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We are proud to announce an exciting new collaboration between Future Water Institute and Water Footprint Implementation. 

Future Water Institute is a research institute based at the University of Cape Town in South Africa. It was established in 2016 as a transdisciplinary research institute to bring together six different faculties within the university to work towards sustainable and resilient water futures. Their mission is to conduct engaged research on water sensitive approaches that sustain society’s current and future water needs. 

Inspiration behind collaboration

The relations with Future Water go back to 2023 when Future Water hosted a Water Footprint Network workshop during the Ocean Race Stop Over. This new collaboration is inspired by the shared values between Future Water and Water Footprint Implementation. Both organisations recognise the urgent global need for sustainable and equitable water management and are committed to tackling water and climate challenges through science, innovation and implementation with respect for local knowledge and practices through collaboration and engaged research. In addition, there is a shared mission to advance knowledge on sustainable water use through co-creation, research and real-world application. 

Next Step

The collaboration will bring numerous benefits such as joint research opportunities which will enable student projects, postgraduate research and shared academic publications. Under this MoU, Tariro Marekwa (Project analyst at Water Footprint Implementation) will pursue her PhD supervised by Future Water. The shared work will also include the co-organisation of conferences and co-development of proposals for research and implementation projects.  

A key component of the collaboration will be the development and implementation of strategies for Water Footprint Compensation in Southern Africa which will enable users, such as companies or institutions, to mitigate the impacts of their water use by investing in water restoration, conservation, and replenishment activities in affected river basins. Future Water is the first member of the Coalition of the Willing in South Africa, and this strategic partnership will safeguard the successful implementation of the Water Footprint Compensation concept in the country. To date, the cooperation between Water Footprint Implementation and Future Water has already yielded two compensation projects, the Khayelitsha wetland rehabilitation and the Stormwater harvesting in retrofitted detention ponds in Mitchells Plain.  

“As a transdisciplinary research institute focused on building sustainable and resilient water futures, we are very excited to be joining the ‘Coalition of the willing for Water Footprint Compensation development in South Africa’ as one of its founding partners. We see this partnership as an important bridge between research and water intensive industries, providing a platform for the co-development and sharing of knowledge about water replenishment and restoration efforts” – Kirsty Carden, Director Future Water