Water has woke up to a new dawn in Beirut with the official launching today of the "We Are Water Foundation" at the Charles Hostler Hall at the American University of Beirut. The landmark event was attended by social, political and public figures in addition to NGO officials and media envoys, all eager to get a first hand insight into this new initiative from Roca – Spain, the leading global bathroom brand and the world largest bathroom solution provider.
The WAW initiative aims to mitigate the negative effects associated with the lack of adequate water resources, as well as to raise overall awareness and motivate people to donate funds to be used in the implementation of cooperation projects. Bearing a real global impact, the event took place in 20 major cities simultaneously namely: Buenos Aires (Argentina), Vienna (Austria), Sao Paulo (Brazil), Sofia (Bulgaria), Shanghai (China), Prague (Czech Republic), Zagreb (Croatia), Paris (France), Berlin (Germany), Mumbai (India), Milan (Italy), Beirut (Lebanon), Casablanca (Morocco), Warsaw (Poland), Lisbon (Portugal), Bucharest (Romania), Moscow (Russia), Barcelona (Spain), San Sebastian (Spain) and London (United Kingdom).
Speaking at the event, Mr. Wafik Zantout, CEO of O-tec - the official Roca distributors in Lebanon - thanked all guests for their support underlining the importance of such an initiative to the future of the human race.
From his end, Victor Schoone, Country Manager Middle East at ROCA, offered a comprehensive presentation about WAW. He also confirmed that the "We Are Water initiative is part of Roca's commitment to Sustainability and towards the communities most affected by the lack of water and its consequences". He added "We aim to become a referent in the management of environmental issues and sustainable development, especially in everything related to water".
Guest speaker, Dr. Fadi Comair, General Director of Hydraulic and Electric Resources at the Ministry of Energy and Water in Lebanon, highlighted the disparaging consequences of inadequate water usage on local and global levels. He also addressed the many problems facing the water resources in Lebanon while listing several solutions that could help preserve this wealth on the short, middle and longer terms.
During the event, there was a premiere of "Aral, the lost sea", a documentary by international filmmaker Isabel Coixet involving Sir Ben Kingsley and Tim Robbins, which was presented at San Sebastian International Film Festival on September 21st, telling the dramatic shrinkage of the Aral Sea, an inland sea in the heart of Central Asia, considered as one of the world's greatest environmental catastrophes.
It is also worth mentioning that the WAW launching event was catered by Tawlet Souk El Tayeb, an organization which promotes and preserves Lebanese food and culinary traditions, the rural heritage and the natural environment.
