Rotary Partners with World's Largest Postgraduate Water Education Institution

Rotary clubs will be helping train engineers and scientists to solve problems in water and sanitation, particularly in developing countries, through a new strategic partnership between The Rotary Foundation and UNESCO-IHE Institute for Water Education.

Through the partnership, the Foundation will offer packaged grants that Rotary clubs may use to select and sponsor scholarships for professionals in the water sector. Up to eight students a year may be chosen for any of three master of science programs at the institute in Delft, the Netherlands.

Both the institute and Rotary share a vision of making water and sanitation more accessible and more sustainable for all people, particularly the poor. The partnership directly supports Rotary's water and sanitation area of focus.

"This strategic partnership with UNESCO-IHE enables Rotary to work with a globally recognized leader in the training of water professionals at a time when such experts are desperately needed in many parts of the world," said Rotary Foundation Trustee Chair William B. Boyd. "By identifying high-quality, high-potential candidates for these scholarships, Rotary clubs will play an important role in addressing a serious global problem.”

"Eighty percent of diseases in the developing world are caused by the lack of water and appropriate sanitation," said UNESCO-IHE rector András Szöllösi-Nagy. "The cooperation with Rotary is an important milestone in the large-scale, global capacity building required to tackle this crisis.” Read More ...