Fundación Chile (FCh) is part of the delegation that will be present at the Conference of the Parties, COP 27, in the Chilean Pavilion for the side event “Chile Platform for Regenerative Basins: high-impact innovations water applicable in Latin America”,taking place on November 15th at 3:00 p.m.
The instance is part of the activities coordinated by the Ministry of Science, Technology, Knowledge, and Innovation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to showcase Chile’s progress in terms of water management and can be considered as a benchmark worldwide.
The country is among the 30 economies worldwide with the highest water stress and is projected to be the only Latin American nation to experience extremely high-water stress by 2040 (WRI, 2015).
76% of the surface of Chile is affected by drought, desertification, and degraded soil, where approximately 72% of the country’s land has some degree of drought in its different categories (Sud-Austral Consulting SpA, 2016). Despite the rains that fell in the winter of 2022, which made it possible to avoid an imminent rationing of drinking water in main Chilean cities, the current rainfall deficit to date is systematic throughout the country (over 40% rainfall deficit in the Metropolitan Region, 30% country average deficit, source: Chilean Meteorological Directorate, 2022).
Hernán Araneda, CEO of Fundación Chile, stressed that the fight against climate change requires the commitment and work of all actors, both public and private, an issue on which the organization is working intensely. “We are convinced that this crisis is not only an environmental challenge, but also one of justice and equity. We are very pleased to be in this instance showing the world that environmental challenges are opportunities to create value through innovation”.
Representing the organization will be Marina Hermosilla, VP of Sustainability, and Ulrike Broschek, Head of Water Scenarios 2030.
“Our country has suffered the impacts of climate change in a notorious way in recent years with an unprecedented water crisis that has revealed the vulnerability of our water management system. Since 2016, the Water Scenarios 2030 initiative, led by Fundación Chile, Fundación Avina and Fundación Futuro Latinoamericano, has promoted the development of sustainable and cost-efficient solutions to solve structural water problems that have a high potential for replicability through a multisectoral construction process, in various countries facing drought; solutions that we come to share at COP 27”, says Ulrike Broschek.
According to the IPCC report issued in February this year: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability, the increase in frequency and intensity of extreme weather events due to climate change has reduced water and food security, with adverse socioeconomic consequences and contributed to generate humanitarian crises, and Chile is not exempt from these threats.
“To reduce our country’s vulnerability to water threats, FCh has worked for several years to develop a collection of solutions that allow us to reduce the water deficit, avoiding losses and damages for Chile’s sustainable development. Being present at COP27 is an opportunity to showcase these solutions and for other countries to have the possibility to replicate them”, states Marina Hermosilla, VP of Sustainability of Fundación Chile.
Fundación Chile
It is a public-private organization that promotes innovation for the sustainable economic, social and natural development of Chile. For 46 years, it has collaboratively created high-impact innovative solutions for the country, addressing local challenges with a global reach. It has been a pioneer in promoting and enabling different productive sectors, such as the aquaculture industry, the agro-industrial sector, renewable energies such as solar energy, the first venture capital funds in Latin America, among others.
Fundación Chile has partnered with more than 500 organizations (companies, governments, and technology centers) in 35 countries, given local challenges are global by nature. Moreover, it has significantly contributed technical knowledge leading to important public goods and fundamental public policies for Chile.
It has generated more than US$5,000 million in direct social value through companies and sectors promoted by the organization. Today Fundación Chile spearheads initiatives that enable more than US$300 million and will impact more than 8 million people in the near future.