About

GWP’s VISION is a water secure world. Our MISSION is to advance governance and management of water resources for sustainable and equitable development.

OUR UNIQUE VALUE: GWP mobilises action on the global water crisis through a unique combination of social capital, shared values, credibility within the global water community, bottom-up orientation, and expertise. A network of networks, we ensure the ‘voices of water’ can inﬂuence local, national, regional, and global development priorities. We are committed to our role as a neutral convener and respected for our focus on inclusiveness and sustainability.

Learn

GWP creates and communicates information about integrated water resources management which contributes to improved water governance and, ultimately, water security.

Together with our Partners, we provide knowledge resources and capacity building activities for solving water problems.

Partner

Institutional Partners are the basis of GWP's multi-stakeholder partnership. A strong, diverse partnership can bring about the changes needed to achieve a water secure world. In this section, learn about the benefits of being a Partner and meet a few who already are. We invite like-minded organisations to join us!

GWP Regions

This is where you can find links to the websites of our Regional Water Partnerships (RWPs). RWPs are closest to the countries where we work. They share knowledge and learning across national boundaries and are expected to have an open, inclusive, and gender-sensitive policies for bringing together as wide a group of stakeholders as possible to solve water problems.

The University of Belize

Interview with Josué Aké from The University of Belize.

1.What is the vision and mission of your organisation?

The Department of Science is within the Faculty of Science and Technology, University of Belize (UB), located in the City of Belmopan, Belize.

The Department of Science’s mission is committed to providing quality programmes and support courses in the Natural Sciences that contribute to national development.

In terms of our vision, The Department of Science promotes self-expression, intelligent choices, analytical thinking, leadership qualities, social responsibility, justice and the search for truth, which will enable the individual to perform effectively as a member of the UB community and the society at large.

2.Why did you decide to become a GWP Partner?

The Department of Science is committed to maintaining and providing academic and practical knowledge on the management of natural resources in our Natural Science Academic Programmes. One essential natural resource in Belize is water, therefore proper use of this resource needs to be taught and promoted via Integrated Water Resource Management (IWRM) and the application of sustainable development principles at academic and management levels in the country.

3.What have you found to be the benefits of being a GWP Partner?

Among the benefits is the academic opportunity related to water resource management, including: a graduate degree with scholarships for young professionals, training courses in applied water resources management, workshops and on-line courses. Also, the academic and practical information in the GWP newsletter about efforts and activities related to water management are being carried out in municipalities and countries in Central America and the Caribbean.

4.What is the one challenge facing the management of water resources in your area of expertise?

The main challenge is the lack of willingness to plan, organise actions and share information, related to water management issues at the watershed level amongst governmental departmenst, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), the agricultural sector and communities. There are isolated efforts and actions in water resource management by NGOs and a few governmental departments, whereby technical and financial resources need to be optimized and incorporate in the watershed integrity and involvement of all stakeholders.

5. Are there any special projects or initiatives that you would like more widely known?

Currently, there is an ongoing academic revision of the Natural Resources Management Program, an undergraduate program, whereby water resource management courses will be offered. Within research projects of water quality management, we are conducting preliminary water quality assessments in various sub-watershed and catchment areas of importance in two main watersheds in Belize. This effort is to produce a preliminary water quality profile and a map to inform the communities, NGOs and governmental departments about water quality management. The works are done with B.Sc. Thesis Projects students in collaboration with local experts, community-based organisations and the Department of the Environment (DoE).

Page last edited: 2/4/2016