York partners with the United Nations to launch a Global Water Academy
In partnership with UNITAR and others, York launched a Global Water Academy to tackle diverse aspects of the water sustainability crisis – a key action supporting York’s goals to advance the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and building on York’s rich research expertise in water and sustainability.
Launched in March 2023 at the United Nations Water Conference, the first conference on water in 50 years, the Global Water Academy brings academic and private sector partners together to develop scientific-based water solutions that will inform international water policies and programs, and promote knowledge transfer and capacity building, especially in distressed areas and for Indigenous communities and equity-deserving groups.
“The water crisis is a global equity issue that disproportionately impacts racialized, low-income, and other marginalized communities,” said President and Vice-Chancellor Rhonda Lenton to a delegation at the United Nations headquarters in New York City. “By working together with UNITAR and as the academic lead on a new Water Academy, York University is demonstrating the important role of higher education in addressing these issues and advancing Sustainable Development Goals through scholarship and activism.”