G20 is the global grouping of the 19 individual countries with the largest economies and the European Union. The Civil20 (C20) is one of the official Engagement Groups of the G20 that provides a platform for Civil Society Organizations (CSO) around the world to voice the people’s aspirations to the world leaders in G20. It gives CSOs a forum to protect the agency of this sector, reflect the primary and common concerns affecting the world’s peoples, and to promote social and economic development with the vision of leaving no one behind.

Sri M, the founder of The Satsang Foundation, was invited to the C20 Steering Committee, the executive body of the C20 responsible for ensuring that the C20 is an open and diverse space that facilitates the transmission of a broad range of civil society views to the G20. Also, under Sri M’s guidance, a Working Group was formed to focus on the Revival of Rivers and Water Management, which has been anchored by The Satsang Foundation.

The G20 must come together to urgently tackle the mounting water scarcity and pollution crisis which has the potential to lead to large-scale conflicts and long-term social, ecological and economic disasters.

The C20 2023 Working Group on Revival of Rivers and Water Management emphasizes an ecology-centric approach, stakeholder involvement, and international cooperation to ensure the preservation and proper management of rivers and water bodies. The Working Group focused on the sub-themes of river rejuvenation, water management and conservation, and disaster management (floods and droughts).

The Working Group urges the G20 to commit to preserving and sustaining the natural flow and self-purification capacity of rivers. The Working Group has urged governments to exercise stewardship over water resources as a common good which includes obtaining citizens’ consent for activities affecting water resources, preventing environmentally unsustainable projects, and ensuring water education in school curricula to promote awareness, conservation, and responsible use of water. States are encouraged to include native, traditional, and indigenous communities and integrate their knowledge and practices.

The G20 is called upon to leverage technology for the identification, management, monitoring, and dissemination of information about water systems. Such data must be made publicly available and accessible to citizens for their active participation in water protection and judicious use. Additionally, the G20 must facilitate technology and know-how transfers for effective disaster management related to floods and droughts. Exemplary success stories from around the world provide valuable insights. Cross-border knowledge-sharing to help in the replication of best practices among G20 states is needed to prevent climate-induced migration and water conflicts.

The G20 is urged to incorporate environmental factors and ecological sustainability in valuing water resources, including implementing the “polluter pays principle” for accountability on water pollution and ecosystem degradation, the “user pays principle” to ensure that the cost of water usage reflects its full life cycle costs and legally-binding obligations on large-scale users to maintain or restore ecological conditions and prevent short-term economic exploitation.

By implementing these recommendations, the G20 can play a crucial role in restoring and maintaining freshwater availability and avoiding water wars, ensuring a sustainable future for all.