About

The Resilient Rivers Blueprint is a global platform to establish tools for building and achieving resilience in rivers and community.

An exciting campaign for the resilience of our world’s rivers and waterways that encourages and recognises river basins and their communities to proceed along the journey of River Resilience.

Resilient Rivers fir the Olympics applies the Resilient Rivers Blueprint in SEQ, in partnership with government, business and the community, delivering a bridge between the flood recovery and the Olympics in 2032.

The Resilient Rivers Blueprint

The Blueprint provides the vision, principles and goals to enable a river –  its basin, communities and economies –  to head towards the journey of resilience.  It will crucially complement and enhance the value to existing Integrated River Basin and Integrated Water Resource Management (IRBM/IWRM) frameworks and plans by identifying the key principles, and components for mitigating and adapting to climate change and other stresses, as well as recognising the importance of protecting and restoring biodiversity.

The Blueprint is not another plan. The intention is to build on existing frameworks, plans and processes by providing a ‘overarching common vision’ of what river resilience looks like, and the platform, mechanisms and tools to overcome barriers to successful IWRM/IRBM implementation in light of climate change. It will achieve this by:

• Outlining a set of key principles, goals and indicators towards a paradigm shift from river recovery to resilience;
• Promoting collaborative and transparent partnerships across all sectors;
• Encouraging a whole-of-system approach to river basin management;
• Identifying, promoting and developing effective resilience financing mechanisms;
• Strengthening governance and institutional frameworks; and
• Providing a web-based platform (Resilience Hub) to assist river managers overcome barriers through knowledge exchange, case studies, resilience networks, tools and guidance.

The development of the Blueprint is an iterative process. Ongoing workshops and global dialogue will enable the continuous refinement and shaping of the Blueprint and supporting tools and guidance.

International River Foundation and Partners

The International RiverFoundation champions integrated river basin management for the restoration, protection and sustainable management of the world’s rivers. We do this by facilitating leadership, celebration and collaboration.

Water is crucial for all life—and we need healthy rivers, lakes and wetlands for sustainable development. We promote and support effective management of these resources by facilitating knowledge sharing, education and best practice river basin management, and by recognising and rewarding those making a difference.

Our Goals

• To recognise, reward and replicate exceptional efforts in the protection, restoration and sustainable management of the world’s rivers,
• To facilitate global knowledge sharing in sustainable, integrated river basin management,
• To raise awareness of environmental, economic, scientific, social and cultural aspects of rivers,
• To facilitate multi-sector partnerships and alliances that further global action to protect and revive rivers, and
• To empower and support individuals to make a positive contribution for the world’s river basins.

We draw upon our large networks, and seek to build new ones, to revive the world’s rivers through multi-sector partnerships around the world. We are committed to supporting positive ecological, economic and social outcomes through our programs, which aim to change the lives of individuals and communities

International Expert Panel

The Independent Expert Panel (IEP) brings together a cross section of internationally renowned experts across a range of disciplines that have helped guide and develop the Resilient Rivers Blueprint.  The IEP have provided advice to the Steering Committee, by recommending the preferred approach to the development of the BluePrint, based on scientific evidence and expert opinion.  The IEP were selected to provide a variety of expertise required for a holistic assessment of river and community resilience, including:

• Climate adaption and resilience
• Catchment and river management
• Governance and institutional frameworks
• Financial mechanisms and risk strategies
• Decision support tools
• Monitoring and metrics
• Community/stakeholder engagement

Founding Partners and Steering Committee

The Blueprint is overseen by a small group of Founding Partners, chosen for their leadership in river management, their desire to move from river recovery to river resilience and their expertise in aspects such as governance and institutional arrangements, finance mechanisms, and collaborative partnerships.  The Founding Partners formed a Steering Committee to oversee the Blueprint development and ensure that the needs and directions of the organisations are considered throughout the project.

Steering Committee Members are