Testing, Adapting, Financing: UNIVERSWATER’s Priorities for Lasting Impact
UNIVERSWATER coordinator Pierre Lovera joined the Water4All Water-Oriented Living Labs (WOLLs) Network event during Water Innovation Europe 2026, contributing to the panel “Water Sustainability: accelerating the transition towards sustainable water systems”.
Moderated by Water Europe, the session explored how WOLLs and innovative projects can accelerate the transition towards sustainable water systems by advancing circularity, ecosystem restoration, resource efficiency and sustainable water management.
Pierre participated alongside Hans van Leeuwen (PCP-WISE project), Avraam Kartalidis (Attica Water Lab), Patrizia Ragazzo (VeniVE) and Kirsti Korkka-Niemi (Hyglo).
From available technologies to practical adoption
Drawing on UNIVERSWATER’s work on water reuse in agriculture, Pierre outlined the conditions needed to move the project forward as it approaches its final year.
A central priority is long-term testing across the project’s use cases, allowing technologies to be assessed under real operating conditions and generating knowledge to support their wider application.
Pierre also highlighted that replication requires adaptation. While experience and knowledge can be shared, solutions cannot simply be copied and pasted from one territory to another. Their implementation must reflect local conditions and the needs of the people using them.
For agriculture, this means working closely with farmers to support technology adoption and changes in established practices. Financing remains another key challenge: technologies may already be available, but their cost and the complexity of implementation can limit uptake.
Connecting innovation with territorial needs
The event marked the next step in the development of the Water4All WOLLs Network, following its first annual in-person gathering in Banyuls-sur-Mer in November 2025.
By bringing together Living Labs, projects and other stakeholders, the gathering provided a space to exchange experience, explore approaches adaptable to other territories and identify opportunities for collaboration.
For UNIVERSWATER, the discussion reinforced the importance of combining technological development with sustained testing, farmer engagement and financial support to translate innovation into lasting improvements in water management.
