WORLD WATER DAY IS EVERYDAY

BEST PRACTICES FROM SMILY ACADEMY

SMILY Academy flies to Benin with the United Nations
“SolWater” kick off: the project connecting India, Europe, and Africa for sustainable water management.

Claudia Laricchia

WORLD WATER DAY IN 2025: RED ALARM FOR THE BLUE GOLD

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Today marks the World Water Day, a special day dedicated to the blue gold, the most important natural resource on Mother Earth whose scarcity, pollution and unsustainable management are threatening the lives of billions of people.

Specifically, 2 billion people are experiencing high water stress and statistics underline that in a few years two thirds of the global population will face water shortages.

This is happening in a World which is enforcing divisions, conflicts, inequalities and lack of human rights. In this context, water is a powerful weapon to divide more, to be used against Countries considered enemies, to exacerbate conflicts and inequalities, and to cancel the human right to have access to clean water.

This red alarm is happening everywhere, from Asia, to Europe, to the Middle East, but Africa is suffering more as it is the hardest-hit by both long-term droughts and extreme weather patterns. More than 40% of Africa’s population lacks access to safe drinking water, and this trend is expected to worsen in the coming years.

FROM CHALLENGES TO OPPORTUNITIES.

SolWater, the best practice in the SMILY Academy model: 20,000 people in Benin (Africa) have access to clean water.

While the current scenario is dramatic, it’s crucial to reverse the nowadays’ direction by implementing concrete solutions which are already available. Both technologies and innovation and secular nature based solutions are accessible and easily applied to territories and communities in need.

With a local communities centred model capable of tracking the precise and concrete needs by involving and listening to the communities, we can merge these needs with solutions. Moreover this model must involve Indigenous wisdom and knowledge, matching it with not indigenous organizations capable of supporting the implementation of these solutions (with investments; know-how; network).

Indigenous and not indigenous people are united by a common purpose: reverse this direction, creating regenerative models for the next generations who must lead the future and must be put in condition to lead entrepreneurial projects whose core are the solutions for local communities in need.

SMILY ACADEMY MODEL

We train ecopreneurs with special programs in fields composed by experiential learning and mentorship. Our Faculty is composed by Indigenous communities and so far 40 not indigenous organizations’ representatives: together for empowering youth. Our trainings are not conventional and take places in iconic places affected by the climate emergency, with a learning pathway that combines Indigenous wisdom and entrepreneurial tools: it is a journey of reconnection with yourself (SOUL); the others (SOCIETY); the nature (SOIL) using SCIENCE and SMILES (celebration of results).

In exactly one year, SMILY Academy has prototyped a training and mentorship model to create eco-entrepreneurial projects with youth leadership. We started from the iconic Molaikathoni Forest in Assam, India, where we welcomed and trained, alongside indigenous communities and thanks to the NGO Indigenous Peoples’ Climate Justice Forum, 30 young entrepreneurs from 4 continents, creating 27 projects in different sectors (agrifood; one health; nutrition; sustainable tourism; circular economy; climate justice; creative industry; community cultivation; fashion; digital transformation; spiritual hubs; water management; forestation; women empowerment; editorial project; sustainable incubator; sport and wellbeing).

One of these projects (on water management) just came to life.

Our fellow Swati Dhiman has been chosen by UNDP ROMA (the United Nations Agency for Developing Countries) as the winner of the contest Youth4Climate. She is an Indian engineer, writer, climate activist and ecopreneur who is leading the best outcome and result of the EducActional programs of the SMILY Academy: SolWater.

We are proud to celebrate World Water Day with the launch of this innovative project – are the words that I share with Rituraj Phukan, co-founder of SMILY and President of the Indigenous People’s Climate Justice Forum. “SolWater perfectly embodies the spirit of our Academy: building alliances for the transfer of knowledge, skills, and indigenous wisdom between countries, such as in this case, India, Africa, and Europe. Our goal is to develop concrete and sustainable solutions to address vital challenges like access to clean water in vulnerable contexts. In a world that seems to divide people more and more, fragmenting diversity, we continue in exactly the opposite direction by choosing dialogue, exchange, and cooperation.”

