UNESCO Chair presents AI WEFE Nexus Tool at UN Water Convention workshop in Geneva

José Luis Martín Bordes, collaborator of the UNESCO Chair on Sustainability at the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC) and responsible for Partnerships for Sustainable Water and Sanitation Services, participated in the Global Workshop on the Use of New Technologies and Innovations for Monitoring, Assessment and Data-sharing in Transboundary Basins, held in Geneva on 5–6 May 2026.

The workshop was organized under the framework of the United Nations Water Convention, serviced by UNECE, in cooperation with Finland and Senegal and with financial support from the European Union. Its objective was to explore how new technologies —including artificial intelligence, machine learning, digital twins and citizen science— can strengthen monitoring, assessment and data-sharing in transboundary basins.

As part of the workshop’s lightning presentations on AI-driven tools, José Luis Martín Bordes presented the potential of the AI WEFE Nexus Tool, developed within the PRIMA SURENEXUS project, as a decision-support instrument for analysing the impacts, dependencies and trade-offs associated with water, energy, food and ecosystems in transboundary water policy contexts.

The session highlighted the need for transparent, accessible and human-centred AI tools that support —but do not replace— human decision-making and cooperation between countries.

His contribution emphasised the added complexity of the Water–Energy–Food–Ecosystems Nexus in shared basins and the importance of open-source, inspectable and affordable models for policy dialogue. This aligns with the workshop’s broader aim of bridging innovation and policy, fostering science–policy dialogue and supporting evidence-based decision-making for the sustainable management of shared waters.

Through this participation, the UNESCO Chair on Sustainability reinforced its commitment to responsible AI, transboundary water cooperation and the development of practical tools capable of supporting more transparent, adaptive and collaborative water governance.

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