At its annual assembly, the Blue Community Switzerland announced uniting with the organisation Solidarit’Eau. Here the official release:
The Blue Community Switzerland network and the Solidarit’eau Suisse platform are committed to the fair, public and responsible use of water and promote access to water for all. The two organisations are now joining forces and spreading their concerns widely.
The merger creates a well-connected organisation with key Swiss players in politics and administration, science, the private sector, the church, water supply and wastewater treatment. In the future, they will work together to ensure the responsible and fair use of water resources in accordance with the principles of the Blue Community.
In solidarity with people in the global south
The principles of the Blue Community also include an international commitment to help people in the Global South gain access to clean drinking water and sanitation. For Blue Communities that do not have their own experts to evaluate and maintain an international partnership, Solidarit’eau Suisse offers the ideal tool. Solidarit’eau Suisse’s web platform presents water projects and public-public partnerships that have been assessed by independent Swiss water and sanitation experts.
Blue Community is an international network founded in Canada in 2009. Blue Communities have since been established in Europe, Latin America and Africa, and in Switzerland since 2013. Blue Community Switzerland is a network of political and church communities, organisations and companies that are aware of their responsibility in dealing with water. They have made a voluntary commitment to four principles:
- Water as a human right
- Water as a public good
- Promotion of tap water over bottled water
- A commitment to international partnerships.
Today, around forty towns, universities, churches, trade unions and NGOs belong to the Blue Community Switzerland network.
Solidarit’eau Suisse is a platform launched in 2007 by municipalities, water companies, NGOs and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation. Its aim is to mobilise all actors to improve access to water and sanitation in the Global South. The platform brings together water experts from Switzerland and abroad and promotes the exchange of knowledge. Through the Solidarit’eau website, Swiss cities, municipalities and institutions can promote projects for the construction of wells, pipes and sanitation facilities, as well as hygiene awareness campaigns, thereby demonstrating their solidarity with communities in the Global South.
