Witteveen+Bos and Netherlands Water Partnership: 25 years of progress and collaboration

In order to remain resilient to climate change, delta regions facing complex water challenges – exacerbated by climate change – require integrated analyses and decisive action on land and economic organisation. Van der Biezen: ‘Urbanised, low-lying delta regions around the world all face similar challenges in water security and availability, so sharing knowledge and resources is essential. Achieving this increasingly requires cross-industry collaboration – both domestically and internationally – that combines water management, economics, agriculture, and spatial planning, supported by advances in digitalisation and data sharing. As a cross-industry network organisation, NWP is a valuable partner for Witteveen+Bos in this transformation.’

Opportunities for complex water challenges

Tom Wilms, senior engineer for nature-based solutions at Witteveen+Bos, elaborates on the transformation currently underway: ‘The water sector is moving from being a product-driven industry to a service-oriented one. It’s no longer just about designing water treatment plants; providing clean drinking water is now offered as a service.’

Future-proofing water management requires a shift towards integrated solutions – an approach and implementation model in which all stakeholders are involved, and everyone feels a shared responsibility for the outcome. Such an approach would deliver value for everyone.
 

Complex water challenges as ‘value cases’

Stephan van der Biezen continues: ‘In the Netherlands, we are already gaining valuable experience with this approach – for example, on the Marker Wadden project. If we can scale up this approach both domestically and internationally, we will really have something remarkable to showcase. Networks like NWP that include a broad representation of the water industry, including NGOs, provide an excellent platform for increasing the visibility of treating complex water challenges as ‘value cases’ rather than just ‘business cases’, ensuring the focus is on both economic and social value for all stakeholders.’

Van der Biezen concludes: ‘As we look back on our long-standing partnership with NWP, we are proud of our collective achievements, and we look forward to continuing to innovate and collaborate for a sustainable future.’