On March 22, World Water Day 2018, at 5:00 pm René Castro Salazar, Assistant-Director General of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, will give a lecture at the HQ of the Russian Geographical Society in St. Petersburg (Grivtsov Pereulok, 10 A). The scientist will speak about the work of the Organization to solve the problem of the shortage of clean freshwater in the world.
World Water Day is an annual event celebrated on 22 March. In 1992 the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution by which 22 March was declared World Day for Water, to be observed starting in 1993. World Day for Water is a means of focusing attention on the importance of preserving and developing freshwater resources.
It is known that 70% of fresh water is used for agriculture, 20% - for industry and only 10% goes for needs of households. At present we face the threat of the water shortage due to excessive use and changes in its quality. The lack of a proper system of water tariff policy is another serious problem. René Castro will speak about these and other problems in the Shokalsky lecture room.
René Castro Salazar holds Bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from Costa Rica University and Master's degree in public administration and PhD degree in design from Harvard University. When at Harvard, he received the Mason Scholarship. In 1994-2004 he served in ministerial positions in Costa Rica, including positions as Minister of National Resources, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Minister of Environment and Energy. In 2015 René Castro Salazar was appointed Assistant-Director General of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. He is head of the Climate, Biodiversity, Land and Water Department.
The lecture will be held in English with simultaneous interpretation.