible to present the history or most important water themes in each country, region, organisation or company –, as well as the wide and rich range of shows, several of which had a highly thematic content. All of this distinguished Expo 2008 and contributed to its impact.

3. The third part presents an element that differentiates Expo 2008 and which can act as a turn of the tide, as a change in direction for Expositions in the future. This third part is based on the Water Tribune: the scientific and technical instrument of Expo 2008, which made it possible to have the longest and richest forum related to water and sustainable development that has ever been known.

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CHAPTER 1. The fundamental ideas of Expo 2008

1.1 The theme “Water and sustainable development” in Expo 2008 The theme Water and Sustainable Development is the conceptual support which was woven throughout the International Exposition and gave coherence to its contents. The theme was addressed in Expo 2008 in a new way, linking it with the themed contents of Universal Expositions prior to and subsequent to Expo 2008: Aichi 2005 (Nature’s Wisdom) and Shanghai 2010 (Better City, Better Life).

It is no coincidence that Zaragoza has been host to a themed International Exposition about water and sustainability. The city was founded over 2000 years ago where the River meets two relevant tributaries, rivers Gallego and Huerva. Today these three rivers, together with the Canal Imperial de Aragón, a man made water course in the city, define its outline and connect the city. The deep cultural marks of over 2000 years of water management accredit Zaragoza as the ideal venue to host an International Exposition with a universal theme such as this. Thus, the Contrebia Belaisca plaques, dated 5 May 87 BC, represent the first conserved historical document that refers to a water conflict and an educated formula for solving it.

The current relevance and importance of the theme, Water and Sustainable Development is undeniable, as there is unanimity among the international scientific community that water, and its sustainable use, is essential for life, the development of communities and the conservation of natural spaces. Integrated and sustainable water management is one of the greatest global challenges that Humanity faces. It forces us to reconsider our relationship with the environment and to develop new strategies towards sustainability with regard to water resources.

1.2. How the theme was addressed In order to tackle such a wide, general theme, Expo Zaragoza 2008 was based on four subthemes in order to structure its physical context and its contents: (1) Water, a unique resource; (2) Water for life, (3) Waterscapes and (4) Water, linking people. The last subtheme crosses through the previous three. The first three subthemes are those which gave names to the expositions of the Expo’s three emblematic pavilions: The Bridge Pavilion, the Water Tower and the River Aquarium. The basis of the subthemes was as follows:

• Water, a unique resource. The world water crisis arises from inadequate management, which, to a large extent, poses a challenge of governance, good administration and full social co-participation. This requires a profound cultural change and involves advancing towards integrated water management in its social, economic, political and environmental dimension.

• Water for life. It is an argument in favour of human beings in harmony with their environment, in contrast with the vision of man dominating a seemingly inexhaustible nature. The human species has the capacity and responsibility to live with nature and not against it.

12 • Water Landscapes. This reveals the beauty and dynamism of the complex system of relationships between natural and the cultural marks of human civilisations.

• Water, linking people. Although sometimes it is a source of conflict, water is also an important catalyst for peace. Sharing water responsibly is a vehicle for bringing together communities and different water users.

The focus of the exposition’s contents is based on the so-called Ten Key Ideas for the Contents of Expo Zaragoza 2008. This was a declaration of purpose, a common denominator of the themed contents of Expo 2008 and a contribution to facing the main challenges relating to water and sustainable development. These are the 10 ideas:

• Water and Sustainable Development. Water as an essential element of life; its objective and purpose is human development stemming from an ethical commitment to sustainability. The theme is addressed as an intelligent challenge: innovation for sustainability.

• The Great Water Challenge. The technologicall advances of the 20th century created the illusion of well-being through the domination of Nature. However, serious ecological and social imbalances appeared together with these great achievements. Within this idea, a special mention must go to the water crisis arising from demographic growth, imbalance between water availability and needs and inadequate management and governance.

• Innovation for Sustainability. Expo Zaragoza 2008 presented the value of scientific and technological innovation, of new uses and updated management formulas, as well as social harmony and social harmonisation conducive to the sustainability of water resources.

• Water for Life: New Biocentric Paradigm. Water is the basis of life as well as the decisive factor in the distribution and mobility of species, including the human race, which has the ability and responsibility to manage the natural environment using rational and sustainability criteria.

• Water, a Unique Resource: The governance challenge. Water plays a crucial role in satisfying human vital needs, health, food safety, well-being and sustainable development. The world water crisis is to a large extent caused by mismanagement that must be changed and by inadequate governance. The badly needed changes require the development of plans, strategies and initiatives for sustainable water management that are more intelligent, efficient and fair in social, economic, political and environmental terms.

• Water as a Human Right. "The human right to water is indispensable for leading a life in human dignity. It is a prerequisite for the realisation of other human rights". (, 2002). Through its participants, Expo 2008 acknowledges access to water as a Universal Human Right, presenting the United Nations’ objectives and the initiatives and experiences designed to ensure that the entire world’s population has enough water that is safe, of acceptable quality, physically accessible and economical for personal and household use.

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• Water, a Shared Resource: the basin as a management unit. Political and administrative borders do not typically coincide with river basin borders. Expo 2008 underlined the need to consider the river basin as a planning and management unit, highlighting the international agreements, experiences and good practices in the planning and sustainable management of the water cycle in shared river basins in different parts of the world.

• Water, a Shared Resource: The joint responsibility of the players involved. The challenges resulting from the water crisis at local, regional, global level must be resolved with the participation of all the players involved, who must take on shared responsibilities.

• Water, Source of Creativity and Cooperation. Today, as in the past, water conflicts are a source of cooperation and creativity throughout the world. The water crisis in the past has spurred ingenuity and creativity that has left us with a rich cultural heritage. In addition to being a source of conflict, water is also a catalyst for peace.

• Meeting Point: Exchange, Communication and Celebration. Expo 2008 was a meeting place for different cultures and peoples, which encouraged exchanges of ideas and experiences to address the water crisis. However, it was primarily a place to meet with the visiting public and all those who received Expo messages through the media. With the Zaragoza Charter, Expo 2008 spread the principles for helping build our new relationship with water.

1.3. Instruments for developing the theme The contents which developed the Expo Zaragoza 2008 theme were expressed in four different yet complementary supports:

• The Expo 2008 site, • The Water Tribune, • Expography, and • The cultural and show programme.

Following in the tradition of the best international expositions of the 19th and 20th centuries, Expo 2008 has shown a strong cultural and educational commitment to spread new scientific developments, cutting-edge art and the best architecture among the general public. Expo 2008 was a privileged space for developing knowledge, innovation, culture and understanding among different peoples.

The contents were designed so as to be interesting, accessible and attractive for the public, who came from different places, of different ages and with different educational levels. This was done in order to attract a large number of visitors to Zaragoza. In order to transmit the contents to a very wide public, Expo 2008 experimented with new communication languages, taking great care to select attractive elements for the general public, while at the same time guaranteeing rigour, clarity and strength in the information transmitted.

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1.4 The Expo 2008 site and its relationship with the theme After studying different locations, the city decided to locate the Expo 2008 site on the Ranillas Meander, on the River Ebro at the entrance to the city of Zaragoza. Although it conditioned other subsequent choices, this strategic site strengthened the Expo's themed character and showed Zaragoza’s commitment to revitalising the consolidated city and its river banks.

The farmland on the Ranillas Meander was transformed into the 25-hectare Expo 2008 site and the largest urban park in the Ebro Valley: the Water Park, with 121 hectares of riverbank forest, equipped park, canals and Botanical Garden, based on vegetation and water.

The interaction of the Ebro and the rich urban cultural heritage generates strong positive synergies that convert what was once a river-barrier into a meeting place, what were once empty riverbanks into spaces teeming with economic activity and people, what were once dykes needed to protect against floods into linear parks. In a nutshell, it has converted the forgotten landscapes into the mirror into which the city looks, and recognizes and promotes itself.

The urban development conception of the Expo 2008 site followed the environmental sustainability criteria, being a green, accessible and extraordinarily well-equipped space, with a clear dominance of “green” over “concrete.” The various pavilions also followed the environmental sustainability criteria, while the design of the public spaces followed the sustainable town planning criteria.

The form of the Water Park arose, in turn, from a reinterpretation of the inherited farmland layout – routes, irrigation channels, etc. - This contributed to making the action a logical continuation of the urban development of Zaragoza. The main objective of the Water Park was to etch it into the Ebro Corridor, reaffirming the city's links with its territory, maintaining the most natural environments at the top of the meander.

The Ebro Riverbank Plan not only meant the creation of a new 9-kilometre-long green area along the two banks (18 kilometres in total), but it also included actions to encourage the public’s use and enjoyment of the river.

In short, the site’s main contribution to the Expo 2008 theme is its capacity to become one with its natural and built environment. That objective has been met. The Expo 2008 site has left the city with an important legacy for the future relating to water and sustainable development with the recuperation of its riverfront, integrating the new areas with the natural and urban environment.

1.5 Expo 2008 urban development conceptions The design of the Expo 2008 site respected the identity of the Ranillas Meander. This was reflected in the vegetation covering the roofs of the Participants' Pavilion and its winding course, together with generosity and size of the public spaces and the preservation of water as the main actor in the landscape.

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Expo 2008’s site covers 25 hectors, which is the maximum limit for International Expositions according to BIE rules. The borders of the area and the particular conditions of the site led to the design of the routes through the Participants' Pavilion on several levels, connected by ramps and mechanical systems.

When designing and building the different site elements, a significant effort was made to create sustainable infrastructures and buildings that took full advantage of resources and efficiency in energy and water consumption. The initial designs, the projects, the materials used, the environmental management of the construction and the handling of the waste generated by the works were all considered in order to obtain a site with the lowest environmental impact possible.

Finally, the site was also conceived focusing on its subsequent uses for when Expo 2008 had finished, as this would mean the creation of a new services area, mainly for cultural and scientific uses and different spaces for a wide series of activities.

The pavilions of participating countries and autonomous regions had tertiary (services) and quaternary (services of services) uses after Expo 2008, including the Pavilions of Spain and Aragon, the River Aquarium, The Convention Centre, the Water Tower and the Bridge Pavilion.

1.6 Themed Spaces The greening of public spaces and the decoration of friezes with artistic creations on the façades of some participant pavilions were carried out following themed criteria. The theme setting was based on ecogeographical areas of the planet: Grasslands, Steppes and Savannahs, Temperate Forests, Islands and Coasts, Oasis, Mountains and Tropical Rainforests.

1.7 The Water Park This is one of Expo 2008’s main legacies to the city of Zaragoza. It is located on the Ranillas Meander, next to the Ebro, adjacent to the Rabal ring road and the Expo 2008 site. It is a new urban park concept, combining expansive green areas with different recreational services and activities with sports and leisure. The park has been developed and will be operated by the Zaragoza City Council. Expoagua was in charge of managing the works.

The Park comprises 121 hectares – it is larger than Retiro Park in and around three times the size of Zaragoza’s Parque Grande. At its centre there is a Botanical Garden structured around the relationship of plant life and water. It is an evocation of traditional vegetable gardens and fruit trees. One third of the Water Park is kept as an area of riverside groves -- riverbank forest -- next to the Ebro.

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1.8 Shows With its more than 3,400 cultural activities and shows performed by 300 different companies and artists, Expo Zaragoza 2008 boasted a varied programme aimed at all types of public with different schedules. Entertainment was also planned by the Expo 2008 participants, adding even greater interest and variety to the exposition.

The Expo 2008 cultural and show programme made multiple references to the “Water and Sustainable Development” theme from different perspectives: reflection, recreational enjoyment and aesthetic pleasure. The three main shows were conceived from these approaches: the night show, “Iceberg”, reflected on the challenge imposed by climate change, the special show of “Aquatic Inspirations”, emphasised the virtues of leisure, and the “ cavalcade”, which recreated the aesthetic aspects and beauty of water.

1.9 Artistic creations Expo 2008 developed a programme of artistic creations to encourage artistic creativity and contribute to the standing of the public spaces in the Exposition site, the Metropolitan Water Park and the Ebro riverbanks in the city of Zaragoza.

The artistic creations followed a programme in line with the Expo 2008 theme and with the urban renewal programme of the Ebro riverbanks in Zaragoza. They are an added value for the city and its future development, based on the quality of the artists chosen and the innovation and experimentation of their projects.

The artistic creations played an important role as landmarks and reference points along the 10-km stretch of riverbanks and parks. These highlight the connection between nature and culture throughout the urban waterway: a contemporary public art exhibition, which will live on in the city as the artistic legacy of Expo 2008.

CHAPTER 2. Expo 2008 Pavilions and Thematic Plazas

The term “expography” is a neologism which responds specifically to an innovative approach that is slanted more towards art than to museum studies. Expo 2008 boasted different exhibition spaces which developed the Water and Sustainable Development theme in a varied, surprising and attractive way for visitors. The Expo 2008 expography was conceived as an innovative and contemporary system of communication. The following underpinning elements were used in order to transmit the message to visitors with great intensity: the timeliness of the theme, the rigour of the information, the clarity of expression and the aesthetic emotion to amplify and fix the message.

The pavilions of the participants (countries, international organisations, autonomous regions, NGOs and companies) were sovereign spaces in which the general theme of the exposition was developed. Expo 2008 designed “themed” expositions that covered the full breadth of the theme.

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There were three thematic pavilions: The exhibition “Water, a Unique Resource”, in the Bridge Pavilion, “Water for Life” in the Water Tower and “Water Landscapes” in the River Aquarium. The thematic plazas were: Thirst, Cities on Water, Shared Water, Oikos: Water and Energy, Extreme Water and Aquatic Inspirations.

The expositions, both in the pavilions and the thematic plazas, in Expo 2008 had a solid scientific and technical base, resulting from the joint work carried out in each space by three workgroups: The scientific management, the design team and technicians from different Expo 2008 departments. These three elements worked on all stages of the project: from the initial writing of the scientific scripts up to final supervision of the contents which appeared in the exhibitions.

Expo 2008 wanted to guarantee the reliability of the exhibitions’ contents and to guarantee that the themes met their educational and cultural function. That is why there was a Scientific Director for each exhibition. Expo 2008 used new dissemination languages, starting from the basis of conceptual coherence and the support of its communications system to convert the themed contents into pure emotion.

The exhibitions in the thematic pavilions were complemented by those located in the thematic plazas, which enriched and intensified the message of our relationship with water from different perspectives. The themes that were developed were specific and at a greater depth.

The plazas, especially in the Mediterranean societies, were open spaces for meetings and exchanges. They were also a space for communication, a meeting point among people and for people with the contents. In the thematic plazas everything was content. From an expographical point of view, the thematic plazas involved an especially innovative concept, on having reversed the classical conceptual order of “building, discourse, design” for that of “discourse, design and building”. They were public spaces which combined the pavilions (Extreme Water, Thirst) with the exhibition installations (Oikos, Shared Water and Cities on Water). The exhibition installations were especially innovative due to their transparency, the absence of limits and their quest for integration.

In these installations, the visitor received information as they got closer and they could observe a large part of the contents from the outside. Seeing the exhibition from the outside made it possible to understand and gain a taste of what would later be enjoyed inside. On the inside, the spectator interacted with the installation, travelling through it at different heights and perceiving contents from nearby and afar.

Over one hundred participants of different types showed their contents in Expo 2008 by means of three main methods: the Water Tribune, the Culture and Show programme and an exhibition in their pavilion.

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The participant countries, the hosts – Spain, Aragon and Zaragoza – the autonomous regions, the Water Tribune, several international organisations, and some private companies and Citizens’ Initiatives all had pavilions.

Each participant developed the expographical contents in its pavilion under an informative guideline framework called the Content Matrix, which was provided by Expo 2008 to facilitate the task. The matrix included the 4 main themes of Expo 2008 and included four orders of challenge: global, regional, local and individual.

CHAPTER 3. The Water Tribune. The quest for a new model for water in the 21st century

We must talk about water, but in another way; with another language, with another orientation, with a change of attitude, with another objective, different from those used up to now in order for us to connect with this vital resource. An increasing number of voices are joining this call for a new, creative and creating, fair and committed approach towards water, based on a system of values that gives priority to ethics, with a sense of order and future.

The Water Tribune has been Expo 2008’s intellectual instrument that has allowed debate, exchange and consensus with regard to water management and sustainable development.

Through a programme fuelled by different orientations and guidelines, during the 93 days that Expo 2008 lasted, the Water Tribune achieved a wide-ranging and diverse participation of different water stakeholders: politicians, diplomats, entrepreneurs, scientists, technicians, managers, economists, researchers, legislators, philosophers, writers, journalists, artists and non-experts.

Specific and practical solutions to tackle the diagnosis: This was the leitmotif that presided over the activities of the Water Tribune throughout its duration. Within the framework of Expoagua Zaragoza 2008, this innovative discussion forum aimed to highlight and bring together practical proposals for the main challenges relating to water and sustainable development.

This unique process has resulted in a gathering of knowledge, lessons and responses to the challenges and problems presented by water management and sustainable development. The process that has generated knowledge in order to facilitate the change of the water paradigm from the approach of sustainability was underpinned by the processes of putting forward, proposing, debating and agreeing on solutions, lessons learned, repeatable experiences and specific recommendations.

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3.1. The foundations of the Water Tribune model. Its evolution and consequences The Expo 2008 Water Tribune has aimed to find a new model for water in the 21st century. It therefore started with the aim to provoke thought and reflection in a quest for knowledge, understanding this as lessons learnt, good practices, transferable experiences elsewhere and recommendations. All of this was aimed at generating new proposals to overcome current limitations relating to water and sustainable development. It consists of a renewed approach, more closely related to the relationship of human beings and communities with water, the environment, development and the future.

The Water Tribune has built a bridge to connect values that have faded from collective memory. It has summonsed all those elements to be discovered or invented to progress towards integrated and sustainable water management.

Water and sustainable development through innovation is the core which articulated the themed effort of Expo Zaragoza 2008. Addressing this question through Water Tribune, as an intellectual instrument, and using a fresh and novel approach, was necessary in order to complete the attractive elements offered by this extraordinary universal international event.

A tool which made it possible to lead, direct and facilitate the development of this particular proposal of knowledge which is applicable and repeatable in practice, relating to water and sustainability from an inescapable argument: innovation. Scientists, technicians, thinkers, artists, citizens have met from around the world in order to make a variety of contributions, which the Tribune has collected in great numbers. These contributions have sprouted from different minds coming from a wide range of fields of activities and from many distant corners of the planet. They have been harvested in the Tribune’s varied spaces and instruments specifically designed to foster dialogue and gathering knowledge. And in the post-Expo stage, these contributions have been decanted, ordered and prioritised for collective benefit. Today and tomorrow.

3.2 The objective To bring together, summarise and disseminate the universal knowledge for improving the conditions of Water and Sustainable Development in the 21st century: that was the objective of the Water Tribune

With the powerful slogan of innovation, the Water Tribune selected a series of elements which made up the framework for achieving that objective.

• Making knowledge emerge from among all the existing system of capacities with the aim of identifying, assessing, collecting and disseminating innovative experiences, good practices and recommendations of water management as a development driver.

20 • Ordering, structuring, integrating, summarising and disseminating those thoughts and knowledge widely with the aim that they may intervene in the orientation and well-informed actions of public and private institutions in society.

• Becoming a multifaceted tool of great use for contributing in the task of informing, orientating, training and educating, effective weapons to finish with the false certainties caused by actions based on ignorance or biased or incomplete knowledge.

• Offering the opportunity to rethink, reformulate or refocus many of the existing debates related to water, its management and sustainability, in the full meaning of the term, and transforming, with a constructive approach, the problems into challengers in order to convert them in turn into opportunities.

• Identifying, collecting, disseminating regional, national and international lessons learned, innovative experiences, best practices and recommendations for water management as a development driver in accordance with sustainability.

• Promoting the systematic and fruitful interaction among experts, public servants, business people and water users with social groups and the general public. A useful exercise which makes it possible to confront and contrast that knowledge and place it in relation with what society is concerned about, desires and demands.

• Encouraging the wide and plural participation of society by means of open and efficient processes for collecting expectations and perceptions of the general public that attended the instruments of the Water Tribune at the same time as enjoying Expo 2008.

• Contributing to improving the culture of integrated and sustainable water management, with special attention to its efficient, socially supportive and sustainable exploitation, as well as its conservation and protection, with a well educated and informed social participation, with the best governmental institutions responsible for water management and the respective services.

• Contributing to setting new bases that allow steady development in proposals and proactive actions. Proposals, and not merely diagnoses, which aim to support a renewed social and political conscience which definitively acquires the new values relating to water management and governance.

3.3 The physical environment and the Water Tribune sessions From June 14 to September 14 the Water Tribune carried out its activities shared between its own Pavilion in Expo 2008 as well as the different forums in Zaragoza and Huesca. With its 93 days of sessions, speaking about water and sustainable developments, the Tribune has been the most extensive and prolonged international event with water as the main theme of discussion.

21 Over 320 thematic sessions, with around 3200 participants coming from 111 countries, multilateral agencies such as the United Nations, World Bank, European Union, inter-governmental and non- governmental organisations, and representatives from different fields, sectors and countries passed through the Water Tribune amphitheatre.

3.4 Action strategies and results With the aim of fulfilling the objectives assigned to the Water Tribune, 9 instruments were created and developed. They are listed below and followed by a summary of their main characteristics and greatest results.

Instruments of the Water Tribune • Thematic Weeks • Special Events • Agora and Literary Guests • Water Words Collection • Parallel Events • Water Cinema • Virtual Pavilion (GDLN) • The Water Tribune Online • The Water Tribune Legacy and Blue Box

3.4.1 Thematic Weeks. The Thematic Weeks were designed to gather and make available the knowledge and ideas of the world’s experts on water and their many fields, specialities, approaches, interests and aims.

