World Water Day 2026
22 March 2026 - 22 March 2026
Region(s): Nationwide
Type(s): promotion, national Events
This year celebrate United Nations World on 22 March – Where water flows, equality grows
The global water crisis affects everyone – but not equally.
Where people lack safe drinking water and sanitation close to home, inequalities flourish, with women and girls bearing the brunt.
They collect water.
They manage water.
They care for people made sick by unsafe water.
They lose time, health, safety, and opportunities.
And too often, the systems that govern water leave women and girls out of decision-making, leadership, funding and representation.
This makes the water crisis a women’s crisis.
We need a transformative, rights-based approach to solving these challenges, where women’s voices are heard and their agency recognized.
All women must be equitably represented at all levels of water leadership – helping design every pipe and policy.
And women must drive change in water as engineers, farmers, scientists, sanitation workers and community leaders.
As we face growing risks, from a changing climate and water-related disasters to financing shortfalls, from social norms to governance gaps, we need everybody to play their full part: managing water as a common good and building resilience for the future.
This includes engaging men and boys as allies in promoting safe water, sanitation and hygiene for all, and in challenging the norms and behaviours that hold women and girls back.
Only then can safe water services meet everyone’s needs – empowering women and girls to lead healthier, more fulfilled lives – and making water a force for sustainable development and gender equality that benefits us all.
This World Water Day 2026 explore the critical relationship between water, women and gender equality.
Find out more here: ww.un.org/en/observances/water-day.
Download resources here: www.un.org/en/observances/water-day/resources.
Related content
The Hub has extensive resources on water and freshwater, use these curations to explore further:
Rivers and Us – introduction – exploring how people use water, the effects on water quality and investigation and data collection to inform action.
Lakes380 – Our lakes’ health: past, present, future – find out about the largest scientific study ever undertaken of lakes in Aotearoa.
Smart Water – a context for learning is a suite of resources that foster a greater understanding and appreciation of water from source to tap.
Tōku awa koiora – introduction – exploring the restoration of the Waikato River.
Repo (wetlands) – a context for learning – exploring ecological and cultural values and taking action to understand, protect or restore local repo.
Tuihonoa Te Reo o Te Repo – he kohinga rauemi pāhekoheko a Tuihonoa Te Reo o Te Repo hei āwhina i ngā kaiako ki te whakatītina i ngā ākonga kia tū hei kaitiaki mō ngā repo. E whai ana hoki kia tū tiketike mai te mātauranga Māori, mā roto i ngā mahi whakaora taiao.
Freshwater resources – planning pathways – help for teachers, based on the Ministry for the Environment and Stats NZ report on the pressures, state and impacts of human activities on the freshwater environment in Our freshwater 2023.
New Zealand’s freshwater fish – introduction – exploring our unique native fish, their habitats and suggestions on what we can do to help conserve this taonga (resources in te reo Māori and English).
For more resources, browse the wide range of content under our Water or Freshwater topics, remember you can use the filters.
See all events