{"id":2508,"date":"2022-06-20T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2022-06-19T23:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gwpo-gwp.org\/cee\/news\/20-young-specialists-tackled-water-pollution-at-2022-gwp-cee-summer-school\/"},"modified":"2026-04-25T08:13:09","modified_gmt":"2026-04-25T07:13:09","slug":"20-young-specialists-tackled-water-pollution-at-2022-gwp-cee-summer-school","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gwpo-gwp.org\/cee\/archive\/20-young-specialists-tackled-water-pollution-at-2022-gwp-cee-summer-school\/","title":{"rendered":"20 Young Specialists Tackled Water Pollution at 2022 GWP CEE Summer School"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

GWP CEE in cooperation with <\/span>GWPO<\/span> and GW<\/span>P H<\/span>u<\/span>ngary<\/span>and the support of Xylem Solutions <\/span>organized its<\/span> 2022 Summer School<\/span> for 20 <\/span>se<\/span>lect <\/span>participants to expand <\/span>their<\/span> knowledge about <\/span>water pollution<\/span>, <\/span>water governance <\/span>and integrated water resource management (IWRM)<\/span>. <\/span>The <\/span>Summer<\/span> School <\/span>curriculu<\/span>m compris<\/span>ed<\/span> theoretical knowledge<\/span> with<\/span> practical experience<\/span>. <\/span>This se<\/span>tup <\/span>gav<\/span>e th<\/span>e participants a chance to test their newly gained knowledge on practical case studies<\/span>,<\/span> utilizi<\/span>n<\/span>g brand new <\/span><\/span>GWP <\/span>To<\/span>olBo<\/span>x<\/span>IWR<\/span>M<\/span> Action <\/span>H<\/span>ub<\/span><\/span><\/a> as <\/span>an effective means of appro<\/span>ach <\/span>to comple<\/span>x is<\/span>sues in <\/span>water<\/span> and <\/span>clim<\/span>ate<\/span>.<\/span><\/span>
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Applicants from more than 25 countries <\/span>competed to secure their spot in <\/span>the Summer School<\/span> from 12-19 June <\/span>2022.<\/span> The <\/span>chosen 20<\/span> proved they are the best in their <\/span>field as t<\/span>h<\/span>ey had to c<\/span>onstantly work and discuss together<\/span> to achieve <\/span>the desired<\/span> re<\/span>su<\/span>lts.
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The participants <\/span>met <\/span>at the banks of the Tisza Lake in <\/span>Hungary. The site was chosen specifically due to the abundance of opportunities related to the topic of the event. The Tisza River, as an international river<\/span> linking 5 countries<\/span>, faces various water pollution issues and the lake\u2019s water utilities are the place where this issue accumulates severely. This offered the participants a unique opportunity to experience all the theoretical knowledge they gained in real life and on site.

<\/span><\/span>T<\/span>he participants dived into various lectures<\/span> and interactive <\/span>exercises<\/span>, led <\/span>by lecturers from <\/span>GWPO, GWP CEE, GWP Slovenia and GWP Romania <\/span>as well as <\/span>guest speakers from <\/span>Middle Tisza District Water Directorate<\/span> and the Hungarian water management <\/span>bodies as well as<\/span> the<\/span> private sector. Among the topics covered were stakeholder engagement, transboundary cooperation, water management on national and regional level, sustainable sanitation, and innovative practices to tackle water pol<\/span>lution.

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\"Summer

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With <\/span>the lectures compliment<\/span>ing<\/span> each other, the participants were led through a path of discovering new knowledge a<\/span>nd then <\/span>u<\/span>tilizing<\/span> it during case study sessions as they formed smaller teams <\/span>working <\/span>on<\/span> various scenarios and solutions. The curriculum started from broader topics, e.g., introduction to IWRM and <\/span>w<\/span>ater <\/span>g<\/span>overnance<\/span>, and <\/span>problem-based <\/span>l<\/span>earning, that later pivoted to the specifics of water conflicts, <\/span>t<\/span>ransboundary<\/span> co-operation, river basin management and stakeholder engagement.

<\/span><\/span>A field trip to <\/span>the h<\/span>ydroelectric power plant at <\/span>Kisk\u00f6re<\/span> was especially enriching, as the participants had a chance to interview <\/span>its management <\/span>as well as the <\/span>Kisk\u00f6re<\/span> mayor about the facility\u2019s current situation, challenges <\/span>with pollution and water management as well as<\/span> future predictions. Apart from rich discussions, video interviews were made with the <\/span>stakeholders<\/span> to serve as support material for <\/span>the <\/span>participants\u2019 <\/span>final presentations on the outcomes of the case studies they were tasked with.

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\"Summer

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At the <\/span>end<\/span> of the <\/span>Summer<\/span> School curriculum, the participants worked on their final presentations, summarizing their work on their respective case studies throughout the event. The knowledge gathered and materials produced served as building blocks for them to present their solutions to local water governance issues. As an additional layer of challenge, they were to present their findings in front of stakeholders from various backgrounds and collect their feedback. This last test of their professional prowess helped them to realize their potential and direct their efforts in their future careers as aspiring <\/span>w<\/span>ater professionals.

<\/span><\/span>After <\/span>the successful<\/span> finalization of the curriculum, the participants <\/span>joined a major <\/span>initiative to<\/span> cl<\/span>ean the Tisza River banks from pollution \u2013 <\/span><\/span>Tisza<\/span> Plastic Cup<\/span><\/span><\/a>. As a real-life challenge, <\/span>t<\/span>he<\/span> participants <\/span>had <\/span>a glimpse into the issues that they discussed during <\/span>the Summer<\/span> School and contributed to solving them right on spot. <\/span>Students <\/span>helped with the preparation of the rafts<\/span> used for<\/span> removing the waste collected from <\/span>the <\/span>riverb<\/span>anks <\/span>by a<\/span>flotilla<\/span> of canoes<\/span> going down the river<\/span>. The event <\/span>is set as a competition between almost 20 teams which were involved in tackling <\/span>transbou<\/span>n<\/span>dary<\/span> river pollution.

It gave me a lot of experience in teamwork and negotiation skills with limited time and people who have different background. It made me more aware of the acute problems that the whole world faces and how we all, with the right tools, can give a part of us to solve these problems. And it gave me new friends. – Johana Kalda, Estonia
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\"Summer

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About GWP CEE Summer School<\/span> <\/span><\/h4>\n<\/div>\n
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GWP CEE Summer School is a flagship youth initiative of Global Water Partnership Central and Eastern Europe. The Summer School strives each year to bring <\/span>together <\/span>a cohort of aspiring young water and climate specialists to enhance their education and practical experience. The Summer School is based on a combination of theory and practice<\/span>, <\/span>problem<\/span>-based learning<\/span> and interactive<\/span> activities, <\/span>presented by a plethora of speakers from <\/span>relevant <\/span>backgrounds.<\/span><\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A week full of theory and practice in water governance brought up our next generation of young water specialists.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3305,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"iawp_total_views":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[62],"tags":[21,33,63,38,34,46],"class_list":["post-2508","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-archive","tag-central-and-eastern-europe","tag-ecosystems","tag-floods-droughts","tag-iwrm","tag-transboundary","tag-youth"],"acf":[],"spectra_custom_meta":{"_sidebar_content":["field_69d4d421acab1"],"sidebar_content":["

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Interview - Adelina Belinska<\/h1>\n <\/div>\n
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