Xylem Vue has been recognised with the Citation of Excellence in Advertising in the Best Design category by the Water Environment Federation (WEF) during this year’s WEFTEC event in Chicago.

The award acknowledges outstanding aesthetic and communicative quality in advertising within the water sector, as published in WEF’s magazine. The WEF jury commended the 2025 Xylem Vue campaign for its clarity, visual impact and ability to communicate complex digital transformation themes in a relatable way.

According to Xylem Vue, the recognition reinforces its approach to water innovation. The company said its strategy “is not only based on technology, but also on how that technology is more effectively communicated to the market. This mirrors exactly what we do to simplify water management.”

Celebrating innovation at WEFTEC 2025

WEFTEC 2025, organised by the Water Environment Federation, remains one of the world’s most significant water industry events. The 98th edition, held from 27 September to 1 October, brought together more than 1,000 exhibitors and nearly 20,000 visitors from over 100 countries. It serves as a key international platform for collaboration, learning and innovation in water management.

At this year’s event, Xylem’s booth attracted hundreds of visitors and featured over 25 presentations covering artificial intelligence, sustainability, cybersecurity, Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) management, and breaking down data silos. Highlights included a session on smart water management and reuse at Manchester City FC, and a presentation on water security collaboration developed with Amazon.

Xylem Vue wins award at WEFTEC 2025

Driving digital transformation in water

The award further strengthens the international profile of Xylem and its Xylem Vue platform, positioning the company as a global innovator in digital water solutions. The recognition underscores the growing importance of effective communication and design in advancing sustainable water management.

Xylem Vue is a secure, integrated and agnostic software and analytics platform capable of capturing data from any source, including legacy systems. Developed in Valencia, Spain, through collaboration between Xylem and Idrica, it enables utilities to maximise the value of their existing infrastructure, enhance visibility across their networks, and advance their digital transformation journey.

Quick Reference Links

• Xylem
• Xylem Vue Platform
• Idrica
• Water Environment Federation (WEF)
• WEFTEC

Xylem Vue recognised for design excellence at WEFTEC 2025
H2O Team

South West Water has announced the launch of the PEDAL project, an innovative initiative designed to predict and manage harmful algal blooms (HABs) before they occur. The £2 million research partnership brings together the University of Exeter, Plymouth Marine Laboratory, South West Lakes Trust and other industry collaborators to tackle one of the UK’s growing environmental challenges.

Harmful algal blooms occur naturally when algae multiply rapidly in reservoirs, lakes, and rivers, affecting water quality and ecosystems. They make water treatment more difficult, harm fish and wildlife, and restrict recreational use. With rising pollution levels and climate change increasing their frequency, early detection and management have become critical for the water sector.

Over the next three years, the PEDAL project will develop the UK’s first advanced digital twin system for HABs. This will combine satellite data, drone imagery, in-situ sensors, laboratory testing, and local community input through citizen science to build an early warning and forecasting platform. By using artificial intelligence and advanced modelling, the system will enable water companies to predict and mitigate blooms before they develop.

The project builds upon South West Water’s partnership with the University of Exeter through the Centre for Resilience in Environment, Water and Waste (CREWW), and is supported by the Ofwat Innovation Fund. Together, the partners aim to deliver new digital tools that reduce operational costs, enhance water quality, and strengthen ecosystem protection across the UK.

Andrew Pennington, Innovation Programme and Partnerships Manager at South West Water, said:

We’re incredibly excited to get the PEDAL project up and running. This marks the beginning of an ambitious three-year journey to bring together science, technology, and community knowledge to tackle harmful algal blooms. The enthusiasm and collaboration we’ve already seen from our partners and researchers is inspiring, and we can’t wait to turn this vision into a real-world solution.

Dr Diego Panici, Principal Investigator for PEDAL at the University of Exeter, added:

By combining satellites, drones, in-water sensors, numerical models, and artificial intelligence, we will be able to predict when and where blooms are likely to occur. This means moving from reacting after the fact to anticipating problems before they happen, protecting water supplies, ecosystems, and communities.