The purpose of the Thematic Weeks was to focus, with the objectivity and precision of science and technology, practical water management and an extensive store of experiences, approaches, teaching, aspirations, projects and innovations on the themes and subthemes considered to be most important now and in the near future concerning water and sustainable development within the context of innovation. The Thematic Weeks attracted many participants from many different cultures and disciplines.

Politicians, diplomats, entrepreneurs, investors, scientists, technicians, managers, economists, researchers, legislators, philosophers, writers, journalists, artists and the general public took part in the sessions: a wide-ranging, diverse group of important figures concerned with water from different countries, multilateral agencies, inter-governmental and non-government organisations, along with representatives from various different fields and sectors. The perspective and contents of the Thematic Weeks were also designed to provide course credits for students of several Spanish Universities in various disciplines.

The Thematic Weeks format was extremely flexible and responsive, with sessions chaired by experts on the subject in question. The audience was made up of experts and students, with open

22 periods for their participation in debates, seeking consensus and recommendations. During the working sessions, priority was given to short, apposite speeches, so that the participants could express their basic principles and results. The focus was intended to be on the presentation of results, lessons learned and experiments proven, especially if replicable, proposals and recommendations. Roundtables were held immediately after the conferences in order to generate debate and gather knowledge from the speakers and experts in the audience, with the chair encouraging discussion, dialogue and the reaching of consensus, and with the overarching intention of using knowledge for the benefit of the world of water.

The ten Thematic Weeks were articulated around twenty-five subject areas, in order to approach different topics with a clear focus on water and sustainable development, understood to go beyond a mere reference to environmental matters, and to include such hot topics as governance and governability, social and cultural phenomena, institutions, pollution, shortages, the legal context, as well as prices, costs and other subjects of vital importance in the gathering of elements to build a new paradigm for water and sustainable development.

The Thematic Weeks, like the other instruments created by the Water Tribune, repeatedly placed their faith in human beings and their capacity to reverse current problems concerning water, look for new solutions or find value in the knowledge gained in the past. The recovery and improvement of governability, the enrichment and deepening of the relationships of humans with nature, the environment and water, the creation of new formulas for better regulation, control and protection of water resources, leading to better management of territorial spaces, land, urban and rural areas, formed the main focus, along with examining the real situation of the world’s poorest in order to meet their need for water with financially, socially, legally and politically sustainable principles. This attitude has also allowed specific topics of enormous current relevance, such as education, culture, gender, development and social justice, to form part of the Thematic Weeks.

The ultimate purpose was to tackle some of the most pressing subjects relating to water and sustainable development as the 21st century begins, and with the next quarter century in mind.

The ten basic themes were not intended to be exhaustive, but rather to concentrate efforts on crucial subjects, after the experience of other events in which as many subjects as possible were scheduled, making it difficult to determine scope or order activities and results, or to come to solid final conclusions.

Organised in 10 major thematic areas, the Thematic Weeks were the main tool of the Water Tribune, contributing to the Zaragoza 2008 Charter and Legacy.

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422 participants from 54 countries and 253 public and private bodies took part in the 10 Thematic Weeks. There were contributions from experts and panellists from 44 countries. These are the main figures for the Thematic Weeks:

Thematic Week Participants Bodies Countries of Expert origin audience Water and Land 76 59 30 660

Water and Cities 40 38 18 220

Water for Life 34 31 19 305

Water, a Unique 38 28 17 240 Resource Water Supply and 44 38 19 310 Sanitation Services Climate Change and 27 19 8 205 Extreme Events Water Economics and 49 38 11 287 Financing Water and Society 58 42 10 289

Water and Energy 33 23 10 250

New Sources of Water: 23 13 6 245 Reuse and Desalination TOTAL 422 3011

3.4.2 Special Events. The special events were designed as unique spaces where participants in the Expo, with or without a pavilion, mainly through their public institutions linked to water resource management or with rural or urban water services, could capitalise on the Water Tribune and fulfil one of the great promises of Expo 2008: that participants could display their progress, projects, results, innovations and recommendations for the benefit of the public attending the special events and for those who were able to view the results using other media, especially online and with the Blue Box.

A total of 51 Special Events were held in the Water Tribune in various formats (e.g, symposiums, presentations, roundtables). The events took place in the Water Tribune Pavilion. Various countries, Spanish regions and institutions participating in Expo 2008 took part in the special events: e.g. , , , the World Bank, , , the IDB, , , , South , Spain, Korea, , the OECD, , , Andalusia, the AECID, the , the , Extremadura, , , Navarre, , , the Basque Country, the WWC, and . All these and more chose the Water Tribune as the ideal space to show their experiences and proposals.

In this context, examples of participants in the Water Tribune included: the President of Mexico and the Princes of Orange, Japan and , the Vice-Presidents of and , government ministers from various countries, such as , , Panama and ; diplomats such as the Spanish Ambassador to the OECD, the Ambassadors of Peru,

25 Turkey and Mexico, and a wide range of the world’s leading politicians. Notable among the leaders of international organisations participating in the Water Tribune were:

• Ban Ki-Moon, Secretary General of the United Nations • Luis Alberto Moreno, President of the Inter-American Development Bank • Danny Leipziger, Vice-President of the World Bank • Ángel Gurría, Secretary General of the OECD • Mikhail Gorbachev, President of Green Cross International • Ragenda K. Pachauri, President of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change • Elena Espinosa, Minister of the Environment, Spain • Francisco Nunes Correia, Minister of the Environment, Portugal • Hasan Zuhuri Sarikaya, Minister of the Environment, Turkey • Maria Mutagamba, Minister for Water and the Environment, • Ligia Castro de Doens, Minister of the Environment, Panama • Kenneth Konga, Minister of Energy and Water Development, Zambia

Also participating were 21 heads of federal states from Brazil (Amazonas, Alagoas, etc) and Mexico (Morelos, Tabasco, Michoacán, Puebla, etc); heads of environmental institutions in the Philippines, Mauritania, the , Mexico, Panama, Oman and Spain, and more than 40 Spanish regional authorities (Murcia, Navarre, Andalusia, Aragon, etc) and local authorities such as the mayors of Zaragoza, Huesca, Midi-Pyrénées and Genoa.

3.4.3 Agora and Literary Guests. The Agora was the space for public participation at Expoagua Zaragoza 2008 through the Water Tribune.

The Agora, intended for the general public, contrasted with the Thematic Weeks and Special and Parallel Events, which were more science and technology-oriented. In the Agora space complex themes could be explained in simpler terms, and a series of sessions were held where the social perspective, the human side of water and sustainability, and the positions and opinions of the general public enriched the Water Tribune notably and unforgettably.

The Agora was a unique space, open to the public and held every day in the Water Tribune Pavilion, from 14 June to 13 September, usually as night fell, from 8 pm to 10 pm. As noted above, specialist content was presented in an approachable way for ordinary people, as well as synthesising the main points of the debate and current knowledge on water and sustainable development.

To encourage participation and get the public involved, various formats were combined, such as roundtables, Cine-forum, educational theatre, interviews, face-to-face, conferences, lectures, etc. The Agora also hosted presentations by the authors of the collection “Water Words” and fourteen meetings of well-known writers with their readers, enriching the cycle “Great Literary Guests”

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89 sessions for the general public were held in the Agora; 14 essays from the Water Words Collection were presented; there were 14 encounters of well-known writers with readers who had come to enjoy Expo 2008; and there was a critical mass of over 300 people interested in the subjects discussed in Agora who attended and participated on a regular basis.

3.4.4 Water Words, the Water Tribune Collection. The Water Tribune offered documentary exercises of various lengths aimed at potential readers from different origins, educational levels and cultures. In total there were sixteen essays for reflection and for the Legacy of Zaragoza.

The essays contained in the Water Words Collection were linked to the spheres of action and different formats of the Water Tribune itself. The characteristics of the works were as follows:

• Type. - The documents revolved around a single theme with different points of view and emphasis, depending on the views and interests of the authors. The subject was Water and Sustainable Development in the context of Innovation.

• Authors. - The Water Tribune was able to obtain 16 unpublished essays by important authors with universal messages, with the main theme of water, analysed from different ambits and viewpoints.

The authors included: Mikhail Gorbachev (Water for Peace), José Luis Sampedro (The Ballad of Water), Wangari Maathai (Harvesting Rainwater), Vandana Shiva (Water and the of the Planet), Rigoberta Menchú (Water and Humanity), Javier Solana (Climate Change and International Security), Jeremy Rifkin (Water and the Future of Renewable Energies), Federico Mayor (Water Management beyond Countries), and Riccardo Petrella (The Water Manifesto for the 21st Century)

• Dissemination. - These works brought the subject of water closer to the public, without differences in age, educational level or personal interest. They included texts for all ages, written from different points of view, such as literature, scientific discussion, activism, international relations, etc, and were printed on recycled paper as paperbacks, for a token price. The documents were presented and distributed in the Water Tribune Pavilion and the Water Bookshop, on the Expo Zaragoza site.

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3.4.5 Parallel Events. The programme of activities of the Water Tribune was enriched by the proposals of actors involved in the world of water, who wanted to share their innovative experience and provide replicable lessons learned. This contributed to reaching the plurality needed to advance together in seeking recommendations for sustainable water management.

Parallel Events were designed to make the Expo, and especially the Water Tribune, an attractive element, attracting the attention of leading international bodies such as the Rosenberg Forum, UN, Development Agencies, Federal States, etc).

Thus, the Parallel Events were conceived as a field of activities parallel to the activity of the Exposition itself, with congresses, symposiums, workshops and international conferences relating to water, all helping to position the Water Tribune and Expo 2008 internationally as an epicentre of innovation in sustainable water management. Also, due to their origin and theme, the Parallel Events enriched the range of thought, knowledge, commitment and proposals contained in the large archive which the Water Tribune has collated and systematised as a generous contribution to the world of water from Spain, Aragon and Zaragoza.

The Parallel Events were undertaken enthusiastically and with a high intellectual level by various organisations and institutions related to water and sustainable development, which took advantage of Expo Zaragoza 2008 to develop their activities.

In sum, this was a wide and diverse set of encounters and events organised by different groups, organisations and institutions, public and private, national and international, on the subject of water and sustainable development, capitalising on the momentum and the opportunities offered by Expo 2008, and contributing to enriching and extending the plurality of thought and the Legacy of Zaragoza.

The 65 Parallel Events were held in different locations: the Water Tribune Pavilion, the Spanish Pavilion, Paraninfo Universitario, Parliament of Aragon, Capitanía General (Military HQ), Cajalón, World Trade Center Zaragoza, IAMZ - CIHEAM and CIAMA.

The most important Parallel Events from the thematic and/or institutional point of view were:

• International Conference "Drought Management: Scientific and Technological Innovations" 12 - 14 June in the IAMZ – CIHEAM facilities. 1st International Conference organised by the Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of Zaragoza – CIHEAM, in collaboration with the Environment Ministry and the Government of Aragon.

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• Rosenberg Forum 25 - 27 June in the Capitanía General de Aragón (Military HQ). Forum organised by Rosenberg International Forum – University of California. Discussion forum on the subject "Water for Food Production: Quality and Quantity in a Changing World” with the participation of experts from all over the world. • 8th Environment Conference of the Regions of (ENCORE 2008) 26 - 27 June in the Cajalón facilities. Conference organised by the ENCORE network (Platform of the Regional Environment Ministries of Europe) and the Environment Department of the Government of Aragon – CIAMA, centred on the subject "Water and Climate Change: Challenges for a Sustainable Europe”, with the participation of councillors and regional environment ministers from all over Europe. • 2nd meeting of the European Regional Process for the fifth World Water Forum 8 - 9 July in the World Trade Center, Zaragoza. Event organised by the European Water Partnership (EWP) and the University of Castilla-La Mancha (UCLM) in collaboration with the Water Tribune. • Drought Planning and Management 24 July Conference organised by the General Directorate of Water – Ministry of the Environment and Rural and Marine Affairs, with the participation of different international experts on the subject • Development Aid Agencies Meeting 24 - 25 July in the Aljafería Palace, Zaragoza. The Spanish International Development Aid Agency (AECID) organised the meeting of heads of development aid agencies of the 27 member states of the EU. • The Need for Training in Latin America in the context of Water and Cities 2 - 3 August Event organised by the “Water and Cities Network” and co-ordinated by the Water Technology Institute, an Institute funded by the Polytechnic University of Valencia and Generalitat Valenciana. • International Congress "Oases and Sustainable Tourism" 8 - 10 August 2nd International Congress organised by the Association La Cultura del Oasis (Elche) in collaboration with the University of Alicante, the Spanish International Aid Agency (Ministry of the Exterior and Foreign Aid) and Generalitat Valenciana, with the participation of numerous institutions and countries such as , , , Mauritania, Iraq, Mexico, the USA, Germany, etc.

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3.4.6 Water Cinema. Probably the biggest selection of films ever put together on the subject of water, with 107 films, 177 hours of projections and over 20,000 viewers.

During Expo 2008 there were 62 sessions of Water Cinema. Each session was different from the ones before. Viewers visiting the Water Tribune auditorium to enjoy Water Cinema always found something new and interesting.

The 107 films mentioned above were combined so that viewers always had a new relationship with them. The films were classified in three groups: (1) documentaries, (2) short fictions and (3) animation.

The total duration of the films was over 50 hours. Most of the films were subtitled in Spanish or English in order to hep their message reach the widest possible Spanish and international audience.

The origins of the works were diverse and varied: There were films from Aragon (9) and Spain (32), and a strong showing from Latin America with 23, with Mexico, Brazil and Argentina the major producers. There were also works from France (7), Germany (10), the USA (5), (4), Canada (4), India (3), Iran (3), Italy (2), (2), the UK (2) and one each from Madagascar, the Netherlands, , Portugal, South Africa, , , and the .

The Water Cinema aroused great interest because of its dedication to the crucial subjects of water and sustainability.

3.4.7 Virtual Pavilion (GDLN). The Virtual Pavilion of the Water Tribune was a novel and generous staging of an open forum going beyond the boundaries of Expo 2008, Zaragoza and Spain. Given the exciting evolution of telecommunications, with which now it is possible to reach even the farthest corners, and based on a wide-ranging programme, a virtual pavilion could be created for those without a pavilion and a forum for those who for whatever reason could not attend the water festival of Expo 2008.

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The Virtual Pavilion was an extremely valuable contribution, sponsored and organised by the Spanish State, the World Bank and the Water Tribune. The Virtual Pavilion, through conferences deriving from the Thematic Weeks, was able to connect in real time with 32 countries around the world: 16 in Africa, 3 in Europe, 7 in the and 6 in , many of them connected simultaneously, in order to reflect on and debate key questions relating to water, its management and sustainability. At the same time as the sessions were being held in the auditorium of the Water Tribune in Zaragoza, experts thousands of kilometres away were participating live, with real time audio, by the magic of satellites and telecommunications. This made possible a varied exchange of views, enriching the results of the Water Tribune and benefiting people in many parts of the world.

The table below shows the countries which took part in the Virtual Pavilion:

Africa Europe America Asia

1. (twice) 1. The Netherlands 1. Peru (twice) 1. 2. (3 times) 2. France 2. The USA (twice) 2. Palestine 3. (3 times) 3. Turkey 3. 3. China 4. 4. (twice) 4. 5. (5 times) 5. 5. India 6. (4 times) 6. Panama 6. 7. Malawi 7. The Dominican Republic 7. 8. (4 times) 9. Zambia 10. Uganda (5 times) 11. (twice) 12 13. 14. Morocco (3 times) 15. Gambia 16. Tunisia

The results of the Virtual Pavilion are available online and in the Water Tribune Blue Box.

3.4.8 The Water Tribune online. The Water Tribune had a robust internet presence, with great interest shown by visitors interested in the themes of water and sustainable development. There were more than 100,000 visits to the Water Tribune website. A large proportion of these visits accessed the information in the archive of over 500 news items on Tribune activities in real time.

Important topics were covered in the 7 issues of the Water Tribune magazine, and in various full- colour digital newsletters which were sent out to 18,000 specialist contacts around the world. Finally, the Expo website gave access to over 130 videos of the Water Tribune relating to interviews with experts and important figures who visited this great forum for debate and information on water and sustainable development.

The material referred to above is available in the Water Tribune Blue Box.

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3.4.9 The products of the Water Tribune. A body of knowledge which can contribute to a leap in quality, a milestone in the evolution of thought on water leading to change of direction to a new way of relating to water. In other words, to set the bar higher, creating new aspirations and a basis for integrated, sustainable water management, leading to the establishment of public policies, mechanisms, practices, innovation and commitment. With this we can step forward into a new water culture appropriate for the reality of the 21st century.

The products of the Water Tribune will permit the revaluation of the much abused question of water sustainability. A concept in urgent need of restoration and redesign, so its beneficial actions can act as a catalyst for efforts and desires towards a new and necessary worldwide agreement on water - the resource that belongs to the whole of humanity.

3.4.10 The Legacy of the Water Tribune: The Zaragoza 2008 Charter and the “Blue Box”

3.4.10.1 The Zaragoza 2008 Charter. A wish for today, a commitment for tomorrow. From 14 June to 14 September, millions of visitors made contact with thousand of messages regarding water. Many proposals, lessons learned, replicable experiences and recommendations for action were on the table to ensure that this international event would maintain its spirit alive and meaningful in the form of a legacy, synthesised in the Zaragoza Charter.

The Zaragoza 2008 Charter is the foundation stone of the Zaragoza Legacy. It arose from the distillation of the vision of the future, ordered synthesis and logical structure, the final revaluation and clear, concise statement of the main results of the process of the Water Tribune obtained over a period of some 27 months’ work. The result of this process was the raw material used to draw up the Zaragoza 2008 Charter.

This Charter revisits the essential topics relating to water, distinguishing them clearly from similar subjects such as the environment, the management of land and territories, economic development, social evolution, public policies, planning, the regulatory framework, institutional repositories of knowledge and governability.

The Zaragoza 2008 Charter does not point to failures or missteps, nor to diagnoses already present in many forums. Instead, the Charter points clearly to the present and the future. It clearly indicates the way ahead in relation to the distance still to be travelled towards water sustainability.

The results were first presented in a set of clear, sober and apposite points, followed by a set of recommendations, some universally applicable and some specifically directed to public authorities, water users and citizens of the world. This valuable Charter has set out the path that can contribute to building a new paradigm for water management in the face of the challenges already present and yet to come in this century.

32 The Zaragoza Charter 2008 was presented to the United Nations General Secretariat, as well as to BIE and the Spanish government, to insure the recommendations comprised in such extraordinary document were widely diffused. Positive movements are expected resulting from these efforts which will contribute obtaining tangible results in favour of water resources management, sustainable development, and thus, in favour of humanity.

Very briefly, the Zaragoza 2008 Charter, the keystone of the Legacy of Zaragoza, is the result of a manifold effort which synthesises the recommendations of over 3000 international experts specialising in water, as well as from students and the general public attending the activities of the Water Tribune.

The Zaragoza 2008 Charter is expected to set the pace for a new state of affairs for water and sustainability, the compass guiding movement today and tomorrow towards sustainability and good water government.

3.4.10.2 The Water Tribune Blue Box. The Water Tribune created the Blue Box as a wide ranging, ordered repository of the events of this space for thought, reflection, dialogue, consensus, proposals, lessons learned, replicable experiments and recommendations which enabled the bringing together of all those who wanted to participate, contribute and add to the debate on the new values emerging regarding water and its management, sustainability and innovation. The Blue Box holds that repository, systematising and offering it for distribution and use all over the world.

The Water Tribune opened its doors and offered its many resources to the scientific community, government institutions and society, international bodies, the States that honoured Expo Zaragoza with their participation and contribution to the magnificent spaces on offer, water operators and managers, constructors of water infrastructure, consultants, experts in various disciplines, students in many spheres of human thought and citizens of the world.

The Blue Box gathers all the material - texts, presentations, videos, photos, news and other work - arising from the conferences, workshops, debates and other activities held in the Water Tribune or deriving from it. It constitutes a wide and varied archive of information and can be consulted by experts, students, journalists and the general public.

The Blue Box meticulously records, orders and presents in writing and audiovisual formats the lectures, workshops, talks, debates, videos and other activities presented in the Water Tribune from 14 June to 14 September 2008.

The contents of the Blue Box, digitalised in suitable formats and easily accessed by specially developed programs, will be loaded on portable hard discs to be distributed in February and March 2009.

33 The main documents in the Blue Box are described below:

12 Final documents of the Thematic Weeks: One document per Thematic Week, except Week 3 which has two, signed by the coordinators of such weekly events. They comprise: (1) improved introductory documents with the results of the working sessions, (2) all the lectures and (3) the conclusions of the co-ordinator and the scientific committee.

The final document of the Thematic Weeks: This document is a compendium of the introductory documents, conclusions and summaries of all the conferences presented in the ten Thematic Weeks. This document is available in paper editions in Spanish and English. There is also a digital version in French.

Water Words: Includes the 16 titles in the collection.

Fully digitalised video and audio recordings of the Water Tribune sessions: Consisting of 750 hours, fully digitalised, classified by day, activity or instrument of the Water Tribune (Thematic Week, Special Event, Agora, etc.)

Videos: 150 videos of 1 to 5 minutes’ duration made by the Water Tribune, Canal Expo TV and the World Bank Institute with interviews and reports of every kind.

Photographs: An integrated photo archive with nearly 4500 high quality, high resolution photographs taken by the Water Tribune during its 93 days of activity, classified by day and event.

Agora: Includes the complete archive of the Agora Programme of 89 sessions.

Water Cinema: Catalogue, complete programme and videos of the “Water Tribune Short Film Festival”.

Parallel Events and Special Events: A record of the activities and main results.

Press releases: 500 press releases issued by the Expo 2008 Communications Department and the Water Tribune.

Assorted magazines and documents: 6 magazines, introductory document, glossary and newsletters from the Water Tribune in general and the Virtual Pavilion in particular.

