Events

Below is a selection of recent and upcoming events. We welcome input – please contact us with your suggestion.

IAH–IWA–IAHS Common Webinar Series – First Webinar – 23 September 2026

The IAH Urban Groundwater Network (IAH–UGN, https://urbangw.iah.org/) is pleased to announce the launch of a new IAH–IWA-IAHS Common Webinar Series, designed to strengthen communication, knowledge exchange, and collaboration across the international groundwater and urban water communities.

The series will explore a central question:

How can we make groundwater more visible in the global water agenda?

This question is particularly relevant in urban environments, where groundwater plays a critical yet often under-recognised role in water security, infrastructure resilience, and sustainable development. Through regular webinars and future joint initiatives, the series will create opportunities for knowledge sharing and identifying common research priorities, developing collaborative projects, and strengthening connections across the international groundwater and urban water communities.

The series aims to:

strengthen connections between members of IAH–UGN, IWA–GMG, and Urban Water IAHS;
identify key directions for research, knowledge exchange, and cooperation;
highlight emerging scientific and technical topics of common interest; and
create a foundation for future joint initiatives and collaborative projects.

First Webinar – 23 September 2026

The first webinar will take place on 23 September 2026 at 14:00 CEST (09:00 Brasília / 17:00 Dubai). It will bring together contributions addressing the future direction of the IAH-UGN, water stewardship, groundwater solutions, and current international initiatives.

We kindly invite you to register for the webinar using the following link: IAH–IWA–IAHS Common Webinar Series

Progressive Advances in Urban Hydrogeological Processes, Budapest 2026

As cities expand both upward and outward, a new frontier of sustainable development lies beneath our feet. The urban subsurface has become one of the most dynamic, complex, and strategically vital environments of the 21st century.

From deep foundations and metro systems to groundwater management, drainage networks, geothermal energy storage, and climate adaptation strategies — the underground is no longer hidden infrastructure. It is a critical engine of resilient urban development.

Yet with accelerating urbanization and increasingly deep construction, we face pressing scientific and practical challenges:

How do cumulative underground developments alter geological systems?
What are the long-term impacts on groundwater flow and quality?
How can we design cities that coexist sustainably with their subsurface environment?

Addressing these questions demands innovation, interdisciplinary collaboration, and bold new thinking.

📢 Call for Abstracts

We invite researchers, practitioners, and interdisciplinary teams to contribute to this forward-looking session by submitting abstracts that showcase:

🔬 Innovative Research & Methodological Advances

Cutting-edge modeling approaches, monitoring technologies, data integration methods, and theoretical breakthroughs.

🌍 Insightful Urban Case Studies

Real-world experiences demonstrating challenges, solutions, and lessons learned from cities worldwide.

🔄 Emerging Challenges & Interdisciplinary Perspectives

Climate resilience, underground energy systems, infrastructure–groundwater interactions, policy integration, and sustainable planning frameworks.

This session offers a premier platform to exchange knowledge, build international collaborations, and highlight transformative work shaping the future of urban hydrogeology.

📅 Important Date

Abstract Submission Deadline: 8 March 2026

🔗 Learn More

Congress website: https://iah2026budapest.com/
Session details: https://iah2026budapest.com/congress-topic/

Join us in Budapest for an inspiring and engaging congress that brings together the global hydrogeological community to explore the evolving dynamics of the urban underground.

Let’s shape the sustainable cities of tomorrow — from the ground down.

Past

Shallow Geothermal Days 2020 online

The Shallow Geothermal Energy Days aim to connect policy makers, industry and researchers to foster the use of shallow geothermal in Europe. This year, the event took place from 4 to 11 December (fully online). The event was organised by the European Geothermal Energy Council (EGEC) in cooperation with RHC-ETIP, Geotrainet, the COST Action Geothermal-DHC and the MUSE (Managing Shallow Geothermal Energy) project.

For a full review of the Shallow Geothermal Energy Days 2020 please visit https://www.egec.org/events/european-shallow-geothermal-days-2020/.

UGEG Urban Geology Webinar 2020

Held in November 2020 – a series of presentations are available to watch from here. These set out the work and initiatives ongoing in urban areas across Europe.

IWA webinar 2020 – Groundwater – A Hidden Resource and opportunity for water utility climate resilience

The International Water Association (IWA) Groundwater Management Specialist Group held a webinar in October 2020 as part of the Climate Smart Utilities Programme. This webinar looked at the potential role of groundwater for water utilities and greater climate resilience. The overall messages from this webinar highlight the potential role of groundwater resources to help contribute to developing increased climate resilience in water supplies, but that much greater understanding of aquifer systems and how effective and sustainable conjunctive management of surface water ans groundwater resources can be realised. A series of recommendations is made by the webinar and the IWA groundwater management group.

IWA Vimeo channel: https://vimeo.com/465823043 (download options available)