The PEDAL project represents a major step forward in the use of data-driven science and cross-sector innovation to enhance the resilience of the UK’s water systems and the health of its natural environments.

Quick Reference Links

• South West Water
• University of Exeter
• Plymouth Marine Laboratory
• South West Lakes Trust
• Ofwat Innovation Fund

South West Water launches AI-driven project to predict and manage harmful algal blooms
H2O Team

Mott MacDonald flood risk and water quality technical director, Sun Yan Evans, has been elected as a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering (RAEng), the highest professional recognition in UK engineering. The Fellowship honours outstanding engineers for their contributions to research, innovation, entrepreneurship and leadership in the field.

With a career spanning more than 25 countries, Sun Yan is internationally recognised for her expertise in flood risk and water quality modelling. As technical director, former global practice leader and Mott MacDonald’s inaugural Fellow, she has led specialist teams delivering pioneering projects that have influenced both national and international water management standards.

Her contributions include advancing dam breach flood inundation modelling, hazard mapping, and smart solutions for assessing overtopping risks in flood defences and reservoirs. These methodologies have informed guidelines for the UK Government and the World Bank, shaping approaches to water safety and resilience worldwide.

Sun Yan has published more than 40 technical papers, contributed to the Institution of Civil Engineers’ State of the Nation reports, and co-authored several books and guidelines. She has also received over 20 industry awards, including the prestigious Women in Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management Award. Her expertise is frequently sought in public inquiries, legal cases and high-profile infrastructure projects.

Her leadership is defined by technical excellence combined with a strong commitment to inclusion, knowledge-sharing and innovation. James Harris, chair of Mott MacDonald’s Executive Board, said:

That’s leadership at its best.

Richard Risdon, executive board director and regional managing director for UK and Europe, added:

Everyone at Mott MacDonald congratulates Sun Yan on this brilliant achievement and honour. From her early engineering research in China in the 1980s, which helped establish national water quality standards, to her global impact on flood risk and environmental challenges, this Fellowship recognises her career-long innovation and dedication.

Sun Yan joins fellow Mott MacDonald leaders Chris Dulake, Mark Enzer, Simon Harrison and Tony O’Brien as Royal Academy of Engineering Fellows, underlining the company’s continued contribution to engineering excellence.

Quick Reference Links

• Mott MacDonald
• Royal Academy of Engineering
• Institution of Civil Engineers
• World Bank

Mott MacDonald’s Sun Yan Evans Elected Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering
H2O Team

German students Niklas Ruf and Jana Spiller have been awarded the Stockholm Junior Water Prize 2025 for developing a scalable flood warning system for small streams. The award was presented by H.R.H. Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden during a ceremony at Stockholm City Hall as part of World Water Week.

Flooding is a growing concern worldwide, yet small streams often lack real-time monitoring. Over four years, Ruf and Spiller created a sensor network linked to a mobile app that delivers live flood alerts to experts and the public. The system is already being scaled up in their region with support from local partners.

The international jury noted that the project “addresses a critical challenge we are seeing around the globe: more frequent and bigger floods. Yet on smaller streams, we often lack the data needed to provide real-time warnings. The students have not only built a functioning system and an app that notifies experts and the public, they are already working to scale this system across their region.”

Reflecting on their win, Ruf said: “I didn’t expect it at all. There were so many really good projects. I thought we were just here to have a good time and then go back home.” Spiller added: “Every project here is just amazing. Some were in areas like chemistry and biology that I didn’t even fully understand, but they were so impressive. That’s why it was such a big surprise for us.”

Divyasri Kothapalli from the UK receives the People’s Choice Award for her solar water distillation project.

Diploma of Excellence – Türkiye

Kagan Mehmet Ozkok from Türkiye received the Diploma of Excellence for work combining AI and water efficiency. By training artificial intelligence to recognise the sound of leaking water, Ozkok developed prototypes capable of detecting leaks in public spaces. Tested under real conditions, the devices demonstrated significant water savings and are being developed further with local government.