3. 5 The Water Tribune. A model which transcends Expo 2008 and gives an updated and energised view of future expositions. How this model influences the future practices of the BIE Just as there is nothing more mundane and universal than drinking water when one is thirsty, the primordial activity of gathering to listen and talk is as valid today as it has ever been. In these 93 days the Water Tribune of the Zaragoza Expo became a privileged space for this activity, especially bearing in mind that the common thread in the dialogue was a subject as exciting and as fundamental for life as water and sustainable development. The Water Tribune adds an extraordinary element to the world of expositions.

In the legendary Expositions of the 19th century, most of the population was illiterate and had no way to travel. In those days, Expos were portals enabling people to see at first hand and touch innovations such as electricity, steel constructions or the first cars. Today, however, in the age of

34 the global village, how can we call attention to subjects as truly important as water in a general context of information overload, an excess of images and statistics?

Zaragoza Expo 2008 chose to create or facilitate the creation of various open forums for people to meet, especially its Water Tribune, where it was possible to hear voices of all types and origins, bring together different bodies of knowledge and gather specific recommendations for a better way forward to the integrated and sustainable management of water. At the most basic level, the Water Tribune used one of the greatest achievements of civilisation, gathering peacefully to exchange ideas and proposals, listen to others, and create a tolerant dialogue, debate and consensus for the common good.

The Water Tribune of Expo 2008 showed that in an age as complex as ours, it is more important than ever to create spaces to listen, talk, see each other, enjoy, argue, be reconciled and most of all, learn and develop knowledge on water sustainability. All this was possible both at the local level and on a universal scale. The Water Tribune model also offers the thesis that in a forum of this size, not much time should be allocated to analyse what does not work, but rather instruments and sessions should be used to gather many interesting people in an open, tolerant atmosphere to talk about solutions and recommendations for a question as important as the present and future of Humanity and the planet Earth.

During the three months of the Expo, in the Water Tribune people listened to different points of view on water, each expressed in its own way, from different Spanish regions, from the USA and , from China or Burkina Faso. From scientists and non-scientists. From engineers, economists, ecologists, sociologists, biologists, politicians, business owners, philosophers and even theologians. From large international institutions and small non-government organizations. From government and from society. Points of view from anonymous citizens and from public figures such as Vandana Shiva, Marina Da Silva, José Luis Sampedro, Jeremy Rifkin, Mikhail Gorbachev and many more. Each of these voices, in its own way, is valid and interesting. A model, the Water Tribune, which will transcend the Zaragoza Expo of 2008 and affect future expositions. A model which Expo 2008 considers essential to preserve, value and apply in the future.

For all these reasons, the Water Tribune is a milestone and establishes a watershed in the future expositions to be developed under the auspices and guidance of the BIE. It is a valuable model which must be used for future expositions. The Water Tribune changes the traditional model by adding a new pavilion as well as new value: it adds to the messages expressed in the pavilions and plazas, all of them very valuable for reaching the goals of a given exposition, a forum in which the general public visiting an Expo can think, reflect, talk, judge, question, debate and contribute to a consensus on crucial subjects for humanity’s future. Undoubtedly, in this context, Shanghai 2010 offers an ideal space, full of opportunities to capitalise on this addition to the model of expositions offered by the Water Tribune.

For this reason, Expo 2008 recommends that the BIE carry out a special study of the origin, evolution, programming, execution and legacy of the Water Tribune and its instruments, in order to

35 make the best use of this rich and complex repository of knowledge in the future. The Water Tribune is an extraordinary legacy in terms of water and sustainable development, but beyond that, its phases, form and structure can and should be used in future expositions.

Finally, some comments on Communications. In the age of Global Communication, Expo Zaragoza made maximum use of the available tools. As well as exchanging information in person and in writing, it made massive use of television and the Internet.

More than 9,000 accredited journalists, as well as those in the Communications Department, generated over 30,000 news items with great international impact. Agreements with UER, OTI, ASBU, COPEAM and ENEX enabled the messages of the Expo to be broadcast to millions of potential viewers. The magazine “World Feed” was distributed in 101 countries. Google registered 22 million searches for the term “Expo Zaragoza 2008”. Blogs, chats. We have been pioneers in the massive use of digital communication.

We want to leave a record of this new model for formulating proposals and solutions for the major challenges of today’s society, as well as the use of new tools for dissemination. This is a summary of the contributions of the 2008 Zaragoza Exposition.

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The Legacy of the 2008 Zaragoza Exposition Antonio Garrigues Walker, Chairman of Garrigues Law Firm David Sanz, Assicate of Garrigues Law Firm

37 38 The Legacy of the 2008 Zaragoza Exposition Antonio Garrigues Walker, Chairman of Garrigues Law Firm David Sanz, Assicate of Garrigues Law Firm

I. Introduction; II. Water Tribune: the Exposition meeting point for reflections on water; III. The legacy of Zaragoza for water: a proposal by the many for the future of us all; IV. Final thoughts.

I. Introduction

In the words of Article 1 of the Convention of the Bureau International des Expositions, “An exhibition is a display which, whatever its title, has as its principal purpose the education of the public: it may exhibit the means at man’s disposal for meeting the needs of civilisation, or demonstrate the progress achieved in one or more branches of human endeavour, or show prospects for the future”1.

This definition remains valid almost a century after it was first agreed on. However, it is not a product of the stagnation of a structure or organization, or the immutability of the cultural, economic and social parameters prevailing at the time of its creation. Quite the contrary. Its main strength lies in the flexibility of its wording and its ability to keep apace with the times. We can and we must continue talking about exhibitions, both international and universal, as instruments of public education, as showcases for man’s scientific and cultural prowess and, of course, as a starting point for what the coming years will bring. The message, content and, to a great extent, the perspective have, however, evolved.

In her diary, Queen Victoria recorded the sensations she experienced on the opening day of the of London in 1851, considered to be the , with the following words:

“The view through the iron gates onto the cross nave, the billowing palm trees, flowers, statues, the myriad of people occupying all the galleries and chairs, with all the fanfares as we entered: all of this gave us a feeling that I will never forget. I was very moved.[…] As we stepped into the centre where the stairs and throne […] had been erected – directly before us the wonderful crystal well – such a magical sight awaited us – so overwhelming, glorious, touching. One felt – like so many others with whom I have spoken since – inspired with devotion […]”2.

The floral elements and the water flowing forth from the well, together with the luminosity and the architecture of the glass vault, was what was on offer in the Crystal Palace and according to reports

1 Convention of the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE), Paris, 1928. 2 Taken from Canogar, D., “The Crystal Palace and the birth of the modern spectator”, The Expo Movement. International exhibitions and the Spanish contribution, (originally published in Spanish “El Palacio de Cristal y el nacimiento del espectador contemporáneo”, Movimiento Expo. Las exposiciones internacionales y la aportación española), SEEI, 2008. Pg. 14-16.

39 from the time, its appearance was majestic and stunning. Many of the six million plus visitors who wanted to be a part of such a huge event were probably unaware of the fact that this spectacular opus, which aroused a sense of admiration in the majority of those who witnessed it, already provided an example of the confrontation between civilized society - an industrial and agricultural society - and the natural surroundings enveloping it, a powerless bystander in the face of society’s relentless advance.

One of the reasons driving the construction of the Crystal Palace was precisely the protest led by Londoners against the potential loss of Hyde Park’s elm trees as a result of the erection of the building that would house the Exhibition. The structure that was finally chosen allowed the trees to remain although they were covered, at least temporarily, by innumerable panels of glass and iron. In fact, a certain transformation of the surroundings took place, as the sparrow colony that nested in the elm trees (which were a cause for concern due to the potential for their droppings to inconvenience visitors) abandoned the site before the central nave was closed. In any event, the impact was temporary, as the organizers of the Great Exhibition of London had undertaken to dismantle the building at the end of the event and that is what happened. In autumn of 1851, the Crystal Palace disappeared from Hyde Park.

The above account, although anecdotal, is still relevant and is an indication of what will become one of the great dilemmas of our way of life, especially in industrialized societies, but with effects across the globe. A simple reading of the information and assessments provided by writers as diverse as Vandana Shiva3, Riccardo Petrella4, Pedro Arrojo5 and Marina da Silva6 on the current state of ecosystems and biodiversity in the world brings their striking debility into sharp focus. As I have already had the opportunity to explain in the context of the Zaragoza International Exposition7, the existence of life as we know it on our planet is, and always has been, the result of a combination of parameters making life viable. Air and water are essential parts in this complex machinery and the introduction of significant variables in its operation may have serious repercussions. The importance of this aspect lies not in its very existence, since change is an inherent part of a living, evolving system, but in its speed, gravity (in many cases) and because its origin is mainly human.

As for water, factors such climate change, water pollution, failure to conserve wetlands, the increase in water-based natural disasters and over-exploitation of natural water resources, put at risk the sustainable management of water and its continued existence for future generations.

3 Shiva, V., Water and biodiversity of the planet, Water Words, Water Tribune, Expoagua Zaragoza, 2008. 4 Petrella, R., The water manifesto of the XXIst Century, Water Words, Water Tribune, Expoagua Zaragoza, 2008. 5 Arrojo, P., The new culture of water in the 21st Century, Water Words, Water Tribune, Expoagua Zaragoza, 2008. 6 Da Silva, Marina, Water and forests: the Amazonian experience, Water Words, Water Tribune, Expoagua Zaragoza, 2008. 7 Garrigues, A., Law and Water, Water Words, Water Tribune, Expoagua Zaragoza, 2008.

40 This uneasy coexistence between man and his surroundings, between industrial development and the conservation of ecosystems, between, in short, different philosophies on the relationship between humankind and its host, nature, has been progressively reflected in the organization and content of Exhibitions that have taken place in recent decades – not only as regards the environmental practices of such events, but also as the mainstay and core of all their activities.

In a Resolution of 1994, the BIE General Assembly declared that Exhibitions must reflect the paramount importance for humanity of respect for nature and the environment.

In the words of Vicente González Loscertales, it can be stated that “the international reach and multi-faceted nature of exhibitions make them ideal platforms for discussing highly complex issues such as ’sustainable development’. Indeed, the relationship between humanity and nature is very complicated, so much so that for every problem we try and solve, we create another. [...] As platforms for bringing together countries with different needs and outlooks, exhibitions can, to a considerable extent, assist in facilitating dialogue and the search for common solutions. From the exhibition perspective, what we call ‘sustainable development’ is essentially a way of reconciling the complex relationship between human decisions and their environmental impact, in order to strike a balance that takes account of the needs of both humanity and the planet”8.

Expo 58 in Brussels echoed this approach with the theme “A world view – A new Humanism”, which marked a turning point in the direction of Exhibitions and a move towards the controversial coexistence between human beings and the environment. Brussels was followed by Montreal (“Man and His World Land”, 1967), (“Progress and Harmony for Mankind”, 1970), Spokane (“Progress without Pollution”, 1974), Okinawa (“The Sea We Would Like to See”, 1975), Knoxville (“Energy turns the World”, 1982), New Orleans (“The World of Rivers. Fresh water as a source of life”, 1984): Vancouver (“World in Motion – World in Touch”; 1986) and Plovdiv (“Youth activity for a peaceful World”, 1991).

The 1992 Expo, which commemorated the 500th anniversary of Christopher Columbus’s discovery of America, digressed from the truly inseparable link between Exhibitions and the environment, although various pavilions on the exhibition site retained references to environmental coexistence. The Taejon Exposition (“The Challenge of a New Road to Development”, 1993) marked a return to the issue of sustainability as a central theme, which has not been strayed from since. Taejon was followed by (“The Oceans: A Heritage for the Future”, 1998), Hannover (“Humankind-Nature-Technology”, 2000) and Aichi (“Nature’s Wisdom”, 2005).

The 2008 Zaragoza International Exposition has reinforced (if this was needed) the close ties between these events and the analysis of environmental conflict and, as will be described below,

8 González Loscertales, V., “Expos and the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE). Platforms for cooperation in the service of mankind”, The Expo Movement. International exhibitions and the Spanish contribution (originally published in Spanish “Las Expos y el Bureau International des Expositions (BIE). Plataformas de cooperación al servicio de la humanidad”, Movimiento Expo. Las exposiciones internacionales y la aportación española), SEEI, 2008. Pg. 33.

41 has resulted in a large-scale pooling of experiences, know-how and initiatives in order to improve the condition of water in our world. Looking to the near future, we can see the continuation of this trend, as the Exhibitions to come sit within a conceptual framework that is fully identifiable, and has much in common, with the past events described above (Shanghai 2010, “Better City, Better Life” and Yeosu 2012, “The Living Ocean and Coast: Diversity of Resources and Sustainable Activities”).

Exhibitions are a reflection of their time. The Zaragoza Exposition was presented as a deep and ongoing exercise in reflection on water resources, and that is what happened. In addition to the leisure and cultural activities offered by the Exposition, countless scientific activities and debates were organized, designed so that there would clearly be a “before and after” the Exposition as regards water and sustainability. The past was, of course, borne in mind - it would have been a very negative move to have left it to one side as an insignificant and distant memory - but work was especially focused on the future. It is also true that much talking has been done using a variety of media (live, videoconference, debates open to the public and specially-prepared short films), but the important point to get across is that conclusions have been reached, there has been a rapprochement of positions and paths have opened up that could provide a solution to all, or perhaps more realistically, some of the problems lying in wait for water at the dawn of the 21st century. That is the Exposition’s real contribution and what sets it apart from its predecessors. The Exposition’s reflective and intellectual dimension has been a central part of its realization and it is what makes one of its greatest maxims a reality: “an Expo without an expiry date”.

Only time will tell whether the messages, work, critiques and content, and the contribution of principles, rules and measures will live on. What is certain is that the roots have been planted. Is this enough? No! It would be a huge disappointment for those who were the prime movers behind, and participated in, this event to see in time how the guidelines agreed on after hot and, occasionally, heated hours of work were watered down by rivers of incomprehension, egos, bureaucracy, lack of transparency, commercial interests and one long etcetera. For that reason, and this is the most thrilling aspect of the Zaragoza Exposition, the most exciting contribution is one that began on September 12, 2008, the closing day. To paraphrase Víctor Viñuales, “never in the history of mankind have been known so much about water, its management, hydrological cycle and pollutants etc. We have already lived through many failures in our relationship with water, we have caused real disasters, we have achieved successes. We have learned a lot from each of our experiences. Never in the history of mankind have we amassed so much technological and scientific ability [...]. Never in the history of mankind have we had so much economic capacity. Never in the history of mankind have there been so many companies and NGOs specializing in water and sustainability. Never before had we developed such precise and sophisticated investigative tools to “visualize” the future.

[...] The data is stark. Signs of the planet’s malaise are getting worse. Signs of social malaise are multiplying. Climate change is exacerbating a situation that was already very serious. We have wasted a lot of time, precious time. [...] We face huge challenges: we must change our energy

42 model, our transport model, our patterns of consumption, our attitude to water and rivers - stop seeing them as short-term, dollar-convertible cubic meters and start seeing them as the lifeblood of the planet (...).

We have been pushing for change for decades, but the situation has hardly improved and time is passing by. The resources of those who carry this dream of change with them will always be insufficient for the size of the task, for combating the force of inertia and for countering the active resistance of the resulting economic interests. This is why we have to adopt a two-pronged approach, to join the wind of change and increase the productivity of our efforts. It is not easy and many feel weighed down by discouragement and despair. I am not saying that such feelings are groundless. But a civilization that, for the first time in the history of mankind, has the knowledge and power to quench the thirst of all its fellow men and to become at one with water must not throw in the towel now. Not yet.

[...] Action must be taken now. Let’s carry on studying and debating, because it is good and it is necessary. But let’s not fail to act because of it. [...] Moreover, in many instances, knowledge is only gained though doing”9.

There is no doubt that Exhibitions continue to be, to a great extent, a force that brings together the progress achieved in different areas of human knowledge for a few months. They offer a forum for exchanging experiences, knowledge and different perspectives on a single controversial issue. Those behind the Zaragoza Exposition wanted it to become a catalyst for all of this, facilitating the journey from identification of the problems to the formulation of proposals and the search for solutions, against a backdrop of peace and tranquility.

Using the wise assertion of Marcel Galopin, France’s representative at the BIE between 1983 and 1995, the world needs the “fabulous theater” that Exhibitions become, “in a world full of conflicts, one of those precious moments of harmony and fraternity between men”10.

II. Water Tribune: the Exposition meeting point for reflections on water

The Water Tribune is the third pillar of the Zaragoza Exposition which, together with the pavilions and program of events, the other two pillars, provided the ideal setting for dialogue and debate on water and sustainable development. It combined scientific, technological and intellectual events and it is intended to become the future model to be followed by upcoming Exhibitions. Scientists, economists, jurists, writers, citizens, politicians, philosophers and representatives of many other

9 Viñuales, V., Toolbox for the Change Builders, Water Words, Water Tribune, Expoagua Zaragoza, 2008. Pg. 28, 33, 35-36, 37. 10 Taken from Conde de Saro, J., “The thematic evolution of expos. From products and samples to ideas and challenges”, The Expo Movement. International exhibitions and the Spanish contribution (originally published in Spanish, “La evolución temática de las expos. De los productos y las muestras a las ideas y los retos”, Movimiento Expo. Las exposiciones internacionales y la aportación española), SEEI, 2008. Pg. 47.

43 disciplines of human knowledge took part in the initiation, development and, in particular, the conclusions of the Water Tribune.

It is worth pointing out that the work undertaken by the Water Tribune began before the opening of the Exposition. June 2006 saw the inauguration of the Water Tribune’s program with the meeting of the first Permanent Water and Sustainability Forum. From that date until March 2007, when the last meeting took place, a total of seven Forums were held, tackling issues as important as those covered under the following themes: Water and Energy; Water: Innovation for Sustainability; Water and Cities; Water, Future Scenarios; Water and Agriculture; Functionality of Water Basins. Elements for Their Recovery and Sustainable Management; and Water: Optimizing Use, Preventing Abuse.

In addition, the Water Tribune also participated and promoted other forums that took place before the Exposition, of which the following are worthy of note: The International Drought Forum (Ministry of the Environment, Expo Zaragoza 2008 and Andalucía Autonomous Community Government; Seville, June 2007); World Water Week (Stockholm, August 2007); Third International Dialogue on World Water Crisis (Green Cross International; Seville, November 2007); and the Special Session of the Commission on Sustainable Development during its 16th session on the 2008 Zaragoza Exposition and the Water Tribune (United Nations; New York, May 2008).

The Water Tribune designed and implemented six main mechanisms as tools for the Zaragoza Exposition: Thematic Weeks, Water Words, Special Events, Agora, Water Cinema and Parallel Events. The Zaragoza Charter sits apart, and is a real synthesis of the Legacy of the Water Tribune, and will be used to position Zaragoza as world leader on water issues.

Although this article will precisely focus more closely on the Zaragoza Charter, as a testimony of the ninety-three days of debate and reflection, as what is already a reference document for water and sustainable development, and as a clear example of what the third pillar of an Exhibition can contribute to man’s evolution, a general assessment should also be made of the work and communication channels designed by the Water Tribune. It is truly difficult to imagine an event, regardless of its subject matter, providing for such a wide range of participation methods and amassing such a broad spectrum of views on the same issue under analysis.

The Thematic Weeks were designed as specialized meeting forums for scientists, administrators, politicians and other experts to debate and, as far as possible, reach conclusions on the issues raised11. The Thematic Weeks were organized around ten major themes over the thirteen-week duration of the Exposition. The work undertaken in the course of the Thematic Weeks served to shape the contents of the Zaragoza Charter and provide an illustration of the proposals that are currently being used as starting point to resolve the water crisis.

11 The numbers speak for themselves: 422 speakers from over 50 countries and 253 public and private entities, and 2766 public expert participants.

44 To complement the Thematic Weeks, the Water Tribune, in conjunction with the World Bank, organized weekly videoconferences with real-time technology which enabled Zaragoza to link up with countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America. The sessions were open to the public, which encouraged participation. In broad figures, through the Virtual Pavilion the Water Tribune linked up with sixteen African, three European, seven American and six Asian countries. This provides yet another example of the reach and impact that an event of this type can have, which is no longer subject to the rigid constraints of physical presence and concrete buildings, thanks to technology.

In delving into the quest for views and directions to offer the world, the Water Tribune has promoted a collection of sixteen unedited essays that were presented to the 2008 Zaragoza Exposition by writers from a whole host of disciplines and I had the honor of being one of them. The essays were a channel for expressing the writer’s concerns about water and are addressed at the general public, without any distinction whatsoever12.

The Special Events and the Parallel Events, sponsored by different countries, autonomous communities, and national and international organizations and institutions, which took advantage of the framework provided by the Exposition, strengthened Zaragoza’s role as a hub for decision- making on water plans for three months and, we hope, as a reference for development in this area indefinitely13.

Lastly, we round off with two initiatives that must, in my opinion, be applauded: the Agora and the Water Cinema. Exhibitions are designed for visitors and in this respect, the Water Tribune could not be different. One of the main features of the problems surrounding water lies in its proximity to people. It is an asset that, due to its universality, affects the daily lives of us all to a greater or lesser extent. This is why the involvement of the ordinary citizen as an exponent of the myriad perspectives on water could not be absent from a forum designed to last and to become something more than one of the many meetings held on this issue every year. The Agora and the Water Cinema provided that breath of fresh air and life inherent in the spontaneity, and even the improvisation, of the participant who raises his hand, the spectator who looks on, amazed, at the images depicting the state of a river on the other side of the world, or the protagonist of a short campaign film who, without the microphone offered by the cameras, would never have been able to have his voice heard hundred or thousands of kilometers away14.

