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An Open Invitation

tay bridge sun
Sun peaking through the Tay rail bridge, dusk

What are we?

We work under the auspices of UNESCO, which stands for the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.  We are a "HELP" Centre,  which stands for Hydrology for the Environment, Life and Policy and is a programme of UNESCO.  We are part of the University of Dundee and we bring together expertise in water law, water science and water policy. 

What do we do?

In short, we run Courses and do Research.  We run Projects, which support both.  We also bring together 27 European HELP Basins as part of our work UNESCO, and our work supports the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).  Read what the Scots Government agency Scottish Development International (SDI) has to say about us with respect to the MDG for Sanitation and Hygiene as part of their SDI Water Scotland report.

Why should you engage with us?

Water security is a big focus for our Centre (e.g., see our Water Law research page), and is an increasingly critical global issue.  Getting good water Science adopted into policy can boost people's livelihoods, quality of life and help protect natural habitats. 

The MDGs include clean water-dependent targets for halving both "the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation, .. by two thirds the mortality rate among children under five" and "the proportion of people who suffer from hunger", by 2015. 

Working with our partners, our research, our projects and our campaigning all are driven by our vision of Water for All.  Our teaching is directed at developing the next generation of water leaders globally to take forward, at local, national and regional levels, effective responses to this challenge, helping to take forward this vision.  Our work for World Water Day 2011 is an excellent example of this; please take a look.

So, please, do get involved

Wherever you live, you can start to engage with us through our vibrant LinkedIn community: join or simply have a look.


fundraising for victimes of the tsunami in japan
Fundraising at our Centre for the victims of the tsunami in Japan, Spring 2011

Please do browse through our website  and see what interests you most - perhaps you would like to join us for our Water Law Water Leaders summer programme?  Or read why the United Nations Watercourses Convention is so important and why we are investing so much time campaigning for its ratification through our UNWC Global Initiative project.