Opening CIWEM's Annual Conference on 29 April, the Institution's President, Alastair Moseley, highlighted the critical role played by water in the built environment and the coordinated approach that would be required to find innovative ways to manage this in the face of climate change.

He highlighted the need to raise awareness about the value of water, a commodity that is considered to be cheap and freely available by much of the public, and stated that schools had an important role to play in driving the behavioural shift required to see resources used more sustainably in the future.

Demonstrating the value of integrated approaches to flooding and water re-use and recycling,  he stated that a 'rooftops to public space' approach could both reduce flooding and take pressure from existing infrastructure by slowing down the flow of water through urban environments.

In concluding, he reminded delegates of CIWEM's 'unique' position as an institution that brings together the breadth of expertise required to respond to water management issues in an integrated manner, with members coming from the fields of planning, development, engineering and science.