Innovation and Solutions: Insights from World Water Week 2026

The report documents the innovations, solutions and approaches that participants remembered most clearly from World Water Week 2026, held under the theme “Water for People and Progress”.

It covers nature-based solutions, digital tools, climate adaptation, financing models and institutional approaches. Selected examples illustrate the range of tools and practices mentioned by respondents. The report also examines three cross-cutting areas in greater depth: finance and investment models, social innovation, and green water and landscape management.

The analysis draws on an open-ended question in the post-event survey, answered by 429 of the 960 survey respondents. The findings describe what respondents recalled rather than evaluate the effectiveness of the approaches mentioned. The report identifies a recurring emphasis on connecting technology, finance, governance and community ownership to support implementation at scale.