Access to water and energy of the right quality and at an affordable price underpins poverty eradication and improved health. Water is used in energy production and energy in the provision of and treatment of water. However, if we don’t manage the water resources wisely, the possibility to secure energy for all is at risk. The global demand for freshwater is under-going rapid changes and is projected to grow by 55 per cent between 2000 and 2050.

The chapters in this paper were prepared for World Water Week 2014, and titles include:

Water and energy: a necessary evolution from dialogue to partnership?

The growing thirst for energy: is shale gas part of the solution, or part of the problem

Sustainable hydropower in the context of water and energy security

Forest, water, and carbon storage: creating synergies and balancing trade-offs in view of climate change

Water and energy in the urban setting

For better, for worse: the eternal interdependence of energy and water