The 17th General Assembly of the Global Network of Water Museums took place during the 6th Conference of the Global Network of Water Museums, titled "Adapting To Climate Change. The Role Of Museums in Promoting New Water Uses for Resilient Futures", held in Brasilia, Brazil, from the 4th to the 8th of November 2025.
Programme
Opening by Eddy Moors (President of WAMU+NET and Rector of IHE Delft, Netherlands)
Building Cultural Bridges and Peace in an Era of Growing Conflicts
Elham Raee (ICQHS, UNESCO Cat.2 Centre, Yazd, Iran): Persian Qanats as Heritage for Peace and Resilience
Toward a New Charter for WAMU+NET
Philippe Pypaert (Senior Expert in Hydrology): Strengthening WAMU+NET’s Contribution to Water Sustainability Education and IHP Phase 9: Proposal of new Roles for Members, Working Groups (WGs) and Thematic Networks (TNs)
Ongoing Projects - Toward the New Management Board
Eriberto Eulisse (Autonomous Province of Trento, Italy): Presentation of WAMU+NET’s Ongoing Projects
Enhancing Farsighted Water Management through Artistic Languages: ‘Soil Art Tales’ and ‘Aqua Motion’ Art Residencies
Announcement of the New Management Board (2026-2027)
Election Procedure
Collaborations with UNESCO Chairs
Carola Hein and Matteo D’Agostino (TU Delft, Netherlands): Insights and Takeaways from Water Museum Leaders interviewed by the UNESCO Chair ‘Water, Ports, and Historic Cities’ at the 5th WAMU+NET Conference in Porto
World Café - Medium and Long-Term Prospects for WAMU+NET
Chair: Ian Kerr-Wilson (Global Network of Water Museums)
Thematic discussions:
- Improving Communications about Peace through the Network of Water Museums
- WAMU+NET’s Participatory Governance: One Member, One Vote
- Proposals for Upgrading the Charter of WAMU+NET
- New Roles for Members, Governing Bodies, Thematic Networks (TNs) and Working Groups (WGs)
- Ongoing Projects on Water Sustainability Education (WSE) and Ancient Hydro-Technologies (AHTs)
- Toward a Community of Young Ambassador ‘The Water We Want’
- Contributions to IHP Phase 9
- Proposals from the Members
Envisioning New Water Museums and Innovative Spaces to Educate, Exhibit and Engage Local Communities
Chair: Mariana Castro Henriques (Museu da Agua, Lisbon, Portugal)
- Alioune Dème (Université Cheikh Anta Diop, Dakar, Senegal): The case of the Musée des Peuples de l’Eau of Dakar: From the Proposal of WAMU+NET at the 9th World Water Forum to its Virtual Exhibition
- Manfredi Leone (University of Palermo, Italy): Water Heritage, Landscape and the Extended Water Museum of Palermo, Sicily
- Farah Kabir (ActionAid, Bangladesh): Creating a New Water Museum with the Involvement of the Local People
- Liliana Pena Naval (Brazilian Water Museum and University of Tocantins, Brazil): Letters from the Future: Children and Teens Speak on Climate Change
Discussion with:
Fernando Yavari (SAGUAPAC, Bolivia), Rashad Salim (Open Museum Initiative for Water Culture, Basra, Iraq), Sara Ahmed (Living Waters Museum, India), Alassane Samoura (Musée de l’Eau, Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso)