The Mediterranean Youth for Water Network

Status: Active

Tags: Water / Youth / 2019

Discover the Water and Climate Change Working Papers by the MedYWat Research Community!

"When it comes to the nexus between water scarcity and climate change, one area of focus of its knowledge sharing strategy, the CMI has clearly benefited from the fieldwork, dedication, and exemplary data analysis that MedyWat members have conducted. Yes, put youth in charge and you will succeed!" -- Blanca Moreno-Dodson, CMI Manager.

The CMI has put youth in charge and they have put forward five enlighting research papers focused on "Water and Climate Change Policies Applied in Coastal Areas", "Drought and Water Scarcity Management for Agricultural Sector’s Sustainability", "Evaluating Agricultural Strategies in Response to Drought", "Water and Circular Economy" and "Perception, Attitude, and Behavior in Relation to Climate change". This document is a compilation of their findings.

If you are wondering what the key factor could be to turn around the trajectory of the water future in the Mediterranean region; we believe the answer is: Youth! The core belief that motivated the creation of the Mediterranean Youth for Water Network (MedYWat) was one that saw the value in the innovation and creativity that young people could bring to solving the issue of water scarcity.

Who are we

MedYWat (Mediterranean Youth for Water) is a network of young water professionals from across the Mediterranean region, supported by the Center for Mediterranean Integration (CMI), the network encompasses over 192 young Mediterranean water researchers, entrepreneurs, and activists working on solving the water challenges in the region.

This network was launched by CMI in March 2017 during the first World Water Day regional youth workshop on “Youth Innovating with Wastewater for a Sustainable Mediterranean” (Marseille, France), and it has been growing ever since.

In March 2018, the network reconvened again for the second World Water Day regional youth Workshop focusing on “Nature-based Solutions for a Water Secure Mediterranean” (Anafora, Egypt) and most recently in March 2019, the network took an even bigger role and co-organized along with CMI and the World Bank, the third World Water Day regional youth workshop on “Water and Migration” (Marrakesh, Morocco).

Our Vision

With the vision of a Mediterranean region in which youth are recognized and are active stakeholders at all levels of water resources management, our motto is simple: “engage, connect and impact”. Our mission is to engage young Mediterranean water professionals to connect with one another and to call actively create and share knowledge, build capacities to amplify youth’s voices, creating an everlasting impact on the regional and ultimately the global water agendas.

Our Objectives

With this vision and mission at the core of our network, we work towards three key objectives:

To connect and engage Mediterranean youth from different disciplines working on the water.
To become a knowledge-based platform that creates and exchanges best practices and opportunities for Mediterranean youth.
To create cross-linkages between MedYWat and key decision-makers in the region.