12 The following writers were involved: Marina da Silva, Víctor Viñuales, Pedro Arrojo, Vandana Shiva, Wangari Maathai, Elisabeth Anglarill, Susan George, Mikhail Gorbachev, José Luis Sampedro, Riccardo Petrella, Rigoberta Menchú, Javier Solana, Inés Restrepo, Federico Mayor, Jeremy Rifkin and Antonio Garrigues. 13 Special mention should be made of the Rosenberg Forum, the 8th Environment Conference of the Regions of Europe (ENCORE 2008) and the 2nd Meeting of the European Regional Process for the 5th World Water Forum. 14 The Agora operated as a space open to the public every day from 7 pm in the Water Tribune pavilion. The Agora hosted round-table discussions, a cinema forum, informative theater, interviews, face-to-face sessions, conferences and hearings, etc. (a total of ninety-two sessions). Moreover, as already indicated, it included the presentation of Water Words and the Great Literary Presences cycle, which involved fourteen writers. For its part, the Water Cinema could have offered the largest ever selection of films dealing with water. It involved a total of 107 films, 177 hours of screen-time and over 20,000 viewers. The works included

45

I personally experienced the Agora since, as the author of one of the essays from the Water Words collection, I had the opportunity to present my reflections in the Water Tribune pavilion and the outcome was truly rewarding. In the space of approximately two hours, I was able to talk to a number of people from different backgrounds and nationalities who attended the presentation about issues as diverse as water markets, water solidarity, the right to water, the need for international cooperation, or poverty as a key factor to be borne in mind for water management15. Without any shadow of doubt, I left Zaragoza on that summer’s day with the clear conviction that it would be hard for me ever again to have a similar opportunity to debate so openly and intensely on water. What’s more, and I say this with absolute sincerity, I learned. I learned from the remarks put to me by the journalist interviewing me, I learned from the reflections aired in the subsequent debate and I also learned from what I saw and read in the pavilions I had the chance to visit.

It is this panoply of origins, perspectives, experiences, events, literary creations, cinematographic productions, debates, interviews, essays, opinions and, in short, reflections on water, which made the Water Tribune one of the greatest successes of the Zaragoza Exposition and, we hope, a point of reference for future Exhibitions.

III. The Legacy of Zaragoza for water: a proposal by the many for the future of us all

The Zaragoza Charter is a summary of the conclusions that the Expo participants wanted to express and present to the world. It comprises a set of recommendations drawing together, in a concise fashion, the constant flow of three months of observations and its follow-up is entrusted to the United Nations Secretariat, the Bureau International des Expositions and the Government of Spain. The Zaragoza Charter is the most visible exponent of the abundant legacy of knowledge and reflections left by the Exposition. In fact, the documentation on which the drafting of the Charter was based (presentations, debates, summaries and conclusions) has been grouped together in various annexes making up the Legacy and the Blue Box, which will remain in Spain as the host country of the Exposition.

When I received the kind request from the Bureau International des Expositions to prepare some brief notes on the impact, in my opinion, of the Water Tribune in a national and international context and its importance in the exhibitions movement, I spent a number of days ruminating about the approach I should take. After considering various possibilities, it came to me that, in documentaries, short films of fiction and animation, hailing from a whole host of countries, including Spain, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, France, Germany, the United States, India, Canada, Italy, Iran, Belgium, the United Kingdom, Madagascar, Holland, Switzerland, Portugal, South Africa, Australia, Bulgaria, Croatia and the United Arab Emirates. 15 In the same vein, Gorbachev takes the view that “in order to combat the revival of violent conflicts and create the conditions for long-term peace, the best approach is to fight against poverty, hunger and illness. Water is the key to achieving this”. Gorbachev, M., Water for peace. Peace for water. Water Words, Water Tribune, Expoagua Zaragoza, 2008. Pg. 127.

46 reality, I could only choose one. The best way of assessing the Water Tribune was precisely to write about its conclusions because in my view, that was its main purpose: to spark debate and offer a position on many of the water-related themes requiring immediate solutions - solutions that, from a teleological viewpoint, enable the striking of a balance between the development of human society and the conservation of the planet’s water resources to be more than just an expression of eloquence.

From this perspective, and having regard to my essentially legal training, I have prepared some reflections on the content of the Zaragoza Charter. What you will find below has been drafted with the sole intention of enriching, from the pen of a jurist, the debate surrounding what should be one of the key texts on water.

Water management as an integral part of sustainable development: the role of public authorities in guaranteeing the right to water on a national and international level

From the starting point of classifying water as a resource that is essential for life on earth, the Zaragoza Charter is committed to leaving behind man’s egocentric vision of water and sustainability and moving towards integrated management of water resources.

The Charter’s first recommendation, which is universal, is precisely that “the development of societies should be based on sustainable and environmentally friendly criteria”. This also requires public authorities to ensure that “ecosystems be effectively protected for their intrinsic values and to guarantee the durability of sources of water” and these authorities are identified as the guarantors of the human right to access to drinking water and sanitation. How can these objectives be achieved? In general terms, the Charter provides us with a number of guidelines including the following:

“That the public authorities must take the initiative in promoting the legislation and arrangements required to ensure access to water by all”.

“That priorities must be set and commitments made with regard to water that are in the general interests of humanity, and that are founded on ethical sustainability principles, transparency, and intra- and inter-generational equality”.

“That a World Water Agency must be set up whose main missions would be: […] To devise a universal framework of standards on water within the context of sustainable development that is recognised by all countries. […] To draw up and present the Charter of the Rights and Responsibilities of Human Beings with Water to the United Nation”.

“That legal systems and the regulations drawn up take non-detrimental cultural habits and the ancestral rights of local communities into consideration”.

47 “That the management of public water and sanitation services be under the control of public authorities”.

The recommendations transcribed above invite numerous observations. a) First, it is basic for account to be taken of the current situation. In an area that was once neglected, there are now countless reports, studies and statistics which describe, using figures and specific cases as illustration, the current situation as regards water management. At the dawn of the 21st century, millions of people do not have access on a daily basis to a minimum quality or quantity of drinking water that is acceptable from a health perspective. Furthermore, one of the main causes of infant mortality is precisely from drinking polluted water. The current set-up cannot ensure the survival of millions due to structural shortcomings affecting water.

According to information from the United Nations, drinking water is increasingly scarce in many countries due to agricultural activities which use up 70% of the world’s drinking water. However, only 30% of the water supply is really used for plants and crops; the remainder goes to waste. The problem is already extremely acute in North Africa and West Asia, and it is estimated that by 2025, two thirds of the world’s population could be living in countries with moderate or severe water shortages. Over the next two decades, it is expected that 17% more water will be needed to grow food products in developing countries and total water consumption will rise by 40%16.

Protection of this resource is no longer perceived as a means of intervention linked to ownership and economic exploitation. In the time that has passed since the advent of environmental policies in the sixties and seventies, as far as Western Europe is concerned, major progress has been made on how water is perceived as an asset in its own right, an asset requiring protection to safeguard future supply and as something that belongs to all of us. This is the perspective that must be kept and nurtured since it has to serve as the basis on which decisions are made on this matter.

16 The Preamble to the Charter specifically states that “forecasts show that climate change is capable of modifying the availability and demand for water all over the planet”. Consequently, it is recommended that “commitments and regulations should be established to mitigate the negative effects of climate change and extreme weather events, and to adapt to such circumstances” and the Charter establishes that the principal mission of the World Water Agency should be the promotion of the International Convention on Climate Change, Extreme Weather Events and Risk Control. One of the conclusions from the Thematic Weeks was precisely that countries should confer greater priority on territorial organization and water resources in order to tackle climate change successfully, especially in the most vulnerable areas. Vandana Shiva provides a detailed explanation of the current situation surrounding water and biodiversity in the world. Shiva, V., Water and biodiversity of the planet, Water Words, Water Tribune, Expoagua Zaragoza, 2008.

48 Making the best use of water in agriculture, rationalizing its use for power generation, strictly controlling potentially polluting activities and raising awareness of the need for appropriate and proportionate use of water by communities privileged to have unlimited access to it are all steps that must contribute towards achieving sustainable management17.

In view of the situation described above, it is inevitable that discussions should turn to global issues. The problems associated with water, as with other environmental vectors, transcends national borders. Regardless of the exact source of the water, its natural flow may cross a number of territories, different populated areas and, on occasion, more than one country. Many decisions including those on supply, territorial organization, water protection and waste water treatment plants, which may be made by each of the territorial legal entities, will affect water resources and, therefore, the ability of the other entities to meet their own needs.

Together with global issues, the scarcity of water in certain areas or, in many cases, differences in compatibility between various communities’ interests or needs, at national or sub-national level, means that conflict is another of the elements to be taken into account in identifying water management criteria. All indications suggest that these conflicts, which sometimes lie dormant for years, may surface or intensify in the near future18. Scarcity of water or the existence of opposing interests automatically heightens the tension and makes it difficult to reach agreements. It is very important to bear in mind, for these purposes, that while water is an essential resource for every human being, it is also, at the same time, a source of money and a wealth generator. This dual nature of water is a catalyst for considerable tensions that must be addressed and, as far as possible, reconciled. Otherwise, the setting of priorities cannot be avoided.

In addition, the fight against water problems cannot be the same in all places because the contexts and difficulties to be resolved are not the same either. On a global scale, the inequalities are manifest and, therefore, the solutions must be different. Although, admittedly, some needs are much more pressing than others, all should receive the right

17 The Zaragoza Charter expressly mentions the fact that the survival and transformation of rural areas and of food production are linked to the sustainable and efficient use of water. This is why it is recommended that public authorities, users of water and citizens should consider agriculture to be not only an economic sector, but also a strategic sector and that measures be devised to improve irrigation systems in order to achieve greater water and energy efficiency. Along the same lines, the Preamble underscores the importance of research, development and innovation in this field. 18 In the words of Gorbachev, “we are currently witnessing devastating conflicts arising from access to water resources, and we are in no way prepared to face the avalanche of confrontations linked to resources that climate change is threatening to unleash”. Gorbachev, M., Water for peace. Peace for water, Water Words, Water Tribune, Expoagua Zaragoza, 2008. Pg. 124. Solana also refers to the climate change phenomenon and the security problems to which it can give rise. Solana, J., Access to water, a new challenge, Water Words, Water Tribune, Expoagua Zaragoza, 2008.

49 treatment. Against this backdrop, it should not be forgotten that to a certain extent, such inequalities are part of a historical and cultural legacy that makes it necessary to act with extreme caution when working towards a solution19. b) Second, the package of measures and initiatives to be taken forward must be examined from the standpoint of sustainable development. In this context, sustainable development is an expression of the search for a balance between economic growth and development and the protection of water as a natural resource forming part of our environment (Rio and Johannesburg Summits).

Its application must be at the core of decisions on territorial and urban planning and the implementation of specific projects, the approval of new laws on protection, the extinguishment of previously granted rights over groundwaters and, in particular, initiatives for economic development and growth in every country.

All of the foregoing should be guided by the principle of prevention and caution. If a substantial impact to water (being an impact that alters its natural characteristics and prevents it from being used for other purposes) cannot be avoided or minimized to the extent necessary, the project should not be carried out - in dubbio pro natura or better safe than sorry. In the event of uncertainty, the protection of water resources is paramount. Progress should be made so that if damage occurs, the obligation to make reparation and reinstate the resources to their former condition is clearly defined, by applying the principle of “the polluter pays”. In addition, the rules on strict liability must also be consolidated for these cases, notwithstanding the importance of exceptions linked to the state of the art or the possession of authorizations. c) Third, progress must be made in shaping the right of access to drinking water and sanitation as a real human right that can be enforced against public authorities20. Legal systems must establish an order of priorities for use at the top of which sits coverage of the population’s basic needs21.

In this connection, there is a growing clamor for water to be elevated to the status of a fundamental human right subject to the highest degree of protection possible. The first reflections in this respect are contained in Articles 11 and 12 of the International Covenant

19 As recommended by the Charter, “solutions and water management schemes must adapt to the rate of development, the culture, the social environment and economic climate of each region and society”. 20 The first principle of the Water Manifesto for the XXIst Century by Riccardo Petrella explains that the availability of, and access to, water is an individual and collective human right (universal, indivisible and imprescriptible). “Water is a real symbol of the sacred nature that our societies attribute to life. Water is sacred”. Petrella, R., Water Manifesto for the XXI Century, Water Words, Water Tribune, Expoagua Zaragoza, 2008. Pg. 79. 21 The experiences of Wangari Maathai clearly illustrate how important this recognition can be in certain parts of the planet. Maathai, W., Rainwater Harvesting, Water Words, Water Tribune, Expoagua Zaragoza, 2008.

50 on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights of December 19, 1966. Although the text does not expressly refer to the right to water, it led the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights of the United Nations (2002) to define the human right to water as entitling everyone to sufficient, safe, acceptable, physically accessible and affordable water for personal and domestic uses, even linking it to the International Declaration on Human Rights (1948). References to the right to water continue to be found in recent documents such as the Implementation Plan of the World Summit on Sustainable Development (2002), the Senegal River Water Charter (Mali, Mauritania, Senegal, 2002) and the 3rd World Water Forum Ministerial Declaration (2003). It is difficult to talk about a consolidated process but in any event, it is up and running and helped by the provisions of the Zaragoza Charter.

International declarations should be reflected in national texts in order to have real effect. In this respect, provisions are needed on the content of the right, access to water services, fair distribution of water, action planning and monitoring the implementation of such plans, with specific attention paid to the most disadvantaged. The Zaragoza Charter articulates the general mandate and recommends that “basic sanitation and wastewater treatment services be provided to match local realities, which attain world standards of sanitation that ensure health, hygiene and wellbeing”. In addition, measures should be adopted to guarantee “a basic water supply to all homes or as close to them as possible. In situations of poverty, governments must guarantee a minimum supply of water”.

This assessment is directly linked to the essential need for solidarity that must govern the use to which water is put. For these purposes, three levels of solidarity can be identified:

(i) Solidarity between generations: initiatives must be adopted with future generations in mind.

(ii) International solidarity: not all countries face the same difficulties and in this area, the possibilities are huge: ranging from efficient exchange of water to the transfer of technology and know-how. An example of this can be found in the 2002 Johannesburg Declaration on Sustainable Development. The Zaragoza Charter stresses the need to encourage research, development and innovation in the field of water and for the transfer of the results and benefits of such activities to society to be expedited. It also entrusts this task to the future World Water Agency, which is to assist countries seeking support on integrated management of water and promotes “the efficient and global dissemination and exchange of good practices, lessons learnt, models, reproducible processes and experiences that have been successful, and to issue recommendations though an information and knowledge transfer centre about water and sustainable development”.

(iii) Regional solidarity: territories making up a State must look for areas of common agreement and encourage the use of instruments of cooperation in

51 the rational and sustainable use of water. Undoubtedly, planning and examination of the specific circumstances of each case are fundamental elements in this task, but it is also important to take as a reference point the need to share and combine forces in order to strike the balance that everyone wants. d) Fourth, beyond the duties of public authorities as suppliers of water-related services, it is worth reflecting on their role as ultimate guarantor of the protection and conservation of water. In legal terms, the issue must be considered alongside issues surrounding the ownership of water which, in my opinion, has a number of nuances.

The ways of addressing the relationship between water and mankind from a legal perspective differ widely depending on the country and moment in time. Despite the traditional tendency towards making surface water a public asset, the situation is very different as regards groundwaters. In the latter case, legal provisions can be found that directly grant ownership of groundwaters to public authorities, as public property (Morocco, Italy, Spain, Zimbabwe, , some U.S. states, , Mexico, Argentina, Australia, Libya, Jordan, Syria), that vest rights of priority over the water in such authorities (South Africa, Uganda) or make water common state property and place conditions on its use (France). In particular, the legal regime applicable in Muslim countries is interwoven with principles stemming from religious beliefs leading to water being classified as public per se, and instances of private appropriation are rare.

Regardless of the route taken, the result is very similar: governmental authorities confer powers over water on themselves in order to give effect to the public policies they have agreed to implement in this area.

In any event, it cannot be ignored that in other countries, there is an unbreakable link between water, land and private property e.g. in the states of California and Texas and countries such as Chile and India. In these areas, water is private property and in many cases the principle of prior appropriation applies, even though (depending on the territory and the circumstances) it may be subject to specific measures allowing for administrative or judicial involvement linked to, for instance, the criterion of reasonable use.

What must be underlined is that the legal approach towards water is evolving.

This evolution is giving rise to more flexibility, or a different understanding, of the concepts commonly used in legislation on water, regardless of its roots or historical background. The application of property rights, or other rights or legal interests to water, the concept of best use and the very definition of ‘public interest’ in this area are changing as compared to the notions employed for centuries. This is why the public/private conception of water is less important. Its importance does not lie in the name attributed to the legal interest but

52 rather in the content given to that interest. Emphasizing the end to be achieved, to which reference is made below, signifies that the means used to achieve it is of less importance.

Indeed, water has been recognized as being indispensable for human life and the development of the structures around which our society is organized. This is why its protection and orderly use have become key aspects to be borne in mind whenever there is a move to legally plan its use and management. The perspective is now a global one, as the common interests of citizens and survival are paramount. The top priority for the legal system is to provide sufficient coverage that enables the resource to be conserved within appropriate parameters of quality and quantity.

Regardless of the name we give it – publicly-owned water, private water, common water, etc. – what is important is the legal treatment of the resource and its hypothetical users. In this regard, the involvement of governmental authorities takes a similar form in different countries, regardless of their legal traditions, and the powers at the disposal of such authorities are considerably extensive. While it is true that the scope for differences is greater in relation to the latter aspect, all systems contain mechanisms that allow public authorities to apply rules on control and use which substantially limit the room for maneuver of the owner, holder of the right or, in short, user of the resource.

All in all, the idea is that the legal classification of water - essentially as public or private - is not decisive at the present time, as the main thrust of the new legislation (e.g. Directive 2000/60/EC) is its protection and quality. Priority is given to the end result over the legal construct of the interest in the resource and in that context, the focus on the environment and on conservation are paramount. Only environmentally sustainable use is legally viable and, therefore, regardless of whether the water is public or private, the content of the individual interest must respect that limit. The public/private distinction will continue to throw up nuances and disparities but, from the perspective of the resource, a common base will be maintained that will significantly limit the private individual’s capacity to act. This will be the case regardless of whether it is underpinned by the common law doctrine of reasonable use in California, or whether water is part of the public domain in Spain, public property in Israel, common state property in France, a national asset for public use in Chile, or an asset protected by the State’s superior right of use (Uganda and the state of Victoria in Australia).

The involvement of public authorities is essential in order to achieve the set goal – public authorities with powers to take action in relation to individuals, making the needs of the majority prevail over individual preferences. This does not mean that that there is no place for free enterprise initiatives in this area or the small-scale collective management of the resource. Nor does it mean that market mechanisms, which are based on the premise that water is an asset that can be exchanged and traded, cannot be established. What it does mean is the package of initiatives on water must always be subordinate to the need to meet the previously fixed objectives of protection and appropriate management. Legal

53 systems must establish mechanisms for planning, control, follow-up and, if necessary, imposition of mandatory rules on water.

The instruments that can be used in order to achieve the above objectives, through public control, are varied and it is extremely difficult to decide on which is the best. Much depends on the circumstances and background of the territory where they are to be applied. What is certain is that planning, in its different forms and on the basis of the unity of the river basin and the interrelation between surface waters and groundwaters, is a tool that all States must use. Thereafter, each legal system presents its own range of possibilities.

Nevertheless, it is true that the regulator usually resorts to the use of permits, licenses, authorizations, concessions or similar mechanisms. In short, what is involved is the grant of the right to use a certain quantity of water as a user to a private individual or community. This right is subject to certain specific conditions on time and use.

Whether or not the right can be granted will depend on how far it is in keeping with the condition of the resource and with the limits of water planning that should govern its content. These same premises must also guide the term of the grant and the quantity that is allowed to be extracted. In addition, the legal system should lay down the circumstances under which the right may be modified, restricted or even removed due to drought, population supply needs and suchlike.

It is also possible to provide for mechanisms for the exchange of water rights in the context of what has come to be known as the water market (Chile, South Africa, Mexico, Spain, the United Kingdom, Australia and the United States). The application of market principles to water certainly has its critics, who point to the risks inherent in doing so. In our opinion, however, these risks need not necessarily lead to writing off this possibility in its entirety. Providing flexibility for the allocation of resources and facilitating their exchange is not wrong per se.

The utility of water markets is usually associated with situations where there is a great deal of supply and demand, with transparent exchange mechanisms and appropriate transport networks that make them feasible. The key lies in controlling their operation and making it subject to the same guidelines on sustainability and protection. The accumulation, increase in price or improper exercise of rights over water are anomalies that can be mitigated by legal provisions that, for instance, limit the accumulation of rights in terms of quantity of water, shorten their duration or trigger their lapse due to lack of use, and by an administrative organization that supervises their application with efficiency, rigor and perseverance. The Zaragoza Charter promotes the implementation of integrated policies in order to facilitate the re-allocation of water to different uses, provided that it encourages

54 economic efficiency and environmental quality. Water markets, with the qualifications described above, could assist in the achievement of that objective22.

On a secondary level, the prior authorization regime would continue to play a pivotal role in protection against effluent pollution. The current trend leans towards controlling pollution in relation to a specific source by fixing discharge limits and establishing environmental quality objectives or rules to be reached or complied with in the water source that is the recipient of such discharges. e) Fifth, the Zaragoza Charter consolidates what has already been championed by different quarters: action on water must be national and international. Water does not respect political barriers between States, territories or regions. That is why traditionally, it has been necessary to resort to international agreements, which create the structure required to properly organize water management.

The raft of declarations and rules to emerge from international institutions and bilateral agreements highlights the benefits of adopting supranational legislation. Doing so allows more ambitious objectives to be achieved. In this regard, water protection or the common management of shared basins are ideal candidates23. Historically, these treaties have also served to resolve long-running disputes over water use.

