On 15 September 2026, join the Agrifood, Water and Technologies Academic Team at the International Institute of Social Studies (ISS) for a screening of the winning short films from Back to the Future: Arid Lands and Ancient Hydrotechnologies film competition organized by Let’s talk about water, followed by a conversation with filmmakers, researchers and the audience.
- Date
- Tuesday 15 Sep 2026, 16:00 - 17:15
- Type
- Performance
- Spoken Language
- English
- Room
- Aula A
- Location
- International Institute of Social Studies
- Ticket information
Students, researchers and policymakers are warmly invited to attend this event to watch, question and exchange ideas.
The films take us to Kenya, Iran, Balochistan (Pakistan), Tunisia and Chad, where water technologies developed centuries ago – and in some cases millennia – are still being used to address local water challenges. These systems reflect generations of knowledge about managing water in ways that are adapted to local environments, communities and changing conditions.
Today, many of these technologies and the knowledge behind them are at risk of disappearing. Yet they can offer valuable insights for contemporary water management: they are often locally adapted, resource-efficient, affordable and deeply connected to their environments.
The discussion will explore how this living knowledge can be preserved and integrated with contemporary science, innovation and infrastructure. What can we learn from technologies that have already stood the test of time? How can governments, researchers and communities work together to ensure that this knowledge continues to evolve and contribute to solutions for today's water challenges?
These are not technologies for museums. They are living knowledge – and part of the conversation about our water future.
Panel
- Dr Oane Visser – Associate Professor in Agrarian Studies at ISS, researching technology, agriculture, land, rural movements and alternative food networks
- Dr Farhad Mukhtarov – Assistant Professor of Governance and Public Policy at ISS, Erasmus University Rotterdam, and Adjunct Senior Research Fellow at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore.
- Linda Lilienfeld — Founder and Director of Let’s Talk About Water, Mayors MakeMovies and the Water Film Prize, with extensive experience using film and storytelling to connect science, policy and public dialogue around water and climate challenges.
- Mir Abdul-Malik — Young filmmaker from Balochistan and director of the film Forgotten Flows of Karez.
- Hammal Aslam — PhD researcher at ISS focusing on water governance and agrarian transformations; producer of the film Forgotten Flows of Karez.
Moderator
Mira Bai Simon Mucino — Communication and strategic engagement professional with global experience connecting research, policy and society.
- Related links
- Agrifood, Water and Technologies Academic Team