SOLWATER JUST COMES TO LIFE

SolWater consists in the building of bioengineered ponds with rainwater filtration systems, powered by solar panels, providing access to clean water for 20,000 people from the tribes of Benin (Africa), particularly in the southern area of the country, Adjamé. It will also train over fifty local young people and women for the autonomous management of the water solution, promoting autonomy and sustainability over time.

SolWater integrates indigenous water management and conservation techniques – specifically coming from the indigenous community of Haryana, in Northern India -, with nature based filtration systems: rainwater harvesting, precision irrigation, and decentralized recycling to reduce waste and ensure efficient use of water resources. The system relies on the use of “Johads,” bio-engineered ponds that replenish aquifers and support biodiversity, with minimal maintenance and multi-decade durability. Water conservation is ensured through advanced filtration systems powered by solar energy, with multi-stage purification (sediments, activated carbon, UV/RO), which also reduces dependence on fossil fuels, costs, and greenhouse gas emissions.

This solution, never before implemented in Benin and rare worldwide, represents a replicable model for other vulnerable areas. Benin is one of the countries most affected by the climate crisis: it alternates between extreme droughts and devastating floods and, despite contributing only 0.05% of global greenhouse gas emissions, suffers disproportionately from the effects of climate change. The lack of clean water is one of the leading causes of infant mortality: due to contaminated surface and underground sources, 43% of the rural population has no access to safe sources, with severe health consequences linked to the spread of diseases like cholera and dysentery.

Swati ideated and designed the technical solution as part of the pilot project of her climate tech initiative, Aadifé, by integrating an indigenous solution, “Johad”, which has sustained her community, in Haryana, India, for centuries, with solar energy, and innovated it for a rural community in Benin. The recognition by UNDP is a testimony to her entrepreneurial skills, leadership and research acumen.

She is joined by Mathias Kpetohoto, the local representative in Benin and a member of the Nobel Peace Prize laureate Al Gore’s network, as well as head of the NGO “The Circle of Great Pioneers,” whose journey in the academy was funded by a scholarship from the GammaDonna Association, thanks to Valentina Parenti. The team is made whole by Dr. Rohtash Dhiman, a University Professor from India, whose research in electrical engineering and biotechnology is internationally recognized.

“We believe in the key role of youth in driving change,” says Swati Dhiman. “To ensure the financial sustainability of the project, we are now looking for sponsors and donors who want to invest in an initiative with high environmental and social impact, with benefits also for companies in terms of environmental ratings, carbon compensation, and corporate social responsibility.”

WATER IS A FEMALE ISSUE
In Benin, as in many other regions, the task of collecting water primarily falls on women and girls. According to the World Bank (2022), in 90% of rural households, it is women who undertake this activity, exposing them to health risks, educational limitations, and personal safety dangers.

“Investing in sustainable solutions for water access means investing in the future of women and communities,” emphasizes Valentina Parenti, President of GammaDonna, one of the most active partners of the SMILY Academy since its creation, who are supporting the launch of SolWater. “We are proud to support SolWater, a concrete example of how entrepreneurial innovation can generate social impact and shared responsibility, creating scalable and replicable solutions. Supporting projects like this means fostering systemic change that centers sustainability, autonomy, and inclusive development.”

With the support of new partners and sponsors, SMILY Academy aims to expand the impact of SolWater, after having trained and empowered their ideators, promoting replicable models in other vulnerable areas and strengthening the role of youth in driving climate and social change.

The Path Forward

As we mark World Water Day, the global community must unite to address water scarcity, improve water management, and invest in sustainable solutions. The path forward includes the urgent need for improved infrastructure, better management of water resources, increased investment in water technologies, and a commitment to sustainable water use. Only with global collaboration and local action can we ensure a future where water, a basic human right, is accessible to all.

About SMILY Academy we are supporting SolWater in Benin and working with the branch in Brazil to organize the next cohort of the SMILY learning experience, in the Amazon Forest on the occasion of the COP30. We are working with Indigenou communities thanks to our Director Ivani Pauli and our project manager Jadh Azulay. The focus is regenerative agriculture, with an amazing experience to discover best practices and super food. Stay tuned on www.smilyacademy.org and let’s make this World Water Day, despite everything, happy.

22-03-2025

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