Geopolitics featured at Villa Gallia during the conference organized by Como Acqua, Single Manager of the Integrated Water Service, with Minister Locatelli and prestigious experts in the field

Tuesday, May 30 at 5 PM, the doors of Villa Gallia opened wide to host the conference organized by Como Acqua, “WATER WARS – Water as a source of life and cause of war.”.

The event, promoted by Como Acqua, the Sole Manager of the Integrated Water Service for the Province of Como, paves the way for the numerous events that the Como-based company wishes to organize to engage in dialogue with citizens, broadly interpreting the social duties implicit in its fundamental mission.

At the center of the debate, obviously, is water and all the economic, social, and cultural implications and tensions associated with it. After all, the thesis—supported by scientific research and studies—is increasingly taking hold that sees a connection between climate change, demographic growth, the decline of water resources, and the multiplication of conflicts, from Ukraine to Africa. A tragedy from which no one can feel safe.

“The drought that we experienced both last summer and this winter, as well as the flood events that brought Emilia Romagna to its knees, despite their differences, represent two sides of the same coin: climate change. Extreme phenomena that leave us disoriented and that, precisely because of their complexity, require interpretation, understanding, and placement within a context that transcends local boundaries. With this conference featuring a novel approach, current and non-obvious topics were brought to the attention of a vast and diverse audience, reaffirming the Society's commitment to accompanying users on a path of awareness and empowerment.” explains Eng. Enrico Pezzoli, President and CEO of Como Acqua.

As stated by Goal 6 of the UN Agenda, guaranteeing access to water is a commitment that institutions must ensure because, also thanks to this, people's dignity is protected. Alessandra Locatelli, Minister for Disabilities, focused her speech precisely on human value and the care that the entire community must show to the most vulnerable: “It is essential that everyone, even the youngest, learn how the gestures, actions, and commitments of the individual can contribute decisively to the well-being of the community, especially for the most vulnerable strata. This care for others is the same one that must drive us to pay attention to the environment, a common good, and the resources connected to it, among which the most precious is water.”he explained.

 We live thanks to water, but in the world—in over 200 different locations—people die because of water. And we do not mean only because of the scarcity of water resources, but also because of the conflicts that break out—more or less directly—for the control of it. As highlighted by Maria Cristina Rulli, Professor of Water and Food Security at the Polytechnic University of Milan,“The areas—theaters of war—where water scarcity is closely combined with food insufficiency are multiplying. This nexus is easily understood: where subsistence cannot be ensured, water management proves to be a wealth, but also a tool of blackmail. Thus, history, including contemporary history, reports wars fought for the dominance of territories and the resources attached to them. What resource is more important, if not water which is life, for controlling entire populations?”

If it is true that the first water war was fought back in the Sumerian era, between the cities of Lagash and Umma (Note: *Urlama* is a typo in the Italian text referring to *Lagash* / ruler Urlumma, but translating literally: between the cities of Urlama and Umma), not much has changed to this day, as one can see by looking at the Ukrainian scenario.

Mirko Mussetti, Limes analyst – Italian journal of geopolitics, explained in detail how “blue gold” is a crucial element in times of peace, but even more so in times of war: “In Ukraine, water is everything: an essential element for agriculture, but also a logistical channel for exports, a source of wealth thanks to hydrocarbon reserves in the seabed of the adjacent sea. However, this same resource also has a less positive side, being a potential tool of destruction (in the event of the destruction of dams or floodgates that could flood entire cities), an environmental hazard factor if contaminated, an element of alarm when it threatens the proper functioning of nuclear power plants. Just from the complexity that emerges from this scenario, it is easy to understand how the war we have been witnessing for over a year has water resources as a central element.

The character of uniqueness of this conference stems not only from the chosen theme—hydropolitics—and the cross-cutting panel of speakers who participated, but also from the fundraising campaign that Como Acqua presented during the event. The company decided to stand alongside Oxfam Italy in the project “Donate water, save a life,” with the aim of contributing in a prompt and concrete manner to guarantee access to water for the populations of Ukraine, Turkey, Syria, and the Horn of Africa.

“There are countries in the world – reports Sorinel Ghetau, Oxfam Italy Programs Director – where the right to water is not respected in the least. Whether it is due to climatic reasons like in the Horn of Africa, natural disasters like the earthquake in Turkey and Syria, or a war like in Ukraine. We are led to think that others must take care of it, whereas we can all make our contribution. We could not do anything without private donors, whether they are individual citizens or companies. It is important to talk about it, so I sincerely thank Como Acqua for involving us in this much-needed initiative and for giving visibility to our fundraiser.

More information

How Acqua supports the “Give Water, Save a Life” project. Here you can find all the details of the project: https://www.oxfamitalia.org/como-acqua/.

It takes very little to contribute: just think that with 5 euros, it is possible to donate a container to transport and store purified water in a practical and safe way, protected from germs and bacteria. With 10 euros, a complete emergency kit is donated to a family, which in addition to the sachets and the container, contains disinfectant soap and detergents, towels and personal hygiene items. With 20 euros, water purification sachets are donated to purify 2,000 liters of water, sufficient for the weekly needs of a family “in an emergency” for drinking, washing and cooking.

The full recording of the conference will be published shortly on Como Acqua's YouTube channel.