Glasgow becomes the water world’s newsroom: what to watch at IWA 2026

The global water sector moves to Glasgow next week for the IWA World Water Congress & Exhibition, running from 4 to 8 October under the theme “Water action – the path to resilience and prosperity.” The Stratawire will attend the congress and report from the exhibition and technical programme.

The programme is unusually broad. IWA says the core agenda contains more than 100 technical sessions and over 60 workshops across six themes: water utility management; wastewater and resource recovery; drinking water and potable reuse; city-scale planning and operations; communities, communication and partnership; and water resources and sustainable development.

Several subjects deserve particular attention. PFAS and other emerging water-quality challenges are moving from laboratory discussion into regulation and treatment investment. Potable reuse is becoming an increasingly practical part of drought resilience. Wastewater is being reframed as a source of water, energy and recoverable materials rather than simply a disposal problem.

Digital technology will be another major thread. AI, sensors, IoT systems and digital twins promise earlier leak detection, better process control and more predictive maintenance. The useful question in Glasgow will not be whether utilities can demonstrate AI, but whether deployments produce measurable operational gains with reliable data, cybersecurity and accountable human decision-making.

Climate resilience cuts across the programme. A dedicated landscape-scale climate and nature resilience forum on 5 October will examine systems planning, catchment restoration and incentives for collective action. Technical tours will take delegates into Scottish infrastructure including Glasgow’s water supply, wastewater innovation, the Smart Canal and Edinburgh-area treatment assets.

The congress also includes the Utility Leaders Forum, International Water Regulators Forum, Emerging Water Leaders Forum, Groundwater Forum and a high-level Glasgow Summit linked to the wider process leading toward the UN Water Conference in Abu Dhabi.

For The Stratawire, the reporting priority will be evidence over exhibition claims: technologies that are already operating at meaningful scale, utilities that can quantify performance, financing models that can move from pilots to infrastructure, and the intersection between water and energy. Water treatment consumes energy; energy production often depends on water; AI infrastructure is intensifying both demands.

The exhibition opens to trade visitors from 5 to 8 October. The Stratawire will use the week to build a broader water desk alongside its existing energy and industrial-technology coverage, with reporting from companies, utilities, researchers and operators on the ground in Glasgow.

Documentation

This report is based on the following primary and independently published material. Company and government statements are attributed as such.