Introducing the ‘Reorienting research, innovation & practice to address future water challenges in Africa (RRIP) project housed within the Future Water Institute and funded through the UCT Vision 2030 Grand Challenges program (https://www.news.uct.ac.za/article/-2023-12-22-tackling-africas-grand-challenges-together). RRIP is led by A/Prof David Ikumi as PI, and Dr Amber Abrams as co-PI, and is set to launch on the 27^th/ 28^th June.

The launch will showcase the long-term program plan, share progress over the first 18 months of the project, and present ongoing student research. RRIP calls for a paradigm shift towards equitable and sustainable future water systems and resource management that necessitates understanding of existent governance and economic approaches to regulating water, as well as technological innovations and peoples’ relations, wants and needs regarding water. We are working towards more sustainable (multi-criteria) water management practices, resource recovery, unlocking alternative water sources and greater water efficiency. The project aims to seamlessly integrate multiple disciplines related to water and sanitation, fostering collaboration between academia, practitioners, and society to deliver impactful and tangible outcomes.

Economic aspects include researching ways to reduce environmental costs, improve livelihoods through social enterprises and support implementation of suitable recovery technologies; environmental aspects include research into (i) increasing the types and quantities of useful products recovered from waste, (ii) increasing quantity of utilizable water and (iii) substantially improving health of water bodies (e.g., rivers and lakes); social aspects include research into improving distribution of resources in infrastructure development and improving capacity to cater for more members of society, including marginalized groups. Stay tuned for updates and opportunities to collaborate!