Shared Aquifers: The Invisible Conflict of Groundwater in the 21st Century.

Photo: Núria Castells

In September 2023, Pere Castells publicly presented a project at a conference held in Manlleu (Barcelona), a town closely linked to the Ter River, one of Catalonia's major waterways.

The choice of location was not accidental. For centuries, the Ter has been a source of life, economic development, and industrial innovation for the region. Today, faced with the challenges of climate change and increasing pressure on water resources, this same river symbolizes the need to rethink our relationship with water.

During the event, the foundations of a project focused on the strategic role of water in the 21st century and on researching new perspectives for the sustainable management of water resources were presented.

In his address, Pere Castells, the project's founder and researcher, summarized the philosophy behind this initiative:

"Today we are not just presenting a project. Today we are presenting a new way of understanding the role of water in the future of our society."

He then added:

"Water is not just a resource. It is life, it is energy, and it is balance." If we learn to understand and manage water correctly, we can rethink our relationship with the planet.

From this vision, EnergeticWater was born, an initiative that combines research, scientific outreach, and reflection on water security, marine aquifers, climate change, and the geopolitics of water.

More than just a technological proposal, the project offers a new perspective: considering water as a strategic infrastructure capable of influencing the environmental, economic, and social stability of the 21st century.

Since that conference, this vision has been developed through numerous research and outreach articles published on the International Blog of the same website, addressing topics such as water security, marine aquifers, the geopolitics of water, and the future of hydrogen.

The project continues to evolve with the same conviction:

Understanding water will be as important as learning to manage it.

Because change doesn't begin when the problem is obvious.

It begins when we are able to anticipate it.