People’s Choice Award – United Kingdom

The People’s Choice Award went to Divyasri Kothapalli from the United Kingdom for her solar water distillation project. Using a Fresnel lens to concentrate sunlight onto a boiling pot, the system condenses steam into clean water without electricity. Tested in the UK, it consistently produced safe drinking water, demonstrating potential for off-grid and rural communities.

Claudia Toussaint, Chief People and Sustainability Officer at Xylem, which sponsors the Prize, commented: “Innovation is paving the way to a more water-secure world, and the next generation is accelerating progress. The Stockholm Junior Water Prize competitors are an inspiring example of the ingenuity and passion young innovators bring to the table.”

Niklas Ruf and Jana Spiller of Germany receive the 2025 Stockholm Junior Water Prize from Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden.

A Year of Flood-Focused Excellence

Flooding is the theme of this year’s water prizes: the Stockholm Junior Water Prize recognising Ruf and Spiller’s innovation in Germany, and the Stockholm Water Prize honouring Austrian hydrologist Professor Günter Blöschl for his global leadership in flood science. Together, their work highlights the urgency of tackling flood risks locally and internationally.

German Students Awarded 2025 Stockholm Junior Water Prize for Flood Warning Innovation
H2O Team

DuPont has been named among the winners of the 2025 R&D 100 Awards in the Mechanical/Materials category. The awards, now in their 63rd year, identify technologies that are advancing industrial performance and sustainability across global markets.

One of the technologies highlighted was the FilmTec™ Fortilife™ XC160 Membrane, developed for industrial wastewater treatment and reuse. The reverse osmosis element is designed to concentrate wastewater streams under ultra-high-pressure conditions, helping users to recover more water while lowering energy demand, carbon output and overall operating costs.

The membrane has applications in sectors where water reuse is a growing operational and regulatory priority. These include chemical and petrochemical manufacturing, steel and iron production, pulp and paper, power generation, textiles, and lithium-ion battery manufacturing.

Two further DuPont developments were also recognised:

• Tychem® 6000 SFR, a protective garment designed to be worn over flame-resistant clothing. It provides chemical resistance for more than 30 minutes against over 250 hazardous substances, including solvents and chemical warfare agents, without increasing burn risk during flash fire exposure.
• UV™ 26GNF Photoresist, a material used in semiconductor lithography, providing a non-fluorine alternative for precise patterning and reduced environmental impact in integrated circuit production.

According to Alexa Dembek, Chief Technology and Sustainability Officer at DuPont: “We’re honoured that three of our innovative technologies have been recognised for their game-changing impacts and delivering exceptional performance and value for our customers … translating cutting-edge thinking into customer-led solutions that help address some of the world’s most pressing challenges.”

The R&D 100 Awards are widely referred to within industry as a benchmark for technical innovation. In 2025, entries were received from 13 countries and assessed by a panel of 54 judges from across academia, research, and industrial sectors.

Quick Reference Links

• DuPont press release – 2025 R&D 100 Awards
• FilmTec™ Fortilife™ XC160 Membrane
• Tychem® 6000 SFR
• UV™ 26GNF Photoresist
• Alexa Dembek – DuPont leadership profile
• R&D 100 Awards

DuPont Recognised in 2025 R&D 100 Awards for FilmTec™ Fortilife™ XC160 Membrane
H2O Team

The Importance of Water Quality Monitoring

Water is the essence of life—over 60% of our bodies are made up of it! From quenching our thirst to growing food, powering industries, and providing recreational fun, clean water is crucial to nearly every aspect of our lives. By monitoring its quality, we can safeguard our rivers, lakes, ponds, and streams from pollution, ensuring they remain healthy and vibrant [1].

