One Health: How Can We Rehydrate Life?

Water, Architecture, Health, Sustainable Development

The 19th Congress of the Occitanie Regional Public Health Society, organized in partnership with the UNESCO International Centre for Water Research and Education (ICIREWARD) and with the support of the University of Montpellier, Montpellier Métropole, ENSAM, the French Public Health Society, and the Francophone Society for Environmental Health, will take place on Thursday, March 20, 2025, at the Faculty of Law and Political Science in Montpellier, both in-person and online, under the theme “One Health: How to Rehydrate Life?”

Soil permeability, wetlands, nature’s resilience to climate change, hydration and physical activity, eco-neighborhoods, and more will be the various topics addressed at this conference. Several questions arise: How should we manage the various types of water—drinking water, stormwater, wastewater, water used for irrigation or industry, and more—in the future? At what territorial scales? By which stakeholders? What role should rainwater play? How can we promote water storage in our soils?

The first part will focus on the concepts and their application in public policy.

The second part will explore the question: “How can we rehydrate our living environments?” The approach will focus on regenerative hydrology (regeneration of water cycles through land use planning, urban design, etc.): the role of riparian forests, de-impermeabilization, greening, the impact of forestry and agricultural practices, and nature-based adaptation solutions.

The third part will address the topic from an architectural perspective, focusing in particular on how architecture can help restore water to living organisms and people. What benefits can architecture bring to living organisms, to fauna, and to flora? What developments are there in the management of stormwater and wastewater? How can they be reused? What are the impacts of green roofs and green walls? How can we rehydrate humans, and how should we address water stress? What is the role of perspiration and sweating? …

A panel discussion aimed primarily at the general public—though not exclusively—will wrap up the day with the topic: “Water: A Public Good in Jeopardy? How to Bring Together the Various Stakeholders”

This conference is aimed at the general public as well as decision-makers, professionals, and academics in the fields of water, health, public health, environmental health, hydrology, architecture, urban planning, agriculture, biodiversity, and more—with the goal of helping to promote a “One Health” approach.