Water Innovation Lab
June 8 – 14, 2019
* APPLICATIONS CLOSE APRIL 30
Language: WIL Lebanon will be offered in Arabic.
For international participants - there is a requirement of speaking Arabic fluently.
What Are Water Innovation Labs?
Waterlution’s global Water Innovation Labs are front-running, immersive leadership development experiences designed to accelerate collaborative innovation, fast-track global knowledge sharing and devise new innovations that improve water security and support emerging leaders (18-35 yrs) to implement SDG targets connected to water in their organisations and projects. With leadership training at its core, WIL global experiences equip the next generation of young water researchers, policy-makers, and waterpreneurs with mindsets and skillsets for beyond 2020: collaboration, creativity, global-engagement, complex problem solving, and impact-oriented thinking. Our groundbreaking, cross-sector, cross-disciplinary approach has become a proven new model for global engagement, co-innovation leadership, and a catalyst for co-created change.
Waterlution is a Canadian non-profit with 15 years of experience facilitating multi-stakeholder dialogue and capacity building for young leaders in the water sector. This is evident in our Canadian and international workshops, hub events and Water Innovation Labs. Waterlution’s facilitation skills-building methods have engaged 6000+ participants with the transformative skills needed to become leaders in the future of water.
Where is this WIL taking place?
The first WIL in Lebanon is taking place in Beirut and Bekaa Region. It aims to bring the first Water Innovation Lab to the Arab world to explore the water security issues that face a country in an arid region, amidst water allocation and management challenges around water scarcity, with a growing population and climate change impacts. Key to our process is place-based learning. You will have the chance to see first-hand and to learn about Lebanon’s water challenges from a technical, historical, social, political, economic and environmental terrain. The Lab will be an opportunity for the co-creation of innovative solutions (technological, policy, social) to address these challenges.
What topics will be explored at this WIL?
Theme: Building Resilience in Water-Energy-Food-Health Systems in an Arid and Semi-Arid Region
Sub-topics:
- Climate Change and human demographic impacts on water, energy, food and health
- Rural water challenges – designing frugal water solutions for low-income and high-risk displaced communities
- Urban water challenges – growth and planning
- Industrial water challenges – circular economy
- High tech solutions – AI, IoT, Data Science
- Reviving Indigenous Knowledge
YOU CAN WIN UP TO $5,000 IN SEED GRANT FUNDING AND MENTORSHIP FOR YOU AND YOUR TEAM TO IMPLEMENT YOUR WIL CO-INNOVATION PROJECT!
Why join this WIL experience?
WIL is an opportunity to venture into the wild, offering inter-generational and cross-sectoral learning for an ‘on the ground’ level of collaboration between young leaders, mentors and facilitators. You will:
- Language: WIL Lebanon will be offered in Arabic. Group dialogue will take place in Arabic, and some teachings will be offered in English with translation. For international participants- there is a requirement of speaking Arabic fluently.
- Connect directly with visionary resource experts in water treatment technologies, policy development, and community level water management who will share their local and global knowledge in the water sector
- Cultivate unparalleled innovation and leadership skills that can be transferrable to your work or projects
- Learn through dynamic programming that ignites your passion and sparks innovative ideas to approach the future of water management
- Develop collaborative innovation projects in multi-disciplinary teams that address a water challenge, and have a chance to get support to test/prototype/pilot your idea post-WIL!
- Live an unforgettable experience with peers, facilitators, and mentors that speak to each unique landscape, in an inspiring setting
- Build long-lasting friendships and grow your network – while having a blast!
Who will be at WIL Lebanon?
60
Young Leaders
(Lebanese and Global)
15+
Resource Guests
(Lebanese and Global)
5
Facilitators
(Lebanese and Canadian)
Ready to join WIL Lebanon?
Are you…
18-30 yrs old?
A community youth/leader, student or young professional interested in solving urban, rural or industrial water challenges in Lebanon?
Able to attend for the full duration of 7 days – June 8 – 14?
Able to communicate fluently in Arabic? (Good command of English is an asset but not mandatory)
Ready to build your leadership skills and a repertoire of tools around collaborative innovation*?
Willing to commit to 9 months post-WIL to work with your team on your collaborative innovation project that will emerge out of WIL?
If this sounds like you, then WIL Lebanon is for you!
Submit an application here to join this transformative week of engagement, innovation and change-making in 2019.
*We encourage women in the water sector to get involved.
*Collaborative Innovation is when knowledge, products, and/or services are created cooperatively by a team, with members having different yet complementary ideas, knowledge and skills.
Important Dates
February 20
Applications open
April 30
Applications close
May 3
Acceptances announced
May 15
Save the date for a Welcome Webinar
June 8
Start of WIL Lebanon!
March 1 2020
Reporting on status of final projects post-WIL Lebanon
WHY ATTEND A WIL?
“Participating in a Water Innovation Lab by Waterlution is a life changing experience. You will meet amazing people, learn incredible new knowledge, and leave feeling profoundly inspired. If you get a chance to participate in WIL, definitely do it. You’ll be glad you did.”
– WIL India participant, 2017
“All of a sudden, I started thinking of my knowledge as more useful, and myself as a more valuable asset to a team. I always saw myself as younger, less experienced and less knowledgeable than everyone else in my field, but now I realize that I have real skills, and what I needed was more confidence and the tools to bring those skills into a collaborative work space.”
– WIL Scotland participant, 2015
“Different parts of our brain were activated each day. Building water entrepreneurs and the Pro-Action Café were a great mix so people could test their ideas with a wide range of participants. There were so many great ideas.”
– WIL Canada participant, 2013