Monitoring water quality, especially for harmful algal blooms (HABs or CyanoHABs), is more challenging today due to the many chemicals, fertilizers, sewage, and waste runoff into lakes, rivers, or oceans. With over 80,000 chemicals in industry use in the U.S. alone and worldwide HAB events, only a tiny fraction can be effectively analyzed, making it difficult to assess risks and fully manage contamination in our waters. [2], [3]. Current practical water quality monitoring processes are expensive, time-consuming, and labor-intensive. Among these challenges, repair and maintenance costs, human resources, manual processes, data quality, and efficiency are significant concerns that complicate effective and sustainable water monitoring [4], [5]. Figure 1 shows our drone sampling during a harmful algal bloom (HAB) event in August 2023 at Shelburne Pond, Vermont, USA.

Figure 1. Sampling a HAB event, Shelburne Pond, Vermont, USA. 
Drone Operator: Soheyl Faghir Hagh, Photo by: Lauren Cresanti

Innovations in Water Sampling with Drones

Visual, taste, and odor changes alone cannot accurately assess water quality, particularly during HABs. Therefore, precise sensors and samplers are essential to make sure we can detect and capture these events promptly. Figure 2 shows our uncrewed aerial vehicle (UAV) system that can collect four samples (100 ml each) from four locations in a water body. This drone has an apparatus connected to our designed circuit board with wireless technology. This apparatus has four electromechanical samplers and sensors: temperature, pH, turbidity, and total dissolved solids (TDS). Each time the device is deployed in the water, the circuit senses the water, activates the samplers, reads the sensor data, and transmits this data over long distances (up to 1.6 km) through Long-Range (LoRa) technology. With a second drone for near-infrared imaging, our calibrated system can collect samples, measure water quality parameters, and collect images from the water body to form a comprehensive geographic information system (GIS) map. This map helps us understand the variation of HABs and potential mitigation strategies if necessary.

Figure 2. Our wireless sampler-sensor drone from [6], Credit: Soheyl Faghir Hagh

Our automated system’s advantage is eliminating the need for heavy equipment. Boats or kayaks are no longer needed! Furthermore, the total cost of our UAV system is lower than that of large autosamplers. It is possible to program the drone to fly to specific locations, collect samples, and return them to us at the launch site. The drone can fly for 1 hour with only 2 minutes for each sampling, so a large lake or pond can be covered thoroughly. It should be noted that this technology is novel in the sense that the end user can see the information in real-time. The drone broadcasts the encoded data, and the gateway receives this information. From there, it is relayed to the Web of Things for visualization and post-processing. The open-source design of this system allows for the integration of additional sensors, such as accurate fluorometers, spectrometers, or conductivity sensors.

Another significant advantage is that our system reduces the risk of human exposure to hazardous environments such as low-pH lakes. Hard-to-reach remote locations are easier to access, and water specialists, engineers, and technicians can collect samples multiple times daily. The full paper can be found here.

The use of Fluorometry and Nephelometry

Fluorometery, a sensitive analytical technique, detects the light emitted by a sample after it is excited. Nephelometry measures the amount of turbidity or cloudiness in a sample. We use these methods to detect CyanoHABs in water. It does not end there; our wireless system can also measure temperature. We detect Phycocyanin (PC) and Chlorophyll-a (Chl-a) fluorescence as proxies of Cyanobacteria and Phytoplankton, respectively. The system relies on the optical characteristics of PC and Chl-a, which emit light at distinct wavelengths when stimulated by an external light source. Chlorophyll-a emits light between 670-690 nm when incident light is in the 400-500 nm range, while phycocyanin emits around 650 nm when excited by light at approximately 600 nm [8]. Water cloudiness is measured in the near-infrared range.

Our system [7] pumps the fluid in a cuvette (with a peristaltic pump to minimize sample alteration) to make the measurements. It then excites the sample with three Light-Emitting Diodes (LEDs). The responses are measured using photodiodes as detectors. When light strikes the photodiodes, the photodiodes generate a tiny current, which we amplify and convert to electrical voltage to be measured. To minimize incidental light from LEDs, we use special glass filters in front of the photodiodes to remove it.

Each box must be meticulously calibrated in the laboratory with solutions for which the concentration of PC, Chl-a, and turbidity (also temperature) are known. So far, the calibration results indicate a promising result that agrees with commercial devices.

