Programme

8 Dec 2025| Water Resilience Forum

08:30 - 10:00 (CET) | Registration and welcome coffee

10:00 - 10:30 (CET) | High Level Opening Session (room JDE 52)

Opening remarks by:

  • Jessika Roswall, Commissioner for Environment, Water Resilience and a Competitive Circular Economy
  • Teresa Ribera, Executive Vice-President for a Clean, Just and Competitive Transition
  • Kata Tüttő, President of the Committee of the Regions
  • Séamus Boland, President of the European Economic and Social Committee
  • Ida Hannibal, Deputy permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Environment of Denmark

10:30 - 11:00 (CET) | Plenary session: Stocktaking (room JDE 52)

  • Jessika Roswall, Commissioner for Environment, Water Resilience and a Competitive Circular Economy
  • Thomas Bajada, Member of the European Parliament
  • Henk Ovink, Executive Director Commissioner, Global Commission on Economics of Water

11:00 - 11:30 (CET) | Media slot with Commissioner Roswall

Online streaming will be available throughout the event on this page. Commissioner Roswall will be available to speak to media.

11:00 - 11:30 (CET) | Coffee break, change of rooms and photo opportunity

11:30 - 13:00 (CET) | Parallel breakout sessions: Solutions Marketplace - From Strategy to Action (parallel breakout sessions)

Session 2.1: Water Efficiency: From Farm to Factory, Local to Global Action (room JDE 52)

Rapporteurs

  • Agnese Danelon, Vice-President, Ecolab
  • Trine Christiansen, Head of Group for Freshwater and Environment, European Environment Agency

Panellists

  • Xavier Girre, CEO of SUEZ Group
  • Naoufel Menadi, CEO Leviathan Dynamics
  • Inge Genné, Director Water Reuse Europe
  • Prof Danilo Demarchi, Polytechnic University of Turin

Session 2.2: Financing the Way to Water Resilience (room JDE 53)

Rapporteurs

  • Magdalena Rzeczkowska, Member of European Economic and Social Committee
  • Karl Vanlouwe, Member of the Committee of the Regions

Panellists

  • Edouard Pérard, Head of the Division for Water, European Investment Bank
  • Ben Townsend, Global Head of Infrastructure Strategy and Sustainability, Google
  • Tim Segboer, Senior advisor regulatory & corporate affairs Dutch Water Bank
  • Job van Schelven, partner, PureTerra Watertech Growth Fund

Session 2.3: Industrial challenges on the way to zero pollution and net-zero targets - How the Water Resilience Strategy can boost EU competitiveness (room JDE 51)

Rapporteurs

  • Durk Krol, Executive Director, Water Europe
  • Alain Coheur, President of the Consultative Commission on Industrial Change, Member of the European Economic and Social Committee

Panellists

  • Ioana Blaj, Health, Safety, Security and Environment Manager, CEFIC
  • Lars Lindén, CEO, Ragn-Sells
  • Hanno Balzer, Senior Vice President of Project Development, Permits & Infrastructure and Energy & Asset Management, H2apex
  • Pär Dalhielm, President EurEau

13:00 - 14:00 (CET) | Lunch and Water Resilience Solutions Pavilion

14:00 - 15:30 (CET) | Parallel breakout sessions: Solutions Marketplace

Session 3.1: Urban Water Resilience (room JDE 51)

Rapporteurs

  • Marieke Schouten, Member of the Committee of the Regions
  • Hildegard Bentele, Member of the European Parliament

Panellists

  • Ans Mol-van de Camp, Regional Minister of the Province of Gelderland, Member of the Committee of the Regions
  • Balázs Borkovits, Coordinator Sponge Cities Project
  • Agustín Reyna, Director-General, BEUC (European Consumer Organisation)
  • Herman Afzelius, PFAS Association of Kallinge

Session 3.2: Upskilling for Water Resilience: Inception for the European Water Academy (room JDE 52)

Rapporteurs

  • Alessandra Zampieri, Director for Sustainable Resources, Joint Research Centre, European Commission
  • Gabriëlle Knufman, CEO, World Water Academy

Panellists

  • Milo Fiasconaro, Executive Director, Aqua Publica Europa
  • Arthur Guischet, Secretary General, European Water Association
  • Dr Klara Ramm, EurEau Executive Committee member and General Assembly Representative for Poland
  • Katerina Schilling, Secretary-General, International Association of Water Utilities in the Danube

Session 3.3: Digital Transformation for Water Management (room JDE 53)

Rapporteurs

  • Meike van Ginneken, Water Envoy for the Kingdom of the Netherlands
  • Vincenzo Renda, Director for Digital Transformation, Digital Europe

Panellists

  • Andrea Cominola, Professor of Smart Water Networks, Technical University Berlin
  • Adam Cartwright, Director Industry Strategy: Water and Wastewater Software, Siemens
  • Gaetane Suzenet, Vice Chair - Scientific and Technological Board Water4All
  • Bernardo Matos, Senior Director EU Government Relations, Bentley Systems

15:30 - 16:00 (CET) | Break

16:00 - 16:45 (CET) | Plenary Session: Feedback and Pathways to Action (room JDE 52)

Rapporteurs from breakout sessions present key conclusions and commitments

  • Manuela Geleng, Director, DG Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion – Way forward for the European Water Academy
  • Eric Mamer, Director-General, DG Environment – Key takeaways, statement on the next steps for the Water Resilience Strategy

16:45 - 17:00 (CET) | Closing Remarks (room JDE 52)

  • Jessika Roswall Commissioner for Environment, Water Resilience and a Competitive Circular Economy
  • President Séamus Boland for the European Economic and Social Committee
  • President Kata Tüttő for the Committee of the Regions

17:00 - 18:00 (CET) | Networking cocktail and Water Resilience Solutions Pavilion