Most recently, in 2008 the International Law Commission presented Draft Articles of a Convention on Transboundary Aquifers. After reaffirming the protective and environmental vision of the use of groundwaters, the Draft confirms the application of the principle of equitable and reasonable utilization (1997) and of significant harm. In addition, it provides for cooperation between States, the regular exchange of data and information, the

22 During the Thematic Weeks, it was concluded that water markets could be an instrument for the management of periods of drought and water scarcity. Exchanges of water could contribute to an efficient allocation of both water and risk. In any event, there should be a register to record ownership of water rights and exchange agreements that is transparent, easily accessibly to all and affordable. In addition, governments should not allocate more water rights than the capacity of the system can bear, in view of the environmental objectives. In order to effectively control the volume transferred, it would be necessary to install metering and establish a system of rights based on volume rather than area. 23 The following declarations are worthy of note: the European Water Charter of the Council of Europe of May 6, 1968; recommendations 51 through 55 of the Stockholm Action Plan resulting from the International Human Environment Conference held in Stockholm in 1972; the Action Plan approved by the UN Conference held at Mar de Plata en 1977; the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development of 1992, together with the implementation of Agenda 21; the Millennium Declaration adopted in New York in 2000; and the Johannesburg Declaration on Sustainable Development of 2002. As there is a huge number of bilateral treaties, the following multilateral treaties can be mentioned: the Helsinki Rules on the Uses of the Waters of International Rivers of 1966, which enshrined the popular theory of the equitable utilization of waters; the Helsinki Convention on the Protection and Use of Transboundary Watercourses and International Lakes (March 17, 1992) and the New York Convention on Non-navigational Uses of International Watercourses (May 21, 1997). These are, of course, over and above the provisions existing under European law.

55 encouragement of bilateral and regional agreements, measures for the protection and preservation of ecosystems, and the prevention, reduction and control of pollution. In this connection, it states that, where appropriate, joint management mechanisms will be established.

Continuing this theme, the Zaragoza Charter provides that one of the missions of the World Water Agency is to encourage the approval of the International Protocol for the Pacific and Productive Management of Cross-border River Basins in the world.

International action must, of course, be accompanied by national action that adapts to the circumstances and peculiarities of the surroundings over which it is sovereign24.

Water management: an exercise in transparency, participation and shared responsibility

There are constant references in the Charter to the concepts of transparency, participation and shared responsibility because of the important role they do and, in particular, must play in water management. The universality of this resource and its unbreakable link with humankind mean that decisions on planning, the adoption of measures and the implementation of public policies in this area require the participation and commitment of everyone: public authorities, users, enterprises and, in short, all those who, in one way or another, could be affected by the steps taken.

As the Charter provides, it is essential “to strengthen all levels of governance […] which implies the greater participation and sharing of responsibilities by society” in order to bring about integrated water management and sustainability. Consequently, participation is described as one of the linchpins for the transformation of water management across the globe and it is recommended that participatory water management be encouraged, as it promotes individual and collective responsibility, and allows know-how and experiences to be shared. Moreover, the Charter recommends that citizens “share the responsibility of the integrated management of water and sustainability” and states that one of the functions of the World Water Agency is to “encourage alliances between the public and private sectors that make it possible to join forces so that universal water supplies and sanitation become a reality”25.

From the perspective of shared responsibility, it should be pointed out that public control should not prevent the implementation of cooperation mechanisms between public authorities and the

24 Mayor refers to the role that national and international institutions must play in water protection. Mayor, F., Management of water beyond the countries, Water Words, Water Tribune, Expoagua Zaragoza, 2008. Pg. 59- 64. 25 Arrojo is of the view that the key in terms of basic services lies in the promotion of new governance models that are transparent and facilitate participation. Arrojo, P., The new culture of water in the 21st Century, Water Words, Water Tribune, Expoagua Zaragoza, 2008, Pg. 83. During the Thematic Weeks, the argument was advanced in favor of the amendment of water legislation to clearly include the shared responsibility of users.

56 business world which facilitate the achievement of the objectives of water planning and, at the same time, protect economic development in a given area. Recent years have shown that the widespread use of authorization and repression techniques is not sufficient, nor does it guarantee good results. Consequently, such action should be supplemented by other legal techniques the use of which allow the conduct of those who are responsible for the private activity to be directed towards objectives that ensure balance in water management.

In this area, agreements between public authorities and private parties stand out as the legal product of the consensual exercise of administrative powers in matters of environmental protection. The scope of application of these agreements is very wide. Thus, they can be used to involve industry in the drafting of provisions, they enable water legislation to be tailored to specific circumstances, they can help to expedite the implementation of new protection measures, they facilitate the progressive integration of new commitments into industry and their economic impact, and they lead the way for the remaining enterprises in a specific industry.

The consequence of a shift from regulation by rulemaking to negotiated rulemaking cannot be the substitution of the decision-making process and the participation of all interested parties, or the creation of inequalities. Nevertheless, an agreement in the terms outlined above could enable specific situations to be improved or greater commitments to be achieved from the private sector.

The involvement of the private sector is fundamental if real milestones are to be passed in the development of water management. Technological progress, management efficiency, involvement in compliance and its objectives, economic investments and, in short, shared responsibility in achieving objectives are aspects in which private-sector participation is essential26. In this connection, public authorities must offer the widest range of possible options in order to bring about this involvement27.

From the standpoint of transparency and participation, it is especially important that mechanisms be established to ensure that the final decisions are adopted by the proper persons, that those decisions are the result of procedures governing the involvement of citizens, that such involvement is based on information made available to citizens and, lastly, that those decisions can be challenged by an independent third party (Aarhus Convention, 1998).

26 This is all notwithstanding the fact that the commercial tendencies of large corporations and their influence over certain institutions must be controlled. George, S., Water and sustainable development, Water Words, Water Tribune, Expoagua Zaragoza, 2008. Pg. 94-111. 27 References to investments and technologies also have their place in the Charter, which underlines both the existence of technology enabling fresh water to be produced from sea water and fog and reused, as well as the need to secure finance for new infrastructure. In Rifkin’s view, the transition towards the Third Industrial Revolution is fundamental and for that to occur the three pillars to take into account are renewable energies, hydrogen as an energy storage system and the transformation of the European supply network by applying the Internet model. Rifkin, J., Renewable energy solutions to face climate change and the coming world water crisis, Water Words, Water Tribune, Expoagua Zaragoza, 2008.

57 Moreover, in the interests of achieving environmental governance that is transparent, legitimate and efficient, public authorities (the necessary guardians of the correct application of the regulatory framework) could play a particularly important role vis-à-vis associations of users that are directly involved in water management. There is already a degree of international experience in this field in countries such as Argentina, Colombia, Spain, the United States, Indonesia, Mexico, , the Philippines, and Tunisia. In any event, all participation processes must be of general application, flexible, efficient and have correctly identified communication mechanisms (obligation to respond and opportunity to challenge)28.

Water management: an area where cooperation is essential

Cooperation between authorities is essential in the area of water.

The common goal that should guide all public action in relation to water, which is simply to ensure its protection and guarantee sustainable use, requires the avoidance of compartmentalization and the promotion of instruments for cooperation between public authorities and in the exercise of their respective powers. We are not talking about a possibility or even a recommendation here, but rather a real legal duty incumbent on all authorities who have been vested with powers by law. Such authorities have the legal duty, deriving from the principle of cooperation and, to a large extent, the principle of solidarity, to create and encourage channels of consensus and shared work with other public authorities and to make such channels work. They must support each other in order to successfully meet the objectives entrusted to them by the regulator. In these cases, it is the best approach in order to address the public interest. With water, the task faced is huge and the responsibility is heavy.

Cooperation, whether through the process or the conclusion of specific agreements must make it possible to undertake a measured assessment of the interests present in each case, ascertain the views of the different parties with responsibilities in the area, avoid subsequent glitches in the implementation of the agreements and, in short, pool efforts in order to find the best solution29.

The construction of water infrastructure, the exploitation of aquifers or the management of river basins are areas in which cooperation techniques, which must always be based on the duties of information, assistance and loyalty inherent in all public authorities, could be developed.

28 As explained in the conclusions of the Thematic Weeks, account must be taken of the population’s needs and problems and their involvement must be encouraged. Otherwise, there is a risk that projects will fail if the recipients of the actions do not perceive any benefit, which is key to the success of the initiative.

29 As discussed during the Thematic Weeks, the decentralization of powers does not have to mean the abandonment of comprehensive coordination either at state level or in the area of natural governance of water which, as far as planning and management of water resources are concerned, is the river basin.

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Water management: the pressing need for effective action

One of the shortcomings that is usually flagged up as regards water management is the gulf between legal provisions, which are more or less complete, and reality. The rights system, the institutions involved in the sector, the control mechanisms and even the penalties for infringers are all subject to rules. However, the application of these rules is deficient and does not allow the results envisaged by the rules to be achieved. Public authorities have to provide the internal means necessary and take the requisite external action to achieve the established aims of improved management and protection30.

The efficacy of water management should be pursued, from a legal perspective, by implementing or intensifying measures such as the following: a) Adapting the organization and competent authorities to the resource’s natural characteristics (usually identified with the concept of the river basin). The Zaragoza Charter is firmly committed to the view of that river basins “are the best suited environments for harnessing water and their good management makes it possible to resolve conflicts between countries, regions and users”31. In this connection, the recommendations of the Charter include treating basins and aquifers as basic units for management of water resources, regardless of whether or not they are of a supranational nature32. b) Encouraging the involvement of users and interested third parties as a way of facilitating the acceptance and implementation of the measures agreed on. c) Encouraging planning in relation to the allocation of resources or water quality, measures of protection or restriction, rules on improvements and changes to irrigation to maximize the use made of resources and land, guidelines for the replenishment and protection of aquifers and basic infrastructure, including that relating to conservation of the surrounding areas.

Planning must also be guided by efficiency and cost analysis parameters. This analysis would seem to recommend the use of desalination facilities, despite their energy consumption and potential marine impact. The cost in euros per cubic meter, the quality of

30 On the errors made and proposals to improve hydric sustainability in rural communities, see Restrepo, I., Hydric sustainability in rural communities, Water Words, Water Tribune, Expoagua Zaragoza, 2008. 31 One of the conclusions of the Thematic Weeks related to the planning of a shared or transboundary basin and the need to consider the basin, first and foremost, as a whole (disregarding geopolitical borders) in order to decide on the objectives, guidelines, strategies, plans, programs, projects and other types of action, as well as the investments to be made and where. This ensures the maximum economic and social benefit from the use and the integrated conservation of the basin. 32 On the role of the water basin authorities in Spain, see Anglarill, E., Shared water. The Water Basin Authorities in the future, Water Words, Water Tribune, Expoagua Zaragoza, 2008.

59 the water and the lesser environmental impact are the main arguments usually advanced to promote this option as a permanent global solution over other alternatives33. d) Intensifying administrative action aimed at optimizing water management for public supply and agricultural use34.

This would include the necessary behavioral changes as regards the consumption of water in the western world. Generally, we have grown accustomed to using this resource as if it were unlimited, with no restrictions other than our own needs or, it has to be said, personal whims. Access to water without practically any temporal, spatial or economic restriction whatsoever has fostered massive and, of course, inefficient consumption.

This trend must radically change as it cannot be sustained on a daily basis. Very possibly, the time has come, even for areas where water is in greater supply, to set in motion measures that no longer merely aim to raise public awareness (although such measures are always necessary and welcome), but to impose specific limits on use by citizens in order to safeguard supply now and, particularly, in the future. Pricing scales according to use, daily/family unit rationing and supply cuts at specific times of the day are all initiatives that must be carefully examined. Where these are applied proportionately and accompanied by appropriate information campaigns, they need not be met with opposition. That is what has happened with the demarcation of land zoning use, the prohibition of certain products and restrictions on car use when there is excessive air pollution. It need not be any different with water.

The Charter refers to the setting of fair prices that ensures the costs are covered, to citizens’ shared responsibility and, lastly, to the need for “citizens [to] come to realize that water is the heritage of all living beings, not just a resource for human use”.

33 In Arrojo’s view, the guidelines that should apply to the current process of renewing basin plans in Spain are the following: promote integrated and sustainable management of surface and groundwaters; reduce vulnerability to drought by encouraging saving and efficiency; review and update the concessions system; design and promote an Irrigation Rationalization Plan; improve control over the public domain in the area of groundwaters; prevent situations of scarcity through the organization of exchange centers; dampen down expectations by applying the cost recovery criterion to new uses; impose eco-conditions on agricultural subsidies in vulnerable areas; condition urban development on availability of water, even in times of drought; reduce vulnerability to drought by reusing returns; change annual regulation strategies for multi-annual strategies; promote drought strategies based on the application of new technologies; create an appropriate insurance system; promote proactive citizen involvement by educating citizens. Arrojo, P., The new culture of water of the 21st century, Water Words, Water Tribune, Expoagua Zaragoza, 2008. Pg. 94-104. 34 One of the conclusions of the Thematic Weeks focused on the promotion of good water-saving practices for all users, especially irrigators, given that agriculture is the biggest user of water and the industry that can save the most water for the benefit of other uses and environmental sustainability.

60 An appropriate relationship between the situation on the ground and the legal system, multilateral participation in the administrative structure, and the right mix between planning and regulation of use are basic milestones that must be passed in order to achieve the aims to be pursued by public action on water issues.

IV. Final thoughts

According to the Dictionary of the Spanish Royal Academy, a “legacy” is something left or handed down to one’s successors and can be tangible or intangible. I am convinced that on this occasion, all the elements of the definition are present and that the Legacy and the Blue Box left to us by the 2008 Zaragoza International Exposition is a real compendium of experiences, sensations, reflections and documents with work still to be done.

Furthermore, the work that has been done, including the Zaragoza Charter, will certainly be at the root of new initiatives, changes in approach and, we hope, the setting in motion of measures to strike a better balance between mankind and the precious resource of water. What could be a greater and more laudable objective for an international exhibition than to become a symbol of advancement towards sustainability in its chosen field? The Water Tribune ventured down this road, laid the foundations in Zaragoza and must continue its journey with everyone’s help. Water, the planet and future generations will be thankful for it.

We should make haste to change Water’s perception of man in the ballad written by José Luis Sampedro:

“- They still respect us in other cultures and we are even sacred. - Yes, Air - said Water – but the modern lot don’t regard us as being the pillars of the world. That was discovered by the great philosophers who precisely came from the West. The same philosophers who defined human beings thus: Man is the measure of all things. But later, other ideas discarded that maxim and promised man nothing less than an eternity, crowning him King of Creation. This is what led him to conceive such plans of grandeur that have disturbed his mind. We, as the world, seem small to him. That’s why he started to change us, building on top of what we are, scorning our laws”35.

This is helped by the Mayan teachings provided to us by Rigoberta Menchú:

“THE CRICKET A cricket was singing: chirr, chirr ... - a sower who was working nearby tired of hearing it sing and said to it: - Be quiet! Oh what a racket you are making, my head hurts now! – and the cricket replied: - I am asking for rain for your sown lands”36.

35 Sampedro, J.L., The ballad of water, Water Words, Water Tribune, Expoagua Zaragoza, 2008. Pg. 26-27. 36 Menchú, R., Water and Humanity, a reciprocal existence, Water Words, Water Tribune, Expoagua Zaragoza, 2008. Pg. 25.

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L’héritage immatériel d'une EXPO : de Zaragoza 2008 à Milano 2015

Prof. Roberto Schmid, Président du Comité Scientifique d’EXPO MILANO 2015

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L’héritage immatériel d'une EXPO : de Zaragoza 2008 à Milano 2015 Prof. Roberto Schmid, Président du Comité Scientifique d’EXPO MILANO 2015

La Convention du BIE, signée à Paris en 1928 par 31 Pays, définit une exposition universelle comme “une manifestation qui, quelle que soit sa dénomination, a un but principal d'enseignement pour le public, faisant l'inventaire des moyens dont dispose l'homme pour satisfaire les besoins d'une civilisation et faisant ressortir dans une ou plusieurs branches de l'activité humaine les progrès réalisés ou les perspectives d'avenir”.

Le fondement, le cœur d'une Expo n'est donc pas commercial, mais plutôt éducatif et de vulgarisation. Ce cœur bat en syntonie avec les progrès dans les domaines de la culture, de l'art, de la science et de la technologie considérés, dans leur ensemble, comme des éléments importants pour satisfaire les besoins de l'Homme.

Dans la définition ci-dessus, les délégués des Nations, réunis à Paris, laissent sans doute transparaître le vibrant souvenir de l'Exposition Universelle qui eut lieu en 1889, dans la Ville Lumière qui connut, à cette époque, de nouveaux courants littéraires, le passage du maniérisme de la peinture traditionnelle à la couleur et à la chaleur de l'impressionnisme, et aussi l'euphorie pour les progrès de la technologie représentée par la Tour Eiffel, symbole atemporel non seulement de cette Exposition mais également de la ville qui l'accueillait.

Le choix du thème autour duquel va évoluer l'Expo représente un élément crucial dans le sens où il reflète l'histoire et les caractéristiques socio-économiques et culturelles du pays qui se propose d'organiser la manifestation, tout en marquant sa vocation et son élan vers le futur. En outre, le thème choisi ne doit pas susciter un désir de participation seulement chez les visiteurs provenant des pays les plus industrialisés, comme c’était jadis le cas lorsque l'Exposition Universelle accueillait les dernières merveilles technologiques produites par le talent humain de l’époque. Le thème doit également stimuler l'intérêt du public des pays dont l'industrialisation est plus récente et des pays en développement.

Il est manifeste cependant que l'Expo subit d'une part les tournants historiques et que, d'autre part, elle contribue à mettre en évidence et à influencer les nouvelles tendances de la société contemporaine en s'adaptant aux bouleversements entraînés par les changements d’époques et en remettant en question sa propre nature. Elle identifie aujourd’hui de nouveaux modèles de communication pour attirer les millions de visiteurs qui affluent vers les pavillons et les autres espaces de l'Expo, un grand évènement qui doit constamment suivre l'évolution des temps afin de conserver son propre attrait.

L'Expo organisée par la ville de en 2015 en est un exemple avec le thème “Nourrir la Planète- Énergie pour la Vie”. Ce thème sera décliné en interprétant, à travers le prisme de la modernité (en faisant référence à une société globalisée qui présente cependant de profonds déséquilibres entre les différentes parties de la planète), le concept de l'homme et de ses besoins au centre de l'univers que l'on retrouve à la base de la Convention du BIE de 1928. L'homme au centre de l'univers est, par ailleurs, un concept propre à la tradition humaniste de la Renaissance italienne que Milan a grandement contribué à 65 construire. Notamment, grâce à la promotion d'une société moderne reposant sur la connaissance et globalisée sans aucune restriction ni limites géographiques. Un nouvel humanisme, donc, dans le cadre duquel l'Homme est protagoniste dans la mesure où il produit, transmet et emploie la connaissance comme instrument pour améliorer la qualité de vie de tous en tous lieux.

Améliorer la qualité de la vie signifie, en plus, favoriser l'éducation et la santé, améliorer la qualité de l'environnement, donner davantage de place aux loisirs et aux occasions d'enrichissement culturel tout en garantissant ce “développement durable” qui est devenu l’objet de désir de notre époque. Il a ainsi été observé, au cours des dernières Expos – tant internationales qu'universelles – une attention et une importance croissantes de la part des organisateurs et des participants non seulement pour les contenus scientifiques et technologiques des pavillons, mais également pour les contenus éducatifs dans la programmation de l'évènement.

La toute dernière Expo Zaragoza, organisée l'été dernier sous l'égide du BIE dans la capitale de l'Aragon, Saragosse, a appliqué pleinement cette exigence en consacrant une section entière, sous le nom de “Tribune de l'Eau”, aux contenus éducatifs, scientifiques et technologiques.

Dans le cadre de l’histoire plus que centenaire des Expos, la Tribune de l'Eau a sans aucun doute représenté une nouveauté dans l’habileté de mettre à la disposition de la communauté académique et scientifique espagnole, mais aussi du public en général, un espace pour une large palette de conférences, congrès et débats sur l'univers de l'eau et sur l'incidence que cet élément, indispensable à la vie, l’eau, peut avoir sur la vie de la planète et de l'humanité toute entière.

Il s'agit, comme l’a définie le site officiel de Expo Zaragoza, d'une école de pensée créée parallèlement aux évènements ludiques et didactiques de l'exposition aragonaise: son but était de répondre aux exigences d'efficacité, efficience et modernité d'une manifestation si complexe, articulée et globale qui souhaitait surtout stimuler la réflexion, le débat et la recherche de solutions sur les grands thèmes de l'eau et de la durabilité.

En effet, l'activité de la Tribune de l'eau a commencé bien avant l'inauguration de l'Expo. Depuis le 20 Juin 2006 s’est mise en place, avec le premier forum permanent sur l'eau et la durabilité consacré au thème “Eau et Énergie : deux défis synergiques”, une série de rencontres préparatoires aux débats qui allaient avoir lieu par la suite au cours du trimestre de l'exposition. La Tribune a, d’une certaine manière, défini un parcours, un chemin privilégié et anticipatoire du slogan “Marchons ensemble vers 2015”, cher au Commissaire Moratti, et qui représente l’un des piliers de l'organisation de notre Expo.

Le succès de la méthodologie proposée à Expo Zaragoza – qui prévoyait une série d'initiatives spécifiques telles que la réalisation de semaines thématiques, l'agora, les évènements et les conférences parallèles, initiatives auxquelles est consacré ce numéro du Bulletin– constitue un exemple et une indication pour les Expos programmées pour les années à venir, de celle de Shanghai 2010 à l'Exposition Internationale de Yeosu 2012 en Corée, et enfin de 2012 à l'Expo qui nous tient plus à cœur, celle de Milan 2015.

Admirable, cette idée de l'agora, ce forum réservé aux rencontres et aux débats sur le monde de l'eau entre les citoyens d'un côté et les scientifiques, les administrateurs, les politiciens, les communicateurs, les hommes de culture et les artistes de l'autre. Les commentaires, les doutes, les réflexions, les 66 propositions ainsi que les critiques, ont été l'occasion d’un exercice cohérent et utile, un exercice non seulement dialectique, mais également enrichissant.