Finally, the microcontroller processes and prepares all the information for wireless transmission. We do the measurements every 15 minutes. Figure 3 shows a deployment example for our clarity box. The pipes and temperature probe are placed in the water, and the box is deployed for long-term monitoring. We are currently working on debugging our system to optimize it for field deployments, and soon, there will be many clarities on buoys monitoring the water for us. The open-access full paper is available here.

Figure 3. Our wireless fluorometer-nephelometer sensors (clarity) from [7], Credit: Soheyl Faghir Hagh

Summary

We have fabricated and calibrated two systems designed for a specific use. From the drone for quick and comprehensive sampling to the clarity box for long-term monitoring, both devices protect our water quality and inform the public should there be any risks to their health.

Copyright and permission:

The material presented here is with permission from IEEE for the drone work and under the Creators Common License for clarity.

References

[1] Water Quality Monitoring, Accessed August 2024. [Online.], Available: https://www.swfwmd.state.fl.us/residents/education/kids/water-quality-monitoring#:~:text=Each%20water%20body%20can%20contain,recognize%20and%20prevent%20contamination%20problems.

[2] D. N. Myers, “Why monitor water quality?” U.S. Geological Survey, Accessed August 2024. [Online.], Available: https://water.usgs.gov/owq/WhyMonitorWaterQuality.pdf

[3] “Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs) in Water Bodies,” Accessed July 2024. [Online.], Available:  https://www.epa.gov/habs/what-are-effects-habs

[4] L. McDermand, “Overcome 5 Water Challenges When Monitoring Water,” Accessed August 2024. [Online.], Available: https://www.ysi.com/ysi-blog/water-blogged-blog/2019/02/how-to-overcome-5-water-quality-monitoring-challenges

[5] “Common Challenges Faced by Water Testing Laboratories,” Accessed August 2024. [Online.], Available: https://freelims.org/water-quality-testing-challenges-ways-to-overcome-them/

[6] S. F. Hagh et al., “Autonomous UAV-Mounted LoRaWAN System for Real-Time Monitoring of Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs) and Water Quality,” IEEE Sens. J., vol. 24, no. 7, pp. 11414–11424, 2024, doi: https://doi.org/10.1109/JSEN.2024.3364142.

[7] S. F. Hagh et al., “A Low-Cost LoRa Optical Fluorometer-Nephelometer for Wireless Monitoring of Water Quality Parameters in Real-Time,” IEEE Sens. J., p. 1, 2024, doi: https://doi.org/10.1109/JSEN.2024.3403416.

[8] A. Puiu, L. Fiorani, I. Menicucci, M. Pistilli, and A. Lai, “Submersible spectrofluorometer for real-time sensing of water quality,” Sensors (Switzerland), vol. 15, no. 6, pp. 14415–14434, 2015, doi: https://doi.org/10.3390/s150614415.

Author Information

Soheyl Faghir Hagh is a graduate research assistant at the Department of Electrical Engineering, University of Vermont, Burlington, Vermont. His research initiatives include developing LoRa wireless sensor nodes for environmental parameter monitoring, such as water quality and coastal environment. He is actively researching the LoRa mesh networks and sensors. His research interests include the Internet of Drones (IoD), LoRaWAN sensor nodes, machine learning, circuit design and fabrication, and device fabrication.

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Smart Wireless Technologies: Transforming Water Sampling and Monitoring
louise davey

Aqualateral, a multi-asset class investment vehicle dedicated to investing in transformative solutions to local and global water crises, today announced it is sponsoring two innovative funding mechanisms for water utilities and adjacent industries to deploy promising new technologies. The partnership with water consultancy Isle Utilities is a new approach to funding and scaling breakthrough water technologies. The “Trial Reservoir” was only established one year ago with a focus on net zero carbon in water utilities and has met with such success that it is now being scaled out into industrial water. The Trial Reservoir and new Industrial Reservoir provide water technology innovators access to capital loans for pilot projects. The initial Climate Change Trial Reservoir focus was on technologies that reduce the carbon emissions of water systems. The new Industrial Reservoir expands the focus into resource recovery, emerging contaminants, waste-to-energy/circular economy & decentralization. Technology trials and pilots are generally required in advance of full-scale implementations. 

