EXECUTIVE SUMMARY GLOBAL CAMPUS The need for a strong knowledge base and well-trained professionals is still growing exponentially, as evidenced by the number of partners asking UNESCO-IHE for assistance and partnership. In order to offer an appropriate response to the global needs in the water sector, UNESCO-IHE needs to intensify its geographic presence, particularly in the developing world where the most pressing water issues are, including locations in Africa, Asia and Latin America. It is envisaged, therefore, that regional UNESCO-IHE Category 1 institutes will be established all over the world, joining forces to create a global campus. Operating from these closely networked regional institutes, UNESCO-IHE will be in an even better position to understand local needs and respond more swiftly to requests from partners and local stakeholders. The global campus will seek to offer demandresponsive, innovative global water education programmes that are internationally appealing and accredited, while at the same time providing support and pursuing enhanced and effective cooperation with the partner institutions, creating new learning alliances for enhanced capacity development. These regional institutes are envisioned as autonomous UNESCO institutes operating within a global campus, working in concert worldwide to train the water leaders of the future. The shared value system will include stringent quality control, while reflecting some of the regional specificities and local/regional knowledge systems. These values have earned the UNESCO-IHE Institute of Water Education its current reputation: inspiring academic leadership, a focus on international cooperation, and a sound entrepreneurial attitude. Each of the envisioned UNESCO Category 1 institutes in the various regions will be linked to the networks already active in those regions, integrating into the existing structures built up over the years and finding optimal synergies with new partnerships in support of capacity development at the levels of the individual, organization and enabling environment. The institutes in the global campus will be closer to local stakeholders, empowering the regions through knowledge transfer and helping them to build strong institutions and solve their own emerging water issues from an intimate, first-hand knowledge of the region. The increased impact achieved by diversifying approaches and expanding to a global campus will be coordinated from Delft, maintaining the current momentum to maximum effect. The Delft-based Institute will play a pivotal role, relying on the experience it has built over the past years. As the global capacity for water education leads to a larger number of world experts, the pool of potential water leaders will expand to include a broader range of highly trained specialists with intimate knowledge of local problems in every region. The aim is to create strong, continent-based support in each area, tailoring the programmes to meet specific needs, as well as spreading and intensifying the expertise that has already been developed and the new knowledge generated by ongoing research. The global campus, as a closely networked organization, will therefore make it possible to match appropriate experts to specific problems, intensifying the activities of UNESCO-IHE and helping ensure the availability of relevant water expertise all over the world. The UNESCO-IHE global campus will naturally seek cooperation with the Category II water centres and the UN World Water Assessment Programme (WWAP), led by UNESCO. In addition to a coordinating council that will facilitate strategic planning among the institutes in the network, it is envisioned that there will be coordinated management of the network through a permanent consultative body, which will have strong working relations with the UNESCO-IHE Governing Board. In the new structure, the Delft Institute will act as a hub, providing services and support in water education, research, capacity development and quality control. In cooperation with its fellow institutes as equal partners, the Delft Institute will work with its other cooperating partners and networks, helping them to achieve a world-class standard. By doing so, UNESCO-IHE will achieve a significantly increased global impact, initiating a change process that will facilitate its transformation from a leading institute to a leading network of organizations. 4
INTERNAL STRUCTURE To achieve the ambitions expressed by UNESCO-IHE in water education, research and capacity development, the Delft-based Institute needs some fine-tuning in its internal structure as well in ways that will support its commitment to academic excellence and maximize its societal impact. The new organizational structure will be dynamic, responsive and self-learning, fostering innovation and creativity and providing inspiring and professional leadership. The process of internationalization that has been pursued since 2003 will continue, reflecting UNESCO-IHE’s ambition to be a world-class centre of water education, research and capacity development. One of the important tasks at hand is to integrate the social components of water management into the programmes, ensuring that the engineers and researchers trained at the Institute not only have a thorough understanding of their field, but are also able to communicate their expertise effectively to people in other sectors. The resulting T-shaped profile will allow these future water leaders to use their expertise to maximum effect. For more details on the T-shaped profile see also the implementation plan. The T-shaped profiles of staff will receive specific attention in this internal reform process, providing a broad range of knowledge without overlooking the need for in-depth expertise in specific fields. The Delft Institute will have three Academic Departments: Water Science and Engineering, Environmental Engineering and Technology, and Integrated Water Systems and Governance. This new structure facilitates distinction between academic fields, while creating new synergies in project activities. Interdisciplinary cooperation will be supported by the flexible structure of the units and the rotating leadership system. These changes play a vital role in fulfilling UNESCO-IHE’s ambition to be a leading academic institute and intensify the global impact of the important work being done here. 5