La Tribune de l'Eau a évidemment fait un usage extensif des instruments multimédia et des opportunités offertes par l'univers des télécommunications : elle a développé par exemple – en collaboration avec le Secrétariat International pour l'Eau (ISW) – un important programme audiovisuel (plus de 180 heures de projections cinématographiques liées au thème de Saragosse “Eau et Développement Durable”) ainsi que de nombreuses productions cinématographiques, séries télévisées, documentaires et dessins animés en collaboration avec plusieurs pays parmi lesquels l'Italie.

En guise d'exemple, pour la première fois dans l'histoire des Expos, on a créé à Saragosse un réseau mondial de connaissances, le Global Development Learning Network (GDLN) qui a rendu possible la participation à distance aux évènements ayant lieu à Saragosse; à cette fin, un pavillon virtuel – appelé “E-waterexpo.net”, un espace virtuel pour des présentations et des débats consacrés au partage de connaissances novatrices et de formation – a été conçu et réalisé. Du 14 juin au 14 septembre 2008, le GDLN a coordonné et dirigé de nombreuses vidéoconférences “globales”, à savoir des rencontres animées par des experts connectés depuis les quatre coins de la planète et consacrées aux grands thèmes en discussion.

Ainsi, la Tribune de l'Eau a jeté les fondements culturels et cognitifs sur lesquels le thème de l'Expo s'est développé. D'autre part, elle a été un vrai forum permanent, articulé en semaines thématiques autour de 25 sujets principaux, auquel ont participé environ 2000 experts internationaux. C'est ainsi que, durant des journées entières tout au long de la manifestation, cet espace physique de l'Expo, la Tribune de l’eau, a accueilli des débats et des conférences suivis par un public très attentif.

Le fruit de ce travail est la “Charte de Saragosse”, approuvée au cours du Symposium International sur l'Eau et le Développement Durable qui a fixé les objectifs globaux pour la gestion des ressources hydriques et qui représente désormais l'héritage immatériel des infrastructures qui demeureront après le grand évènement qui a attiré à Saragosse plus de 5 millions de visiteurs.

La Charte de Saragosse souhaite être le legs, probablement le plus important, de la dernière exposition internationale en établissant de nouveaux paramètres dimensionnels au sujet de l'eau et du développement durable, en écartant l'approche obsolète, bien qu'approfondie, de l'analyse des problèmes, en accordant en même temps une importance particulière à la mise au point et à l'usage de lignes directrices et des meilleures pratiques concrètes. Il s'agit – comme l'a indiqué M. Roque Gistau, Président de la Société Expoagua qui a organisé l'évènement – d'une proposition de “plan d'action” pour la gestion mondiale durable des ressources hydriques.

La Charte présente d'abord un ample préambule consacré à une nouvelle vision d'ensemble de l'“élément eau” et comporte des recommandations, tant d'ordre général que directement adressées aux autorités publiques, aux usagers de l'eau et aux citoyens et servira sans doute de base de discussion lors des différents forums qui traiteront les thèmes fondamentaux pour la survie de la planète.

Au cours des trois mois d'exposition, des dizaines de milliers de personnes ont pu approfondir, ou seulement “entendre parler” de thèmes ayant un grand impact sur nous tous, des thèmes incontournables qu’Expo Milano 2015 s'apprête à examiner afin de peaufiner l'ensemble des meilleures

67 pratiques et des orientations utiles à la promotion de l'équilibre entre développement et consommation durable, plus que jamais nécessaire aujourd'hui.

Le changement climatique, la santé, l'éducation sont autant de thèmes qui ne peuvent guère être traités sans s'appuyer sur une base de connaissance consolidée et crédible. C'est pour cette raison que, dès les premières phases de l'aventure qui s'est achevée le 31 mars 2007 à Paris par l'attribution de la part du BIE de l'honneur et de la charge d'organiser une Expo en 2015, c’est-à-dire déjà presque demain, Expo Milano a reconnu à la science et à la technologie un rôle prioritaire.. En effet, pour la première fois dans l'histoire des Expos, il a été décidé de constituer un comité scientifique international de haut niveau que j'ai eu l'honneur de coordonner et qui a apporté une contribution fondamentale tant en ce qui concerne la déclinaison du thème dans les sept sous-thèmes (cf. photo), que pour les contenus des deux Forums Thématiques de Rome et Milan. Le premier portera sur les effets les plus significatifs des changements climatiques sur le développement socio-économique; le deuxième sera destiné à identifier un nombre limité (quatre pour être plus précis) de projets “planétaires” à réaliser pendant la période précédant l'inauguration de l'Expo, le 1er Mai 2015.

Néanmoins, le Comité Scientifique a accompli une autre importante fonction : celle d'être présent aux rencontres avec les représentants de plus de cent-vingt pays visités au cours de la campagne de candidature fournissant ainsi un appui fondamental à la fois sur les priorités des interventions demandées et sur les contenus des programmes de coopération qui seront réalisés en partenariat avec les pays participants.

Un premier résultat de ce travail est la validation, sur le plan scientifique, des premiers projets qui ont déjà démarré et qui sont appelés à augmenter de manière significative dans les prochains mois.

Expo Milan 2015 va être un grand évènement dont la durée n'est certainement pas limitée au semestre de l'exposition. Elle se prolongera pendant plus de six ans par une série de manifestations qui seront le fruit d'une vision initiale développée au cours de phases successives. Le nouveau Comité Scientifique international s'exprimera notamment, dans les plus brefs délais, sur cette vision. Il proposera des idées et des hypothèses sur les technologies gagnantes dans les secteurs d'intérêt de l'Expo en 2015 : un véritable exercice de technology foresight.

Du travail des experts du Comité dépendra l'intérêt qu’Expo Milano – la seule manifestation globale que notre monde de plus en plus petit et homogénéisé est encore en mesure de nous offrir – sera capable de susciter parmi les quelques 20 millions de visiteurs attendus. Il ne fait aucun doute qu’Expo Zaragoza, avec sa Tribune de l'Eau, a tracé le chemin de la survie et du développement ultérieur du mouvement Expo, celui de la valeur scientifique, technologique et éducative qu’il faut ajouter à la manifestation. Expo Shanghai, puis Expo Yeosu en 2012 et Expo Milano en 2015 représenteront la continuité de l'héritage de la connaissance reçu de Expo Zaragoza..., un patrimoine immense, fruit d’études, de recherches, de réflexions, de débats menés par des hommes et des femmes de tous les pays du monde qui poursuivront cette démarche pour créer un réseau de connaissance et de savoir capable d'avoir un impact significatif sur le bien-être de l'humanité.

Milan est prêt à suivre ce chemin jusqu'au bout.

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A Brief Summary of the Four Pillars of the Third Industrial Revolution Jeremy Rifkin, Advisor to the European Union and to several European heads of state, President of the Foundation on Economic Trends in the United States.

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A Brief Summary of the Four Pillars of the Third Industrial Revolution Jeremy Rifkin, Advisor to the European Union and to several European heads of state, President of the Foundation on Economic Trends in the United States.

A Brief Summary of the Four Pillars of the Third Industrial Revolution

The great pivotal economic changes in world history have occurred when new energy regimes converge with new communication regimes. Today, the same design principles and smart technologies that made possible the internet, and vast “distributed” global communication networks, are just beginning to be used to reconfigure the world’s power grids so that people can produce renewable energy and share it peer-to-peer, just like they now produce and share information, creating a new, decentralized form of energy use. We need to envision a future in which millions of individuals can collect and produce locally generated renewable energy in their homes, offices, factories, and vehicles, store that energy in the form of hydrogen, and share their power generation with each other across a continent-wide intelligent intergrid.

The Four Pillars of the Third Industrial Revolution

The creation of a renewable energy regime, loaded by buildings, partially stored in the form of hydrogen, and distributed via smart intergrids, opens the door to a Third Industrial Revolution and should have as powerful an economic multiplier effect in the 21st century as the convergence of mass print technology with coal and steam power technology in the 19th century, and the coming together of electrical forms of communication with oil and the internal combustion engine in the 20th century.

The First Pillar: Renewable Energy

Renewable forms of energy—solar, wind, hydro, geothermal, ocean waves, and biomass—make up the first of the four pillars of the Third Industrial Revolution. By becoming the first superpower to establish a mandatory target of 20 percent renewable energy by 2020, the EU has set in motion the process of vastly enlarging the renewable energy portion of its energy mix.

The Second Pillar: Buildings as Positive Power Plants

While renewable energy is found everywhere and new technologies are allowing us to harness it more cheaply and efficiently, we need infrastructure to load it. Over the next 40 years, millions of buildings – homes, offices, shopping malls, industrial and technology parks – will be renovated or constructed to 71 serve as both “power plants” and habitats. These buildings will collect and generate energy locally from the sun, wind, garbage, agricultural and forestry waste, ocean waves and tides, hydro and geothermal– enough energy to provide for their own power needs as well as surplus energy that can be shared.

The Third Pillar: Hydrogen Storage

The introduction of the first two pillars of the Third Industrial Revolution- renewable energy and “buildings as power plants”- requires the simultaneous introduction of the third pillar of the Third Industrial Revolution. To maximize renewable energy and to minimize cost it will be necessary to develop storage methods that facilitate the conversion of intermittent supplies of these energy sources into reliable assets. Batteries, differentiated water pumping, and other media, can provide limited storage capacity. There is, however, one storage medium that is widely available and can be relatively efficient. Hydrogen is the universal medium that “stores” all forms of renewable energy to assure that a stable and reliable supply is available for power generation and, equally important, for transport. In 2008, the European Commission announced a Joint Technology Initiative (JTI), an ambitious public/private partnership, to speed the commercial introduction of a hydrogen economy in the 27 member states of the EU, with the primary focus on producing hydrogen from renewable sources of energy.

The Fourth Pillar: Smartgrids and Plug-in Vehicles

By benchmarking a shift to renewable energy, advancing the notion of buildings as power plants, and funding an aggressive hydrogen fuel cell technology R&D program, the EU has erected the first three pillars of the Third Industrial Revolution. The fourth pillar, the reconfiguration of the European power grid, along the lines of the internet, allowing businesses and homeowners to produce their own energy and share it with each other, is just now being tested by power companies in Europe.

The new smart grids or intergrids will revolutionize the way electricity is produced and delivered. Millions of existing and new buildings—homes, offices, factories—will be converted or built to serve as “positive power plants” that can capture local renewable energy—solar, wind, geothermal, biomass, hydro, and ocean waves—to create electricity to power the buildings, while sharing the surplus power with others across smart intergrids, just like we now produce our own information and share it with each other across the Internet.

The electricity we produce in our buildings from renewable energy will also be used to power electric plug-in cars or to create hydrogen to power fuel cell vehicles. The electric plug in vehicles, in turn, will also serve as portable power plants that can sell electricity back to the main grid.

Just as second generation information systems grid technologies allow businesses to connect thousands of desktop computers, creating far more distributed computing power than even the most powerful centralized computers that exist, millions of local producers of renewable energy, with access to intelligent utility networks, can potentially produce and share far more distributed power and help the EU reach the goal of decarbonizing the electricity supply by 2050. 72

The shift to a Third Industrial Revolution infrastructure will require a massive public-private financial commitment. We will need to retool the automotive industry, reconfigure the power grid, and convert millions of commercial and residential buildings into positive power plants. Laying out the new infrastructure will cost hundreds of billions of dollars. Some argue that we can’t afford it. But, then, they will need to explain to us how they expect to re-grow a debt-ridden global economy dependant on a failing energy regime.

The Third Industrial Revolution brings with it a new era of “distributed capitalism” in which millions of existing and new businesses and homeowners become energy players. In the process, we will create millions of green jobs, jump start a new technology revolution, and dramatically increase productivity, as well as mitigate climate change.

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The Legacy of Expo Zaragoza Domingo Jimenez-Beltran, Catedratico Profesor Universidad Complutense

10th February 2009

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The Legacy of Expo Zaragoza Domingo Jimenez-Beltran, Catedratico Profesor Universidad Complutense

10th February 2009

At the time of the Aichi World Expo in 2005 I was convinced by the BIE Secretary General Mr Gonzalez- Loscertales that Expos were facing the same challenge as the world in general, the challenge of Sustainability, of contributing both in the content and in the complete project, operation and later use of the premises and results to the progress towards a more sustainable development and a more sustainable world.

And both the Zaragoza Expo project-event and his legacy have to be evaluate in reference to its contribution, existing and expected, to sustainability and more so when the subject was water and sustainability

While not being what personally I had wished for the event (a little biased since it is the town where I was born) the event and his legacy went and go beyond my expectations for an event of this kind and with such enormous pressures concerning budget, economic results, time constraints…not to mention when it deals with the very elusive theme of water sustainability

It is not easy to contribute to progress in this theme where while everything seems to have been said not much is done in the right direction in progressing towards a more sustainable management of water and water systems and ecosystems as shown not only by the more 1.000 million people that have no access to safe drinking water and more than double so many that have not appropriate sanitation, not to talk about the ongoing conflicts also in the developed world, Spain being a good example of this.

There is certainly a pre and a post Zaragoza in this concern.

My perception is that Expos will be different after Zaragoza, that showed that we must and can rethink the Expo projects (“another Expos are possible”) in sustainability terms but also to make the “labelling” of the expo into a real theme (in words of the Water Tribune Director) and above all in having the theme permeating the pavilions and their shows and in hosting debates that bring the theme, water sustainability, into a faster track

So to respond to the BIE concerns, that I noted in Aichi in very specific terms, Zaragoza has contributed significantly to Expos to face the sustainability challenge:

-Introducing in practical terms the logic of Sustainability as a reference for change, also for Expos and making a land mark for it

-Being a real display of the Stat of The Art in relation to sustainability and in particular to water sustainability.

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-Adding to existing knowledge in relation to the theme of water sustainability. Structurating the existing knowledge, making a synthesis of it and even producing some thesis, declarations and guiding principle in particular in relation to water management that according to UNESCO is the biggest challenge we face, water governance (“There is no water resource crisis , there is a water management crisis”)

-Contributing to open dialogues, multiculturalism, knowledge dissemination, public awareness,...

-Putting higher the performance, in sustainability terms, than previous Expos, and obliging coming ones to go higher .We can say that Zaragoza Expo has paved the way to the 2010 Shanghai Universal Expo dedicated to “Better City-Better Life”. Expos have to be more sustainable and contribute more to global sustainability or will not be real world Expos.

(By the way it occurs to me that since we badly need progress in Energy Sustainability as a key response both to all the existing crisis, including the energy one, and to the CC Challenge, and that there will be the big Climate Conference by the end of 2009 in Why not to prompt the Danish to announce and apply for an Expo on “Energy sustainability “in Copenhagen sometime in the coming decade?. I am sure that Ritt Bjarregard, Mayor of Copenhagen, former EU Commissioner for Environment, will love it

-Contribute to “leap frogging” Zaragoza , Aragon and Spain as a show case in water sustainability projects, developments and experiences. While it still depends on how fare the exploitation of the legacy of the Expo goes, what seems for the moment a big question mark

-Zaragoza Expo has contributed significantly to pave the way on the different aspects that Expos have to deal with when facing sustainable development:

- To make the project of the Expos and accompanying ones during development, construction, operation... but also during the decommissioning more/most sustainable .

-Building up adequate prior strategic sustainability analysis of all the different parts of a new Expo project while still a real Standardized Procedure for Sustainability Assessment of Expo Ptojects may be needed ( this could be a BIE initiative that could profit of the Zaragoza experience)

-Extending the sustainability concept applying to the project of the Expo in itself , to its content too so it helps to promote sustainable development. This is a more intangible part and a much more difficult one as we have seen in Zaragoza, that has made enormous progress in this sense (unfortunately as mentioned not sufficiently exploited in the post Expo period, it seems). So there may be a need of a kind of Sustainability Code of Conduct for Expos so that their content in general promote sustainable development and builds up towards it and not the contrary . And here again the Zaragoza Expo provides good basical material in what to be done but also avoided

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-Zaragoza Expo has certainly faced the challenges and dealt with the opportunities to optimize the Water&Sustainability package, while there is still a lot to do in order to:

-Turn upside down water policies to rationalize the demand and optimize the supply, to build up “A new water culture” -Recuperate river basins multifunctionality and its multiple services including natural ones and its added values. -Optimize water management as to show that there is not water scarcity but poor management of resources. -Develop pilot and demonstration projects for different regions and first for the Mediterranean. -Cope with the Millennium targets(in particular in reducing NBorth –South gaps and in halving poverty and the populations with no access to safe drinking water and proper sanitation) and with Climate Change impacts

A lot has still to be done in this concern, and the proper exploitation of the Zaragoza Expo legacy could help very much to progress in water sustainability

And this is my real concern.

There are plans to turn the area of the Expo premises and the different buildings and infrastructures into a real asset to host different socioeconomic, scientific and technological facilities and projects,

While there is not a capacity or a real and operational plan been established to deal with the immaterial legacy , the knowledge, the experiences, the expertise .. that was developed, accumulated during the Expo, as part of the programmes and presentations in the different Pavilions but also at the different debates, and in particular at the Water Tribune, and this legacy may be lost if nothing is done and urgently what does not seem very possible in the ongoing crisis period that has unfortunately happened coinciding with the Zaragoza Expo.

My hope is that since we can also turn the many challenges of the ongoing crisis into opportunities these will also include the developing of a plan to put into value the enormous intangible legacy of the Zaragoza Expo.

There is a lot to win and at a low cost in doing so, in particular for Spain that could benefit very much of it at national level but also obtain significant returns in strategic terms, contributing to progress in this key area at global level and in particular in the Mediterranean region, and in socioeconomic terms as significant technological developments go along with this Zaragoza Expo legacy.

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EXPOZARAGOZA - Water Tribune by Dalvino Troccoli Franca, Maria Cristina de Sá Matos Brito and Flávio Tröger

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EXPOZARAGOZA - Water Tribune by Dalvino Troccoli Franca1, Maria Cristina de Sá Matos Brito2 and Flávio Tröger3

Estavam os seres humanos perambulando no pátio de suas casas quando ouviram das sete bocas dos dragões: bem aventurados os que têm a utopia porque deles é a liberdade e a vida. [The human beings were wandering in the backyards of their homes when they heard from the dragons’ seven mouths: “Blessed are those who have the utopia, for theirs is freedom and life.”] (Dalvino T. Franca in Cidadania pelas Águas)

1. Introduction: Brazil’s participation in universal expositions

Brazil has participated in practically all the Universal Exhibitions, since the very first one in London, at the Crystal Palace, in 1851. Since the third exposition (London, 1862), Brazil has been a sure presence. Since these events are intimately linked to the enforcement of national interests, participation therein increased the prestige of the countries and showed their extent of scientific development. The exhibitions used to be considered a feast of the world’s civilization and progress. The countries, therefore, strove to stand out.

In 1862, Brazil exposed its best products: coffee, tea, yerba maté, rice, rubber, tobacco, wood, vegetable fibers, bees, cotton and hay, as well as some machinery, railroad and civil work materials, telegraphs and military weapons. The intent was to show how the country was part of the “progressed” countries’ orchestra. The prizes, however, were awarded to the coffee and to the Marajoara ceramics (Lilia Moritz Schwarcz: As barbas do Imperador – Dom Pedro II, um monarca nos trópicos, Cia. das Letras, 1998). Since 1886, the Ouro Preto Mining School (currently part of the Federal University of Ouro Preto) participates in the exhibitions, representing Brazil in the “Mining and Metallurgy” or “Geology” Sections.

Nevertheless, as highlighted by Lilia M. Schwarcz, it was during the 1880’s that our emperor started investing, increasingly, in a “progressed” image for the country abroad. Nothing could better match this monarch who described himself as “modern, cosmopolitan and citizen” than the spectacle of the universal exhibitions, stated Lilia. The products exposed were divided into four groups: manufacture, machinery, raw materials and fine arts. Since the 1867 Exhibition, which took place in Paris, each country was allowed to build its own pavilion, which should reflect its image and characteristics.

1 Director, Agencia Nacional de Aguas – ANA (National Water Agency) 2 Specialist in Water Resources (ANA) 3 Specialist in Water Resources (ANA) 83

Brazilian Pavilion at the 1889 Universal Exhibition, in Paris

In the 1889 exposition in Paris, Brazil had its most outstanding participation: the Brazilian pavilion, located in the Champ de Mars, to the right of the Eiffel Tower, covered an area of de 1,200m2, 400m2 of which were roofed. It comprised three floors, galleries and an atrium:

O assoalho fora feito de madeira do Brasil executada no Rio de Janeiro. A decoração era também especial: seis estátuas representavam os seis principais rios do Bramiu (Amazonas, Tocantins, Madeira, São Francisco, Parnaíba e Paraná), com plantas, arbustos e grandes ramalhetes. Fontes ornavam os outros ambientes, assim como a bandeira brasileira, com destaque ao verde e ao amarelo de suas cores. [...] A estrutura exterior estava igualmente coberta por plantas do Brasil, sobretudo palmeiras e orquídeas. Um pequeno lago, cuja temperatura – 30°C – era mantida por um sistema de aquecimento especial, apresentava vitórias-régias do Amazonas com proporções elevadas: a coqueluche do estande. [The floor was made out of Brazilian wood processed in Rio de Janeiro. The decoration was also special: six statues represented the six main Brazilian rivers (the Amazon, the Tocantins, the Madeira, the São Francisco, the Parnaíba and the Paraná rivers), with plants, bushes and large bouquets. ornamented other areas, as well as the Brazilian flag, highlighting the green and the yellow among its colors. [...] The outer structure was likewise covered with Brazilian plants, above all palm trees and orchids. A small lake had its temperature kept at 30º C by a special heating system; it had Amazonian water lilies with fantastic dimensions – which became the hit of the stand]. (Schwarcz, 1998)

The pavilion also comprised an area for sample-tasting with Brazilian products (coffee, yerba maté tea, fruit liqueurs) and an “Amazonian Palace” – a greenhouse where several species from the Amazon

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Forest grew – with emphasis on the exhibit about the history of the Indians in the Marajó Island. Among the objects exposed were mortuary caskets, vases, statues, arrows, bows, “botoques”4, Indian masks, baskets, feathered items, warfare instruments, and pictures of the Botocudus, an Indian tribe of the Negro River Amazonian half-breeds. The exposition, called “Historical Monuments of Human Inhabitation”, contained objects from the Santa-Anna Nery’s and from the Baron of Marajó’s ethnographic collections, in which the most attractive piece was a mummified Indian head. According to Schwarcz (1998), the French newspapers, amazed, could not stop describing the marvelous “art of the savages”. As a whole, the Brazilian pavilion had 1600 stands. It was the largest exhibit ever presented by the Empire.