The two Reservoirs will make pools of funding available to early-stage technology companies, giving them the capacity to undertake trial deployments with technology users. The ‘reservoir’ of funding will be replenished from the proceeds of commercial contracts, when the trials move to full deployments. Aqualateral is a founding sponsor of the Industrial Reservoir initiative, along with global water technology leader, Xylem (NYSE:XYL).

“Through collaboration and financing, Aqualateral aims to catalyse innovation in water technology to alleviate the challenges that communities increasingly face. Aqualateral is delighted to be able to partner with Isle on their pioneering Trial and Industrial Reservoir initiatives, which provide capital at crucial stages to innovators seeking to transform how water is managed, treated, and distributed,” said Jiten Manglani, Aqualateral’s Chief Investment Officer. “The Trial Reservoir is a unique way to drive innovation by providing bridge financing and de-risking this process for end-users. This structure creates a critical mechanism to scale new technologies that are vital to ensuring a water-secure future.” 

 “Aqualateral’s sponsorship of the award-winning Trial Reservoir does much more than just create financial capacity for innovation in water utilities,” said Dr Jo Burgess, Head of Trial Reservoir at Isle Group. “The Reservoir initiatives bring together all the players needed to bring new technologies to market – utilities, investors, start-ups, non-profits. By removing financial uncertainty, partnerships between end-users and innovators can focus on solving a whole community’s water challenges and getting new, proven water technologies into the marketplace.” 

The Trial Reservoir and Industrial Reservoir are open to technology vendors around the world, actively supporting trials in high, medium and low-income countries. The only requirement is that the technology being tested must help the technology user to lower its carbon or resource footprint. 

The Trial Reservoir funded its first trial in December 2021, and has been presented to – and endorsed by – the G20 countries’ finance ministers. It was also the winner of the WEX Global Award 2022 for Innovation in Decarbonising. 

For more information, contact Dr Jo Burgess, Head of Trial Reservoir, at jo.burgess@isleutilities.com

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Water sector must invest in our planet

Aqualateral and Isle Utilities Partner to Help Scale Innovative Water Technologies <h2 class='sub-title'>New funding for trials of innovations that enable carbon reduction, resource recovery, solutions for emerging contaminants, waste-to-energy, circular economy, and decentralisation.
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hello

 IDE Technologies, a world leader in desalination and water treatment solutions, today announced an increased investment and focus on the sustainability of seawater desalination and water treatment facilities by driving momentum behind research and development efforts in fields that are adjacent and complimentary to water. The company, an established pioneer in the development of seawater desalination and water treatment technologies, will leverage its valued, innovative approach to promote new advanced solutions in the fields of energy generation and storage, carbon management, and resource recovery – among others.

As part of this initiative to emphasize R&D activity across continents and navigate evolving desalination and water treatment challenges, Tomer Efrat will serve as Vice President, R&D, overseeing IDE’s work in this field while reinforcing IDE’s position as a global water technology leader. Tomer has been at IDE since 2005, serving in a variety of technological and commercial roles including Process Engineering Manager and Director of Business Development, leading IDE’s water treatment activity. Dr. Boris Liberman, CTO Membranes and Vice President at IDE, will support Tomer in this new role.

“Desalination and water treatment continue to be IDE’s core passion, especially as our planet faces strains on natural resources and ongoing challenges, such as climate change, highlight the immediate need for more sustainable technologies,” said Alon Tavor, CEO, IDE Technologies Group. “We are proud to share our commitment to R&D and investment in sustainability within desalination and water treatment. I am confident that Tomer will successfully lead our team of talented individuals in driving project momentum so that regions across the globe can benefit from IDE solutions and expertise.”

For more information on IDE Water Technologies, please visit, https://www.ide-tech.com.

