Joint Programming Initiative on Water challenges for a Changing World (Water JPI)

The mission of Water JPI is to enable intelligent solutions in water control in a changing world.

Global water resources are threatened by a number of factors. Ecosystems are threatened by an ever-increasing demand for water and by wide-spread pollutants: water resources are being overused, they are unevenly divided, and the quality of water is further deteriorating. Climate change will most likely increase the risk of droughts in some areas and, on the other hand, the risk of floods in other areas. Responding to the grand societal, economic, ecological and technological challenges requires a pan-European, joint multidisciplinary approach. The aim the Water JPI is to reach a joint European view of how to achieve sustainable water systems for a sustainable economy both in Europe and worldwide.

The Council of the European Union launched a Joint Programming Initiative (JPI) in water research, Water JPI, in 2010. Ten years later in 2020, the Water JPI involves 23 EU member states, three observer countries and the European Commission. Finland has been a member since the beginning of Water JPI. Finland’s participation is coordinated by the Research Council of Finland. The two Finnish expert members come from the University of Helsinki and Natural Resources Institute Finland. In its coordination work, the Research Council of Finland is supported by a broad-based national stakeholder group composed of, among others, representatives of Finnish ministries, universities and research institutes.

The Water JPI will improve the harmonisation of the research agendas of the European water sector through carefully selected actions, such as research projects, infrastructures and international research collaborations.