The 1889 Universal exhibitions was visited by over 30 million people – practically twice the Brazilian population at the time – and ended a few days before the Proclamation of the Brazilian Republic.

Brazilian Pavilion at the 1910 Universal Exhibition, in Brussels

4 Wooden disks some Amazonian Indians use in their lips and ears gradually stretching these parts of their bodies. 85

Brazil’s participation in the 1904 Universal Exhibition, in Louisiana (illustration from the catalogue of the Brazilian section at the St. Louis Exhibition of 1904: the Department of Fine Arts, view of the displays, Iberoamerikanisches Institut, Berlin)

Although Brazil was never able to repeat its actuation in 1889, during the whole republican era, the country kept on participating in the Universal Exhibitions – with its own pavilions in the Exhibitions of 1939, in New York; 1958, in Brussels; 1970 in Osaka; and a project for Expo ’92 in Seville. Brazil has, as a matter of fact, confirmed its participation in the next Expo, in 2010, in the Chinese city of Shanghai.

Design of the Brazilian Pavilion for the Seville Expo. Architects Ângelo Bucci and Álvaro Puntoni

Brazil’s participation in Expo Zaragoza 2008 followed this tradition, inherited from the Empire, of showing the country’s progress to the world in several fields of culture, sciences and technology. However, this time, the focus was more accurate: the sustainable management of its hydric resources, considering that Expo 2008’s theme was water and sustainable development. The event was meant to be a privileged space for discussions and sharing of experiences about freshwater, under several perspectives: environmental, energy, agricultural, tourism, cultural, economic and technological.

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Solimões River - Amazon - Picture: ANA Files

Among the countries’ pavilions, shows and cultural manifestations, the Zaragoza International Exhibition provided, by means of the Water Tribune, a space for technical debates, organized into Thematic Weeks, whose purpose was to gather and disclose successful practices and projects in the field of hydric resources’ management worldwide.

2. ANA’S PARTICIPATION IN THE WATER TRIBUNE:

The Brazilian Agência Nacional de Águas - ANA (National Water Agency) participated in the Expo

Zaragoza at different moments, during the Brazilian Day was note worthy, when ANA’s chairman, JOSÉ

MACHADO, representing the Ministry of Environment, participated in a debate about the National Policy for Hydric Resources and implementation of its instruments. On this occasion, different aspects of the implementation of the Brazilian policy for sanitation and hydric resources were presented, as well as issues related to the legislation and organization of the Brazilian hydrographic basins management.

ANA has also attended the week of “Sanitation and Supplying Services”, during which, the specialist in water resources PAULO LIBÂNIO presented at the Water Tribune the topic “Programa Despoluição de Bacias Hidrográficas - Prodes” (Hydrographic Basins Decontamination Program). The efforts of the Agency are an incentive, by means of payment for the treatment of sewerage, to the sanitation service renderers who invest in the deployment, expansion and improvement of the operations at the sewerage treatment stations. In that occasion, several sets of information were provided regarding Prodes’s investments, the benefited hydrographic basins, the main results attained, and the future perspectives of the program.

During the week “Water, a Unique Resource”, ANA’s assistant superintendent for Multiple Uses,

MANFREDO PIRES CARDOSO, presented the topic “Management and Assurance of the Right to Water – the Brazilian experience”.

Also worthy of emphasis was ANA’s thorough participation in the Water Tribune, during the Brazilian Week, carried out between the 11th and the 13th of August, 2008, when the institution participated of the opening and closing ceremonies of the event, represented by its director, DALVINO TROCCOLI FRANCA. 87

Dalvino Troccoli Franca (center)

During the debates of that week about “Participative Management of the Hydric Resources", director

DALVINO T. FRANCA presented ANA’s performance as a government agency and its role in the set of institutions that actuate in the management of the hydric resources, such as arbitration of conflicts between the numerous users. He further highlighted details of the National Hydric Resources Management System and the modes of participation of society in the management of hydric resources, as well as a few cultural aspects related to the latter.

In that same event, during the discussion about Actions of Hydric Resources Management, the specialist in water resources, MARIA CRISTINA DE SÁ MATOS BRITO, presented the Hydric Resources Development Program – the Proágua – highlighting ANA’s experience in the Semi-Arid Proágua, its context, objectives and resources involved, as well as the relevant actions and the lessons learned though this program. She further discussed the objectives and instruments of the National Proágua, as well as the key actions and the schedules of the involved states.

Maria Cristina de Sá Matos Brito: lecture on the “Programa Nacional de Desenvolvimento de Recursos Hídricos - PROÁGUA” (National Hydric Resources Development Program). 88

ANA’s participation in this discussion also relied on the contribution of specialist FLÁVIO TRÖGER, who presented the topic, “Definition and Application of the Reservoirs’ Operation Standards”, with emphasis on the performance of the Agency in the processes of operation standards’ definition, focused on energy generation reservoirs, whose target is the comprehension of the multiple use of water and mitigation of conflicts. During the presentation, examples of ANA’s performance regarding this issue were given, such as the actions involved in the region affected by the Sobradinho Plant, located in the hydrographic basin of the São Francisco River, as well as the regulating agency’s performance in the arbitration of conflicts between the areas of energy generation and navigation, in the hydrographic basin of the Paraná River.

Flávio Tröger: lecture on the “Definition and Application of Reservoir Operation Standards”.

Vases used to store water in the rural areas Rustic kitchen in the semi-arid region of the state of - Picture by Dalvino T. Franca Pernambuco - Picture by Dalvino T. Franca

ANA was also present in the discussions about the Aspects of Water Management in the Semi-Arid

Areas, initially by means of its director DALVINO T. FRANCA, who presented the topic "Northeast Atlas", where technical alternatives were proposed to ensure urban supplies in municipalities with populations above five thousand inhabitants in the semi-arid region. Later, Mrs. MATOS BRITO presented the topic "Participative Management – Negotiated Allocation of Water in the Semi-Arid Areas", where she

89 lectured about the functioning of the committees that act upon defining the reservoir’s uses and the processes of negotiated allocation of water carried out by ANA; these committees promote a more significant participation of the users in the process. As an example of that case, she approached the process of negotiated allocation of water in the Cocorobó Reservoir, in the region of Canudos (State of Bahia).

Cistern in the semi-arid region of the state of Cocorobó Lake - State of Bahia - Brazil - Pernambuco - Picture by Dalvino T. Franca Picture by Luciano Meneses

Brazilian Cactus “cabeça-de-frade” (globular melocactus) - Picture: Pró-água files

During the debate that discussed the topic “Aspects Related to Climate changes”, ANA was represented by FLÁVIO TRÖGER, who lectured about the institution’s actions regarding modernization and expansion of the hydrometeorological network in the Amazon region, emphasizing the National Hydric Resources Information System, the history of the network’s expansion in that region, and the characteristics of the networks nowadays. The challenges to modernize the existing monitoring network, the need for longer-lasting and more robust equipments, qualification of professionals to ensure the adequate maintenance of the equipments, the new acoustic systems for measurement of flow rates, and the development of forecasting models to back the decision making before the potential climate changes were also approached.

During the closing ceremony of the Brazilian Week at the Water Tribune, the organizing committee presented a few potential Brazilian contributions for the ZARAGOZA CHARTER, such as the importance of participation of the communities in the water management process, the integration of hydrographic basins management with soil management, and the exploitation of rainwater in the areas undergoing the process of desertification.

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3. THE ZARAGOZA CHARTER

One of the important contributions of the Water Tribune was the publication of the ZARAGOZA CHARTER

2008, based on the debates and suggestions carried out during the event. The CHARTER is composed of a preamble, with several premises for a new comprehensive vision about water, and recommendations both of universal nature and directed to the public authorities, users and citizens.

In the preamble premises, we considered the conception of access to water as a human right as an important progress, which shall be ensured by the public authorities. Such conception, if adhered to by most countries in the world, will contribute thoroughly for our vanquishing the current situation, where millions of people do not have access to water in acceptable amount and quality, nor provided supply and sanitation services, in addition to the subsequent treatment of the residual waters, so that the residues produced by the human usage of water do not contribute to pollution.

Among the eleven recommendations of universal nature, we highlight the following:

• To boost participative, efficient and collaborative management; • Hydrographic basins as management units; • To consider the supply of water and sewerage systems a priority; • To consider demand management as important as supply management; • Establishment of the World Water Agency.

3.1. The ZARAGOZA CHARTER recommendations and the Brazilian experience

In Brazil, Act # 9.433, of 1997, also known as the Waters Act, defined the National Policy for Hydric Resources and comprises, among its essentials, the hydrographic basin as a territorial unit for implementation of the National Policy of Hydric Resources and for the execution of the Hydric Resources National Management System.

Regarding the participative management, Act # 9.433, of 1997, has officially instituted the Basin Committees, composed of representatives of the Federal, State and Municipal Governments, of water users and of the civil entities for hydric resources with proven activity in each basin, and relevant roles on water management. Currently, Brazil has eight basin committees acting on federal domain rivers, and approximately 150 basin committees acting on rivers of state domains.

As to the recommendation of considering the demand management as important as the supply management, ANA has been attempting to assess the permits for water usage (consents) considering both issues, and performs, in addition to hydrological assessment, an analysis of enterprises with that purpose.

One may observe, however, that the Brazilian legislation complies with many of the principles provided in the ZARAGOZA CHARTER, and the National Agency of Waters has been struggling to reinforce its actions to meet the principles advocated therein.

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The ZARAGOZA CHARTER also encompasses recommendations to the public authorities, water users and citizens.

We deem that the issues that refer to the water supply systems and sanitation services ones of great importance, especially the recommendations for universalization of the services and submission of the systems’ management to public control.

In Brazil, ANA is responsible for water management, but it does not regulate the sanitation systems. Although the Agency does not regulate the sanitation industry, which is one of the water users, there is an interface materialized especially in the concession of hydric resources, the permit granted for usage, either for water intake or for discharging sewerage for dilution purposes. The concession is only granted if the discharging will not modify the class of quality under which the river is ranked by the Brazilian legislation.

In Brazil, Act # 11.445 was sanctioned on January 5, 2007, defining the National Sanitation Policy and comprising the need to universalize the basic sanitation services as one of its hallmarks, including the set of services, infrastructural elements and operational facilities for supplying potable water, sanitation services (intake, treatment and final discharging), urban cleaning, solid residue handling, and rainwater drainage and handling.

We acknowledge, however, that we are nevertheless far from achieving our universalization goals, although the Federal Government’s recent Plano de Aceleração do Crescimento – PAC (Growth Boosting Plan) provides a substantial investment in the sanitation area. The forecasted investment of the PAC in this industry – comprising basic sanitation, as determined by the above-mentioned Act 11.445 – for the period between 2007 and 2010, is of approximately 24 billion Reals, of which approximately 50% is funded by institutions and approximately 35% coming from the Federal Government’s General Budget, with the remaining 15% as a balancing entry of the states and municipalities.

3.2. The importance of the World Water Agency

Face with the growing importance of the world’s water issues, the ZARAGOZA CHARTER also proposes the development of a World Water Agency, which would bear among its main proposed mandates the submission of the Charter of Rights and Responsibilities of Human Beings for Water to the United Nations.

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Negro river - Manaus – Picture by Dalvino T. Franca

Another important mission of this Agency shall be to encourage the approval of the International Protocol for the Peaceful and Productive Management of Transboundary River Basins worldwide. Such action is quite important and necessary. In the case of Brazil, we share rivers with almost all South American countries, and there are several problems that require solutions. The issue of the cross- border river between Argentina and Uruguay has recently been in the news all over the world, when one of these countries, whose border with its neighbor is defined by a river, authorized the deployment of a pulp and paper mill and the population of the other country built an international movement to obstruct the deployment of the mill. It is therefore visible that the integrated management of the transboundary rivers is an important issue, and that international standards become necessary to resolve the problem.

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Negro river - Manaus – Picture by Dalvino T. Franca

4. IMPORTANCE OF THE WATER TRIBUNE:

Initially conceived by intellectuals, politicians and entrepreneurs as a place for the exposition of products, techniques and new sciences, Expos have more recently also become a forum for debates, exchange of ideas and experiences. Hence, the Water Tribune has fulfilled that role, becoming, as the Expo 2008 followed its path, one of the spaces that allowed the most relevant debates, regarding issues related to water resources, a topic that requires deep analysis, for it affects everyone, stimulates action, changes values, and develops effective and efficient means of managing this essential resource.

The Tribune made it possible to reaffirm the conviction that society’s participation is necessary, and this society arises from the relationship of the limitations of governmental action and the consciousness of the citizens, from the sharing of responsibility and of the desire to preserve a natural resource. It was in the Tribune that the integration of the citizens’ paths and democracy to manage the waters was brought up. Furthermore, the fact that the commitments to life and sustainable development depend, essentially, on the people’s convictions and on their commitment with such convictions, was asserted in the international sphere.

The pursuit of a process of changing and improving social opportunities, economic growth, preservation of natural resources and of the environment, and social equity converged for a persistent improvement of the population’s quality of life, and it guides the entire effort already employed nowadays by the numerous social players towards the development of a truly democratic and concurrent process. 94

In order to achieve these goals – whose ultimate target is social peace and welfare – significant obstacles must be overcome. Peace is a result of a society that is capable of creating and accepting rules to reduce conflicts without excluding people, physically, socially or morally. Democracy is an alternative for peace and building of freedom, where the citizen is a person who is able to create or transform the social order along with others. To comply is to protect the laws the citizens themselves helped to create. Thus, the Water Tribune was an event of great importance for the progress of the discussions about the world’s hydric resources management and the exchange between the countries, making it possible for everyone to participate in a community and to build their freedom based on diversity and differences.

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The Water Tribune and The Intellectual Legacies of World Expositions

Prof. Zhou Hanmin,

Vice Chairman, Shanghai Committee of Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, Chinese Delegate to the Bureau International des Expositions, Deputy Director, Executive Committee of Expo 2010 Shanghai China

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The Water Tribune and The Intellectual Legacies of World Expositions

Prof. Zhou Hanmin,

Vice Chairman, Shanghai Committee of Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, Chinese Delegate to the Bureau International des Expositions, Deputy Director, Executive Committee of Expo 2010 Shanghai China

1. World Expositions: a cradle to disseminate human civilizations World Expositions are galleries of human civilization. Ever since the Great Exhibition of Industries of All Nations hosted by Britain in 1851, this tradition born at the banks of the Thames River does not only guide the path of human development with the light of science and technical innovation, but also touches man’s soul with the power of arts and culture. World Expos have gradually become a significant stage for all mankind to summarize historical experience, showcase its intelligence, promote the spirits of cooperation, and share great achievements of civilizations. It has become the witness for the developments of contemporary human civilizations and left us with rich intellectual legacies.

In terms of science and technical innovation, the World Exposition provides a stage for displaying new human inspirations and thoughts, new science and technology, and new inventions and creations. “Everything begins with the Expo.” As one of our slogans goes, the human inventions and fruits of wisdom in many fields since the Industrial Revolution appeared for the first time at or became popular through the World Expositions. In 1851, the Morse recorder appeared at the first modern World Exposition. It aroused the attention of many European industrial countries, and changed the way people communicated. In 1876 at the Philadelphia Expo, the telephone was displayed and Alexander Graham Bell, the inventor of the telephone, himself showed the way to use the machine to the judges and visitors. The plane, invented by the Wright brothers, was exhibited at the 1904 St. Louis Expo, foreshowing the coming of air-age. From the hamburger and the pizza, the alarm clock and the sensitive film to the telephone, the typewriter and the television, form the highway and the airplane to the spacecraft, all these great innovations have stepped into people’s life through the World Expos.

In terms of arts and culture, World Expos are also great gatherings for multiple cultures communicating across national borders. Many art works spread out through World Expos and touched the hearts of millions. In 1873 at the Vienna Exposition, the Blue Danube, conducted personally by its

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composer—Johann Strauss, was echoed along the banks of the Danube River and its beautiful rhythms had intoxicated the audience. In 1937 at the Paris Exposition, Picasso, at the invitation of the Spanish Government, created the famous anti-war canvas—Guernica, which became a major spotlight of Spain Pavilion. Since 1967 when the Montreal Expo held the “World Carnival,” organizing various arts performances during World Expos has become another tradition. According to statistics, the numbers of arts performances for the 1986 Vancouver Expo, the 1992 Seville Expo, the 2000 Hannover Expo, and the 2005 Aichi Expo are respectively 25,000, 30,000, 18,000, and 15,000. World Expos have forged an unprecedented stage for exchanges and communication among cultures of different countries.

Apart from this, World Expos have paid special attention to common challenges in front of the human race and provided unified platforms with joint efforts to find solutions. In 1933, the Chicago Expo adopted the theme of “A ” and provided a critical chance for people to step out of the gloomy days of the Great Depression of the 20th Century and restore their confidence through the exhibition of a huge number of innovative products. In 1958, the Brussels Expo in Belgium was the first World Expo after the World War II with the theme of “Science-Oriented Civilization and Humanism.” By reviewing the catastrophes made by wars to human families and environment, it called for the abolishment of warfare and the promotion of harmonious coexistence for all mankind through scientific development. In 1970, the Osaka Expo had the theme of “Progress and Harmony for Mankind” and raised the new challenge before human society to use resources wisely and control and solve environmental pollutions. In 1998, the Lisbon Expo in Portugal had the theme of “Oceans—A Heritage for the Future.” It promoted the idea to explore and utilize well the oceans for the benefits of human beings, while at the same time protect well the marine resources. In

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2000, the Hannover Expo in Germany had the theme of “Humankind, Nature, Technology—A Prospering Whole New World” and promoted the concept of sustainable development and recycling. In 2005, the Aichi Expo adopted the theme of “Nature’s Wisdom” and proposed that human beings must realize a pattern of harmonious coexistence with the earth—the natural environment that nurtures the humankind. Each World Expo, through the development of its theme, conveyed to people important messages and concepts and left behind lasting intellectual legacies, which further inspired people’s thoughts.

Therefore, the intellectual legacies of World Expos are not only their science and technical innovations or cultural achievements, but also their concerns about, thoughts of, and explorations into the critical issues facing the human society. This trend has been fully reflected in the series of World Expos approaching the end of the 20th century.

2. Water Tribune: a great invention of the Zaragoza Expo The Zaragoza Expo that had just closed successfully in 2008 has carried on this good tradition of World Expos. It adopted the theme of “Water and Sustainable Development”—a serious topic for all mankind in the 21st century.

Life comes from water and the earth is filled with life and can sustain life because of its water. The water resources are of critical importance to life and the earth. 71% of the earth is covered by water but the ratio for fresh water is only 3%, within which the resources that are available for human use is less than 1%. A recently published UN report has pointed out that the world’s water consumption in the 20th century was 6 times more compared with that in an earlier time. The total consumption of fresh water of the world has been growing by 2.5% each year—twice as much as the population growth rate. The latest information shows that currently about 100 countries are facing water- shortage, 26 are suffering serious water-shortage. 40% of the world’s population does not have sufficient water supply. Around 25 million people are dying due to water pollution every year and about 1 billion people do not have access to clean drinking water. Human beings are recognizing the importance of water resources and “water and sustainable development” is becoming a problem that calls for immediate actions around the globe. The Zaragoza Expo in 2008 has adopted such a theme and focused on stimulating thoughts, discussions, and exploration for solutions evolving around the theme. This has cut into the core of human survival and development in the 21st century and therefore bears important historical meanings.

Zaragoza Expo was the first ever to exclusively deal with the topic of “Water and Sustainable Development.” As the scientific and technical platform for the 2008 Zaragoza Expo, the Water Tribune served as a stage to disseminate knowledge transfer, and gave rise to debates and proposals to overcome the major water-related challenges that face humanity now and in the future.

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During the 93 days of Expo 2008 Zaragoza, the Water Tribune, who acted as the intellectual foundation for Expo, provided a platform for more than 2,000 international experts in the field of water. The Water Tribune, by offering a rich and plural schedule, attracted scientists, technicians, administrators and users, entrepreneurs, politicians, philosophers, academics, researchers, communicators, intellectuals and students to participate and contribute, and it became the largest, all-embracing international event on Water and Sustainable Development.

The 2008 Zaragoza Charter published at the end of the Zaragoza Expo is a good summary of the Water Tribune and a powerful representation of the achievements by various activities organized during the Water Tribune. It is a great innovation of the Zaragoza Expo, which gathered the experiences of one Expo through various forms and made huge contributions to the search of solutions for the water-related problems. The Water Tribune and the Zaragoza Charter are important supplements to each other. Together, they consolidate the accomplishments of the Expo, make them long-lasting, and provide guidance for researches in the field of water and sustainable development.

3. From Zaragoza to Shanghai: intellectual legacies towards the future The theme “Better City, Better Life” has its origin in the thousands of years of human civilization. In the meantime, the selection of the theme is the continuity of the 158-year tradition of the World Expo, whose theme always reflects a common concern or interest of mankind at a particular historical stage. City is the crystallization of human civilization. By virtue of its embracive and regenerating nature, the city has played a significant role in the perfection of order in the human society, the fusion and evolvement of cultures and the accumulation of wealth. Created by the human, the city has rewarded the human with a rich, exquisite and wonderful life. The display of urban development and ideal urban life, as well as the understanding of the theme and exchanges regarding the theme, are conducive to the building of an environment-friendly city and a harmonious life. They may also help attract the attention of people from all walks of life in various countries to the settlement of problems facing the city and provide their rich imagination and all-round consideration about the future of humankind and the future of the city.