IDE Water Technologies Invests in R&D, Sustainability in Seawater Desalination and Water Treatment <h2 class='sub-title'>IDE’s investment increases focus on energy, carbon management, resource recovery fields</h2>
Abby Davey

• Professor May Thorseth stresses the need for stakeholder involvement beyond traditional solution experts
• In many of the EU’s H2020 projects, Responsible Research and Innovation are compulsory
• ULTIMATE project research investigates people’s beliefs and morals on the circular economy.

“In the transformation towards a sustainable circular economy, it’s crucial to give a voice not only to the experts but to all who cannot speak for themselves.”

That’s according to May Thorseth, Professor of Philosophy at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology in Trondheim, Norway.

She believes this should include “people who are less well off, future generations, animals, and the rest of nature. Besides the technical solutions, we need to widen our view and broaden our communication on ethical questions.”

The Norwegian University participates in European projects such as NEXTGEN and ULTIMATE, which focus on a specific niche in the circular economy system: the role of water.

Moral, cognitive and pragmatic reasons for involvement

ULTIMATE focuses on ‘smart industrial symbiosis’ and has nine European demonstration sites for new technologies. It also shows how these technologies can achieve on an economic and environmental scale, and stakeholders and civilians are actively involved.

May Thorseth and the project partners conducted interesting research in the demo sites in Spain and the UK. People were asked about their beliefs and morals to contribute to a change toward a circular economy. What do people think in the first place?

It revealed that there are different reasons why people want to be involved, including moral, cognitive, and pragmatic reasons. The moral reasons have to do with values and beliefs people have, the cognitive with the comprehension of the matter. Finally, the pragmatic reasons talk about self-interest.

What is good for the environment is not always the best for the people. Sustainability has three different dimensions: social, environmental, and economical.

“Of course, it’s easier if you live in abundance in a stable democracy to be willing to get involved in a sustainable circular economy,” Thorseth adds. “If you are a fisherman in China and your village is wiped away, you will not have the possibility to look at flooding on a global scale because first, you need a home and food for your family.”

Ensuring responsible research

These ethical dilemmas should be considered when looking at ways to achieve a sustainable circular economy. Europe’s Green Deal and its projects have a mission on this ethical subject. How can we create a Circular Economy where all are heard?

In many of the EU’s H2020 projects, Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) is compulsory. RRI implies that researchers, citizens, policymakers, business and third sector organisations work together throughout the research and innovation process to align better the process and its outcome with the values, needs and expectations of society.

Furthermore, changing towards a sustainable circular economy has different perspectives on a local, national and global scale for countries, companies and broader audiences. “It is not just a matter of technological solutions,” adds Thorseth.

“There’s a tendency to reduce our problems now to something that we should leave to the experts. To leave it to the experts would be a way to say: that those with technological or other competencies should solve the problems. But some problems are not technical, such as our consumption patterns. We need to have a clear view on several different perspectives of what is right and what is good.”

The real challenge? Upscaling

Thorseth believes one of the biggest challenges lies in connecting different stakeholder groups.

“The real challenge is how to bring the outcomes of the projects out to a broader scientific field and a broader public,” she adds.

“We need to educate people, raise awareness and share the knowledge of smart solutions and involve all stakeholders. Nudging towards autonomous decision-making can help people speak out. An autonomous action expresses positive freedom, something all people can love. We must make this concrete to recognise the moral obligation to deal with the circular economy. To contribute to making more people look in the right direction. And in doing so, we must make all voices be heard, also the voices of those who cannot speak for themselves, such as future generations, animals, and the rest of nature.

More information about IRR at the ULTIMATE project can be found here: https://www.kwrwater.nl/projecten/ultimate/

Read more KWR Research Institute Articles and News on H2O Global News. Do you have an article or video that you would like to share? Submit your article here or keep up with the latest news from the water industry and wastewater industry by subscribing to our weekly newsletter

Why all voices are needed to create a Circular Economy
Abby Davey

The Ocean 14 Capital fund, focusing exclusively on the multi-trillion-dollar ‘blue economy’, has received a commitment for €10 million from the Constitutional Reserve Fund of Monaco to support its mission of funding sustainable solutions to improve ocean health.

