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Experts from the Institution wondered how education and water culture could contribute to coping with pandemic times.
Culture influences the way we deal with water. So what can be done from water education and culture to promote quality educational actions on water and its relationship with the COVID-19 pandemic? This question initiated the dialogue to analyse the point of view of different organisations from Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) countries, in which the institutions participated. Undoubtedly, the dissemination and exchange of knowledge and experiences are tools that help to carry out actions that have an impact, promoting changes in the attitudes, perceptions and behaviours that define the relationship of communities with water.
What is the impact of water education in terms of changing habits and building a culture?
"If we were to ask what the meaning of water is, the answer would depend on the activity being carried out," says the expert. "Although there are 3 key words that always appear in relation to water: life, health and hygiene, the universe of its meaning is vast and depends on social, economic and environmental characteristics".
Water culture is an accumulation of knowledge, experience, values, attitudes and social memory. It is dynamic and changing. Therefore, education is key and the actions of educators on the use of water have a local impact but also transcend borders.
Another expert added: "In the context of the pandemic, there is a tension between a single water culture and the diversity of cultures in the region. There are messages related to key factors such as hygiene that come from different paradigms such as medical, epidemiological or hygienic. However, this relationship between water, health and cleanliness is not universal and we have often heard that the message does not always get across in the way that educators want it to because it is crossed by culture".
The diversity of languages also has an impact. There are more than 1,000 languages in the Americas, including many indigenous languages that are threatened with extinction. Educators' messages should aim to be intercultural and multicultural.
What is the approach from which educational actions should be carried out in the face of health contingencies?
"Neither prevention nor correction, the focus should be on complex thinking. The problems in the areas where the water cycle takes place are constantly changing, it is transformed and therefore requires a complex analysis," says the expert. "Many people do not know where the water comes from when they turn on the tap or how safe it is. Education should include an understanding of how supply systems work, what water is for, and the specifics of each region. It is very different in arid areas than in areas affected by water scarcity.
Water education needs to be about developing people's skills, knowing how to do things, knowing how to solve problems, promoting responsible citizenship and water management with a vision for the future.
What is the role of women in water education and culture?
According to the expert, it is important to consider environmental education as a continuous process. "Women have a special role to play. They need to be empowered for water management because they are the managers of water at home, but they are not involved in public management. This means that their needs are not recognised and addressed. Public policies and formal and informal education should consider a new post-pandemic model.
What are the barriers to implementing water education and culture strategies?
The expert warns that there is a lack of vision about the importance of education and that it is not a priority in some countries. "There are people who still do not know the basics of water and sanitation. Much of what is known is scientific and technical information and is not pedagogically appropriate".
It is crucial that water education is part of government policy, that resources are allocated and that government lines are articulated. "Promote a more conscious relationship between our society and water, making it a priority throughout the process. The case of the pandemic goes beyond governments; there is a responsibility to change personal habits such as handwashing, and it is up to us to achieve this," emphasised Rodríguez.
Is it possible to carry out joint actions in Latin America and the Caribbean, taking into account the diversity of cultures?
"If we look at the evolution of the paradigms of the relationship with water, they move from the spiritual and religious, to the aesthetic and creative, to the ethical, to the water engineering, to the scientific, to the economic, to the ecological and to the integrated management of water resources," says the expert. "These paradigms do not replace each other, but coincide and overlap, in harmony or in tension. For example, the multiple hydrological cycles are seen from an engineering perspective as the movement of water in the environment. There is, however, another paradigm, the hydro-social, when man intervenes in these flows (accumulation, appropriation). There are also hydro-cosmological cycles, where higher or divine entities enter into the explanation and understanding of water".
The interpretations of the relationship between water and COVID-19 disease also vary according to the different groups affected. Some people in Latin America and the Caribbean argue that some of the measures proposed to tackle the pandemic should involve minority groups and be based on collective action, so that understanding is more widespread.
Latin America and the Caribbean is a region rich in educational experts who can generate action at all levels of education. It is important to coordinate capacities, overcome barriers and create contexts that allow for appropriation. Science has opened up the data, which is a notable example that counteracts the differences in overcoming the COVID-19 pandemic. Proposals for water education build bridges with society and overcome discrimination in access to this information.
"We are facing a complex period, particularly for the Latin American and Caribbean region, with economic, social, environmental and political challenges. In this context, the development of education on water, a fundamental resource that affects us as individuals, as societies and as human beings, takes on a new relevance," said the expert. "In the past, water was considered only as a resource and attempts were made to control its quantity, for example through infrastructure. Another tradition in medicine and public health focused on quality. But the two approaches were separate. As the way we interact with the environment evolved, so did environmental education and later UNESCO's Education for Sustainable Development, an ecological, economic and social perspective that changed the way education and culture were approached in relation to water. Now we are talking about water security education, to ensure that people have access to relevant information and develop the skills and values needed to make decisions about water and sanitation that take into account the ecosystem. It is a global vision of water and the risks associated with it. It has been a priority of the IHP for 50 years and is part of the Sustainable Development Goals, especially ODS 6.
Education for Sustainable Development
Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) empowers learners to make informed choices and take responsible action for the integrity of the environment and the viability of the economy. Through this content, ESD aims to help children, young people and adults develop the knowledge, skills, values and behaviours needed for sustainable development. It integrates sustainable development issues, such as climate change and biodiversity, into teaching and learning. It encourages individuals to be responsible actors in solving challenges, respecting cultural diversity and contributing to a more sustainable world.
ESD has been conceived through 3 dimensions, which are the pillars for its implementation:
- Content of learning: Integrating key issues such as climate change, disaster risk reduction and sustainable consumption and production into the curriculum.
- Pedagogy and learning environments: Designing teaching and learning in an interactive, learner-centred way that enables exploratory, transformative and action-oriented learning. Rethinking learning environments - both physical and virtual - to encourage students' desire to act for sustainability.
- Social change: Empowering learners of all ages and in all educational settings to transform themselves and the societies in which they live.