Water provides the critical base for sustainable urbanization. A wonderful urban life is not possible without the reasonable utilization and protection of water resources. In this regard, the Shanghai Expo will extend the topics of the “Water Tribune” during the Zaragoza Expo and sublimate its spiritual legacy. This will be reflected mainly in two aspects: Urban Best Practice Area (UBPA) and Expo Forums.

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First, UBPA as an innovation of the Shanghai Expo will showcase the successful city cases from various countries in solving problems with water resources. It will be a comprehensive community that stimulates different functions, such as urban life, work, leisure, transportation, etc., to present the successful cases that have already been realized, can be good examples that guide the development of future cities, and let visitors experience in advance the wonderful future urban life. The selected cases that focus on water resources are: the joint case by Geneva, Zurich, and Basel of Switzerland with the theme of “Better Water, Better Urban Life”.

It shows the benefits that the three cities get from years of investment and the purification of water sources. The selected case of Izmir in Turkey is named “The Grand Channel Project,” which exhibits the waste water collection and processing system in the city of Izmir. The “Flowing Water Park” of Chengdu from the Sichuan Province of China combines the water environment, purification, and education. It includes facilities such as man-made wet-land biological water purification system, stimulated natural forest cluster, environmental education center, etc. They will show visitors how polluted water can change from “dirty” to “clean,” from “dead” to “lively.”

The Shanghai Expo will restore buildings, plazas, public space, and environmental facilities from the above cases, combine them in a block and present it to the visitors. The exhibition of the achievements in water protection and utilization by these cities and the correspondent communications will be the best inheritance and promotion of the spirit of the Zaragoza Expo.

Secondly, among all forums organized by the Shanghai Expo, water resources will be an important topic. During the Shanghai Expo, we have planned for 1 Final Forum, 6 Thematic Forums, and series of Public Forums. The Final Forum aims at a macro-level discussion of urban development problems shared around the globe and is the peak and the shining point of the Expo forums. The Shanghai Declaration will be publicized at the Final Forum, which will be an important document of common understandings for urban development by various participants of the Shanghai Expo. The Thematic Forums will gather a batch of professional elites both in and out of China, who will conduct discussion evolving around a core topic each month and provide feasible solutions for the world, especially meaningful decision-making suggestions for urban development in developing countries. The Thematic Forums will also provide intellectual support to the Final Forum and guide the Public Forums and therefore fulfill a pivotal function among the Expo forums. The Public Forums will be officially started at the One-Year Countdown to the Shanghai Expo and have 40 to 50 sessions. They will be an important platform to publicize and promote the Shanghai Expo as well as a critical

103 opportunity for the world to participate in the Shanghai Expo. The Public Forums are open for wide participation and flexible and diverse with their forms. They include various small forums, such as the Youth Summit Forum, the Culture and Media Forum, etc. The Shanghai Expo will fully borrow from the successful experience of the “Water Tribune” of the Zaragoza Expo in terms of planning and preparation for its forums. We hope to attract more professionals and public participants to share with us their ideas and suggestions for future urban development. The Expo forums will directly develop the theme of the Expo and powerfully reflect its spiritual legacies, while at the same time become an important platform to vision the sustainable development for cities and the future of World Expos.

We firmly believe, with the participation of more than 200 countries and international organizations, the achievements of the Shanghai Expo will also be long-lasting and its spiritual legacies will also provide important guidance for future urban development.

Each World Expo has its unique space and time limits. However, their common characteristics of encouraging innovation, promoting communication and exchanges, and exploring difficult problems far exceed the bounds of time and space. It is the everlasting extension and inheritance of these spiritual legacies that make World Expos a global gathering for human civilizations that never ends.

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Intellectual Legacy of Expo 2012 Yeosu Korea

Ambassador Kim Il-Soo, Director General for External CooperationOrganizing Committee for Expo 2012 Yeosu Korea

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Intellectual Legacy of Expo 2012 Yeosu Korea Ambassador Kim Il-Soo, Director General for External CooperationOrganizing Committee for Expo 2012 Yeosu Korea

International expositions are increasingly becoming not only a venue for display of advanced technologies and inventions but also an occasion to enhance awareness of the universal issues humankind faces and to suggest ideas and technologies to solve them.

It is well known that the break-through inventions such as the steam engine, television, automobile, and telephone were introduced to the world at Expos. Of these, the Eiffel Tower is one of the most famed structures that made its debut through the Expo and which has since become a symbol of both Paris and France.

Recently, however, Expos are more and more organized on the themes which interest and concern the general public across the world. The Spokane Expo of 1974 held in Washington, in The United States, was the precursor of such a movement. The Spokane Expo made a compelling appeal to the world about the importance of the environment by suggesting the concept of “an advance without pollution.” Since then the environment and especially water and sea issues have been one of the common themes of a series of recent Expos. Following a small Expo in Naples in 1954 on Navigation, the Okinawa Expo of 1975 was the first large-scale Expo themed on the sea. The Genoa Expo of 1992, the Lisbon Expo of 1998 and the Zaragoza Expo in 2008 continued the tradition by also establishing their themes in the sea and water.

The Zaragoza Expo 2008 in particular was a concerted effort to draw the attention of the world public to the impending issues facing our water: its shortage, environmentally friendly use, and international cooperation for overcoming the problems connected with water. What made the Zaragoza Expo unique was its intellectual arm of the Water Tribune, which aimed at opening a floor for a global debate on water and sustainable development, the theme of the Zaragoza Expo.

The Zaragoza Charter, envisioned as a document to suggest directions of further discussions concerning the water issue based on results of a series of symposiums and workshops held by the Water Tribune, incorporates not only the global consensus on the water-related tasks the world is faced with, but also intends to serve as an intellectual ground for measures to be introduced to deal with the issue. Creation of the World Water Agency as an organ of the United Nations reflects the vision of those involved in the Zaragoza process to expand and coordinate platforms for finding solutions to this impending issue facing all of us.

It is the intention of almost every world exposition to leave a tangible legacy in the process of finding solutions to universal issues. In that sense the Zaragoza Expo 2008 and its intellectual arm, the Water Tribune, made a substantial contribution to the issue of sustainable development and water in the form of Zaragoza Charter as well as its appeal to the global community for launching an international agency that will serve as an umbrella for all platforms and processes that deal with global water- related issues. Much remains to be done, however, in terms of bringing about tangible results from the worthwhile efforts made by the Zaragoza process, especially by further developing the individual ideas compiled in the Zaragoza Charter into action.

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Yeosu Expo is organized in a continuation of the fine tradition of BIE World Expos with the theme of “The Living Ocean and Coast.” What distinguishes Yeosu Expo from other Expos on water-related issues, however, is its seriousness in dealing with the marine in particular and its determination to help advance common efforts of mankind to cope with the challenges coming from the sea.

Ocean view from the Hyangilam Hermitage

The ocean, comprising 70% of the surface of the Earth, is the dominant and key ecosystem of planet Earth. It is from the sea that life originated, and 90% of the species in the world still reside in the sea. As a major balancer of the global ecosystem, the sea emits 75% of the world’s oxygen and absorbs 50% of world’s carbon dioxide. 60% of marine species are concentrated along the coastlines of the world, while 40% of the human population lives within 60kms from coasts.

Climate change, however, has a direct impact on our precious asset, the marine environment. Global warming, the main cause of which is attributed to human activities as having accelerated the emission of carbon dioxide, now threatens the marine ecosystem. Sea levels are rising at an alarming rate because of accelerated melting of glacier sheets in both the Antarctic and Greenland. Increased levels of carbon dioxide are leading to the acidification of sea water, which in turn increases the loss of biodiversity in the sea. If the pace of climate change continues unchecked, sea levels will rise between 30 centimeters and 1 meter by the end of the 21st century, soaking one third of all arable land. Increasing acidification of the sea will result not only in biodiversity loss but also weaken the ability of the sea to balance the ecosystem by drastically harming its ability to absorb carbon dioxide.

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Aerial view of archipelago

In an attempt to meet such grand challenges, Yeosu Expo 2012 is themed on the marine environment and its sustainable development and conservation. In other words, Yeosu Expo intends to seek a harmonious co-existence of humans and the marine eco-system. Climate change and its impact on the marine environment, including rising sea levels, are issues inseparable from any attempts to deal with this important task. Pavilions and displays at Yeosu Expo are being planned to show the world just how serious the challenges of climate change are, and what efforts we need to undertake in order to leave a habitable planet Earth to future generations. Countries, international organizations, NGOs and corporations concerned with environmental changes will showcase innovative ideas and technologies.

It is meaningful that Korea hosts an Expo dedicated to the marine ecosystem. Located on a peninsula, Korea is one of the countries most seriously affected by changes in the marine environment. Korea also epitomizes the global phenomenon quite acutely described by Thomas Friedman in his recent book “Hot, Flat and Crowded.” Korea’s average temperature rose by 1.5 degrees Celsius over the last century, which is more than twice as high as the world average of 0.74 degrees Celsius. Partly owing to this, over the last forty years sea levels along the Korean coastline have risen by 5.4 millimeters, more than double the world average of 2.6 millimeters. In the process of rapid industrialization, Korea has lost 20% of its tidal lands due to aggressive reclamation of coast for industrial and agricultural use.

Over the past 40 years, Korea has developed its economy into the 13th largest in the world. Information and communication technology have emerged as the backbone of the Korean economy, making Korea typically flat in Mr. Friedman’s sense with one of the fastest broadband networks connecting the largest proportion of the population in the world. Korea is also a densely populated country, where almost 50 million people jostle for space in a territory the size of the state of Massachusetts of the United States.

If the Daejon World Expo of 1993, the first Expo held in Korea, was the occasion for Korea to present its modernity to the world under the theme of “New Way for a Leap,” Yeosu Expo is intended to become an occasion to show to the world how expensive the cost of modernization is, and what steps we need to take to ensure a habitable world for our future generations. In other words, green growth

109 aiming at blue economy, in terms of sustainable utilization and conservation of marine resources, is the agenda to be presented by Yeosu Expo.

In the midst of the worldwide economic downturn, the Korean government embarked on an economic stimulus package along with other countries. What distinguishes Korea’s efforts to revitalize the economy are its attempts to change the challenges into hopes by concentrating on green growth. A large portion of the economic stimulus budget is being allocated to projects like revitalizing river systems. Difficult, but worthwhile endeavors are expected to restore ecosystems while at the same time create jobs and green industries. Yeosu Expo is planned, in the same vein, to change the current sea of uncertainty into a sea of hope by the application of innovative ideas and the most advanced technologies.

The other important goal the Yeosu Expo aims to achieve is the promotion of international cooperation in dealing with the common challenges our human race faces. Indeed, environmental challenges are something that can be met properly only through the combined efforts of us all because climate change and other environmental problems are the consequences that our collective actions have on our shared home, planet Earth. In this regard, Yeosu Expo plans to provide a constructive discussion ground through symposiums and seminars of various scales before and during the Expo period. At least two international symposiums will be hosted each year, whose results will add to the great legacy of Yeosu Expo. At the same time, the forums themselves will serve as precious opportunities to reach a global consensus on climate change facing the world.

It has symbolic importance that Expo 2012 is taking place in Yeosu where the territorial waters of China, Korea and Japan meet. The South Coast of Korea where Yeosu is located used to be the setting for piracy, naval warfare and other conflicts involving these three neighbors. Now, however, in the process of organizing the Yeosu Expo, China and Japan are indispensable partners and are of the same mind as Korea on the importance of cooperation in protecting the marine ecosystem they all share.

Korea’s ambition to achieve through the Yeosu Expo goes beyond regional cooperation. The Yeosu Declaration, pursued as part of the legacy of the Yeosu Expo, is intended not only to enhance the awareness of dangers faced by the sea but also to promote the necessity of international cooperation for turning these challenges into hopes for the future. The year 2012 is a significant year in terms of human efforts to pursue sustainable development. It is the 40th anniversary of the Stockholm Declaration, the 30th anniversary of the Nairobi Declaration, the 20th anniversary of the Rio Declaration and the 10th anniversary of the Johannesburg Declaration. In this respect, the Yeosu Declaration will celebrate humanity’s efforts to find sustainable ways to develop the ocean, and create an international consensus in support of the Expo’s theme, “The Living Ocean and Coast.”

As an international manifesto, the Yeosu Declaration will be jointly developed through consultations with international organizations and the various global and regional cooperation mechanisms. The draft created in 2009 will be elaborated upon hosting workshops and symposiums throughout the 3 years leading up to the Expo. In an effort to make the Yeosu Declaration a document not of mere words but one embedded with substantial action, it is intended to incorporate concrete projects concerning international cooperation for addressing marine ecosystems. 110

The Yeosu Project is being developed as that practical element of the Yeosu Declaration. For implementation of the project, cooperation is contemplated with leading global research institutes and international organizations related to the ocean and environment. The Yeosu Project will bridge the divide between the developed and the developing world and build their capacity for meeting the challenges of climate change and its impact on the marine environment. Being designed as a pilot exercise for promoting international cooperation, the Yeosu Project aims to expand its scope with the participation of a business circle as well as other nations. Assistance for study and research on marine environmental changes, participation in international programs for research, and collaboration for development of technology and policy for green growth are a few of the areas incorporated in the Yeosu Project. The program will also invite and educate trainees from developing countries, provide technical assistance for each country to solve its current ocean-related challenges and conduct joint projects on regional seas.

Yeosu Expo organizers take note that Yeosu Expo is taking place in 2012 which coincides with the expiration of the Kyoto Protocol. As the Kyoto process comes to an end, the global community will be seeking a successor regime. At the same time, the third Earth Summit is likely to convene in the same year to discuss the global environmental challenges. Being scheduled for this special juncture, the Expo 2012 Yeosu Korea seeks to make its contribution to the cause of the environment, particularly in the marine area. In this exercise, what is important is understanding and support of international community for the cause of the Yeosu Declaration and the Yeosu Project, which, in a nutshell, is enhancing public awareness of the challenges of environmental changes, presentation of ideas and technology for meeting the challenges, and the last but not the least, importance of international cooperation in dealing with the grand task through concrete and concerted actions.

An Expo is a future-oriented exercise. It shows how the future will be like if the best minds and imagination are applied in a concerted manner. In that sense it is an event for future generations and serves as an education opportunity. One of the modest but important legacies the Yeosu Expo is to leave behind is the utilization of displays, pavilions and structures of the Expo as an education resource on the environment. The Coastal Triangle, the Big-O and the Digital Gallery are being designed as the three symbolic display spaces to realize the theme of the Expo. Each will use the latest technology and digital media to engage visitors with the ocean and provide them opportunities to shape their own experiences. The aquarium at the Expo site will add to the pleasure of visitors by introducing them to the biodiversity of the sea. Wedded with other exhibits to be displayed at the Expo and coordinating programs, facilities at the Yeosu Expo site are expected to function as an excellent education resource for all the youth both during and after the Expo, as in keeping with Expo tradition.

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The Big-O, an artificial sea lake of the area of 91,000m2, created to allow visitors to view underwater sea life, the impact of pollution, and the utilization of technologies and biodiversity to purify the sea water will all work together to educate the youth about the importance of protecting the ecosystem, and at the same time stimulate their imagination with new ideas and technologies.

The 22,500 m2 Coastal Triangle will turn a portion of the concrete Yeosu port facilities into an environmentally friendly landscape and sandy beach which connects the land and the ocean via the coast. In particular, a miniature landscape reduced to 1/1,000th the size of the Rias coastline and the archipelago of the southern coast area of Korea will provide a unique experience for visitors. The Coastal Triangle is designed for children to learn about the locational advantage of Yeosu and the southern coastal area of Korea and to experience the marine ecosystem first-hand. Along with the Big- O, the Coastal Triangle will contribute to the development of local tourism.

The Expo Digital Gallery refers to an axis running through the City of Yeosu and connecting to the KTX train station. The Expo Digital Gallery will also be the world’s first ubiquitous avenue. During the Yeosu Expo, the Expo Digital Gallery will contribute to theme development as a venue for exhibition and provide diverse information at home and abroad via ubiquitous technology to ensure visitor convenience. A new environmentally-friendly means of transportation, the Wireless Tram, will operate along the 600 meter-long Expo Digital Gallery.

The success of Expo 2012 Yeosu Korea should be evaluated based not only on great exhibitions and operation during the Expo period, but also on how the facilities are used after the Expo is over and how much the Expo contributes to the host city’s long-term development. The after-use plan, therefore, is not only an important factor to consider in planning, but also a criterion on which to evaluate the validity of the overall Expo plan. The planning of the layout, facilities, infrastructure, exhibition halls, and event theaters for the Expo will be executed with consideration to not only bringing Expo 2012 Yeosu Korea’s theme to life, and successfully operating the Expo, but also to the after-use of facilities and long-term development of the City of Yeosu. Financial planning and private funding will also consider the after-use purposes of the Basic Plan of the Expo.

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Tea leaf harvesting

The World Expo movement is on the right track in that it is making a contribution to the world as a whole in presenting the common efforts of humankind and suggesting ideas and directions to make seemingly insoluble problems solvable. Indeed, humankind has achieved its present level of civilization through exploiting and exploring Mother Nature, believing that she has the capacity to renew herself indefinitely. Evidence we have witnessed in recent decades, however, indicate that we have crossed some threshold for the first time in human history, and more importantly, in the history of planet Earth. Human activities are beginning to hurt the ecosystem to the extent that planet Earth is losing its capacity to balance itself to the detriment of all life forms on it.

Yeosu Expo, like any other recently held world exposition, has an ambition to leave a legacy for the future. While organizers of Yeosu Expo are modest in expecting recognition of their deeds, they are quite ambitious in making a small but important contribution to humankind by organizing an Expo dedicated to a task unique to our times, which is leaving a livable world for our future generations.

Aerial view of ocean farming

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Fish drying

About Yeosu Expo

Under the theme of the “The Living Ocean and Coast,” Yeosu Expo was selected as the venue for International Expo 2012 in November 2007 at the 142nd BIE General Assembly, and officially recognized (at the 144th BIE General Assembly) in December 2008. Yeosu Expo will be held for three months from May 12 to August 12, 2012 in Yeosu, Korea. We are expecting some 8 million visitors including more than half a million from abroad. We envision over 100 countries, 5 international organizations, NGOs, and global companies to take part in Yeosu Expo. The Korean government is committed to investing about 2 trillion Korean Won, or 1.7 billion US Dollars, for the preparation of Yeosu Expo.

The Expo theme, “The Living Ocean and Coast,” is reinforced by its supporting theme, “Diversity of Resources and Sustainable Activities,” and it explores opportunities for nature and humankind, for developed and developing countries and for present and future generations to prosper together by addressing various challenges facing the ocean and coasts.

To realize the Expo theme, Yeosu Expo has set three sub-themes – Coastal Development and Preservation, New Resources Technology, and Creative Maritime Activities – which then have been further developed into six thematic groups, namely: Climate & Environment, Marine Creatures, Marine Industry & Technology, Marine City and Marine Civilization, and Marine Arts.

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Bird’s-eye View of Expo Site

About Yeosu

Yeosu City, located at the southern end of the Korean peninsula, is a city of natural beauty and diversity, an ideal location for the 2012 International Expo, where environmental protection and economic development coexist in total harmony.

Yeosu lies at the heart of the Southern Coast Tourism Belt, encompassing two national parks, the National Hallyeosudo Marine Park and the National Archipelago (Dadohae) Marine Park. Yeosu is located at the center of the southern coast which extends for 9,000km with breathtaking beauty of the Rias coast and unique marine cultural resources. Visitors to the Exposition can enjoy such various cultural and tourism resources in addition to the event itself. Considering the fact that there are 30 or so historic sites and cultural relics in the area, Yeosu will become a de facto hub of the Southern Coast Tourism Belt by 2012, the year of the Exposition.

Green mountains covered with dense forest and radiant wildflowers are found in this marine coastal environment. Other ecological gifts include the world’s longest fossilized dinosaur trails and nearby Suncheon Bay, one of the world’s five largest wetlands.

Yeosu City possesses abundant tourism resources with historical and cultural assets, including 14 cultural heritage sites or articles designated by the central government, 10 designated by the local government and 10 articles with cultural value. Precious natural monuments in the area include numerous beaches and Mt. Yeongchisan, famous for azalea blossoms in spring. Marine tourism programs are well-developed in Yeosu, allowing tourists to experience the true natural beauty of the archipelago which include the islands Geomun-do, Baek-do and Geumo-do.

The Southern Coast Tourism Belt Project is one of the key tourism-related development projects that is being pursued by the Korean government. It aims to develop the South Coast area from Mokpo to Busan and to achieve urban renewal and regional balance. With a total investment of 4.26 billion US dollars, the project is expected to transform the region into a global tourist attraction, in the center of which will lie Yeosu.

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Yeosu City is a center of maritime logistics and industry. Yeosu National Industrial Complex is one of the world’s largest petrochemical complexes and Gwangyang Steel Works is also of global scale. The Port of Gwangyang represents the second largest cargo throughput in Korea, and along with the Port of Yeosu, Yeosu makes up the center of the marine industry.

Yeosu can be reached within an hour by plane from all major cities in Korea. The city is a 2 to 3 hour flight from major cities in Northeast Asia such as Tokyo, , Beijing, Shanghai, Shenyang and Vladivostok.

With a beautiful natural environment, rich cultural heritage, and advanced maritime industry, Yeosu is a model of balanced development and preservation. Yeosu is the ideal place to demonstrate the theme of the Expo and will become an exemplar for small to medium-sized cities in achieving sustainable development.

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