Dear friends,

Water is the source of life. It is the essential element of natural and social system and an independent resource for all sorts of life on earth. Water embodies the most noble quality in Chinese culture as the Chinese saying goes The highest goodness is like that of water that benefit everything while not fighting for anything. Due to its incomparable significance, water has been prioritized in the 2030 UN SDG Agenda as one of the 17 targets to ensure a more sustainable future of mankind.

However, against the backdrop of multiple overlapped global challenges, including climate change, population growth, rapid urbanization, environmental degradation and public health crisis, like the raging COVID-19 pandemic, people around the world are faced with increasingly severe water challenges and crisis.

The Confucius once said that The wise finds pleasure in water. As a group of people dedicated to the research and development of water related science and technology, IWHR people always bear in mind their mission to develop the science of water and to make use water to support the sustainable national development of China and ensure a better life of people in China and the world at large.

After decades of development since its official founding in 1958, IWHR has built itself into a top-notch national research center and world class think tank covering a wide array of water related disciplines. It has been engaged in numerous national key projects and provincial or ministerial programs, and has provided technical consultancy, evaluation and services for almost all the large-scale water projects of China, leaving foot prints on projects in both China and abroad and bearing a great deal of original research findings and breakthroughs.

Global challenges require global cooperation. IWHR would like to join hands with our international partners who share the same vision of the world and the same aspiration of the future of mankind. With water as our research focus and also the treasure we value and protect, we would continue working on water to better the future!

KUANG Shangfu, Ph.D.
President of IWHR