A letter to senior water professionals - it's time to listen to your younger colleagues...

Dear senior/experienced/decision-making/person of influence in water (and outside the sector), this is a call to you!

Can you please spare some time to listen to your younger colleagues and here what they want from their careers and what new skills they bring?

Please?

It is really important as they are the future. And we need to actively listen to them.

We have organised an event for you in Brussels next month where you can do this - please come.

As we know, the the water sector as a workplace is changing rapidly – the pandemic has been a catalyst. This bringing challenges but also huge opportunities.

New ways of working, new labour market dynamics, disrupted value chains, digitalisation, entrepreneurship and innovation and are all advancing rapidly.

If decision-makers understand and manage these changes effectively, this will bring systemic change that will make huge leaps forward in meeting Europe’s water and sanitation, climate change, economic and environmental challenges.

Young people are driving all these changes. So now is a crucial moment for young professionals, their more senior colleagues and decision-makers to establish a joint vision of the workplace of the future.

AquaFed is working with the European Junior Water Programme and Water Europe to give young professionals their expertise on what the workplace should be like now and in the future.

At next month' New Waves Festival 2022, we will work together, experience and set the agenda for the Future of Working in the European Water Sector. We will:

• Hear from young professionals on the skills that they bring to help solve Europe’s water, climate and environmental challenges
• Connect and create fresh ideas on career paths and interactions so the potential of young talent can be fully harnessed
• Hear from inspirational leaders on the specific challenges they need young people to help overcome.

This will not be an event where you all get talked at for hours. This will be a discussion and a chance to learn.

You can register here.

I look forward to seeing you.

Kind regards

Neil