With this backing, Ocean 14 Capital’s €150 million impact fund is on track to invest in 8 companies this year, and to grow its portfolio to between 20 and 25 businesses within three years.

Following the Principality of Monaco’s €10 million commitment from the sovereign wealth fund, the private equity firm has now raised €100 million since launching its growth-stage impact fund in December 2021.

Using the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal number 14: Life Below Water as a guiding principle, Ocean 14 Capital is searching for entrepreneurs and businesses with big ideas around aquaculture and alternative proteins, reducing plastic waste pollution, protecting ecosystems and marine flora, and ending overfishing.

The fund aims to act as a tidal surge to supercharge the blue economy, a sector using ocean resources for economic growth and preservation, which is expected to be worth $3 trillion by 2030, according to the OECD. At the same time, it will provide jobs to 40 million people (OECD;pg2).

Chris Gorell Barnes, founding partner of Ocean 14 Capital, said: “Oceans are the critical life-support system for life on earth. If we are to save the planet, there is clear evidence that if we don’t have a healthy & functioning ocean, we have zero chance. The ocean provides half the oxygen we breathe, it absorbs half the carbon, it feeds the world, it employs hundreds of millions of people. If it’s not functioning, it will be game over for humanity.

Philanthropy is doing a solid job, but institutions are realising that we need to overhaul the capital market to really stand a chance of averting the climate crisis.

That’s why we launched Ocean 14 Capital to bring in the necessary capital to transform the blue economy and make it sustainable and regenerative, so that we can protect and restore the oceans health and make sure this vital economy can prosper.”

H.S.H. Prince Albert II of Monaco has a long history of supporting ocean conservation. His Foundation has invested over €90 million during the past 15 years to fund more than 700 projects, in a bid to promote ocean health and limit the effects of climate change.

Jean CASTELLINI, Minister of Finance and Economy of Monaco, said : “I believe that this investment will enable Ocean 14 Capital to deliver the innovation needed to meet our climate and sustainability goals.

The sustainable blue economy is now a key focus for us and this is a rallying cry for start-up and scale-up marine innovators globally to come forward and help avert the crisis in our oceans and return them to a healthy thriving state.”

First launched in December of 2021, Ocean 14 Capital’s impact investment fund has already made three investments this year.

A key source of protein to feed the globe, shrimp breeding technology specialist SyAqua is among the first beneficiaries of the fund.

Through cutting-edge genetics and nutrition methods, the business plans to transform archaic farming practices, making it more efficient, technology-enabled, circular and regenerative.
AION, a plastic management platform, has also received investment. The Norwegian business uses proprietary technology to offer ‘Circularity As A Service’ to large-scale industries, ensuring the plastic we already have is kept in use for as long as possible.

The Ocean 14 Capital fund will focus primarily on investing in growth-stage businesses. It is aiming that around two thirds of the fund will go to companies based in Europe, with the remainder aimed to be used to invest in the rest of the world.

Chris Gorell Barnes added: “We have the science, the network, the understanding of marine conservations; we’ve got experience of building multibillion dollar asset management businesses, and we’ve got industry know-how, in terms of investing in and executing within the industry.

We’re at a pivotal point in finance, and I think it’s going to be as revolutionary as the technology shift we’ve had in the last 20 years.

We’ll see how impact investing becomes totally transformational in terms of how capital is deployed, there will be a lot of new regulations coming in, driving institutional capital to invest in vehicles that are having a positive and measurable impact on the environment and society.”

The Ocean 14 Capital Fund previously completed a €80 million first close in December 2021, with backers including the European Investment Fund (EIF), Chr. Augustinus Fabrikker, Builders Vision, Minderoo Foundation, and British businessman Alex Beard and Swedish entrepreneur Niklas Zennström.

Feature Image Credit: George Duffield

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Ocean Health is Ocean Wealth <h2 class='sub-title'>Ocean 14 Capital €150 million ‘blue economy’ impact fund receives €10 million from the Constitutional Reserve Fund of Monaco to back innovators saving the seas</h2>
Abby Davey