ERS HISTORY

This is the third edition of the European Rivers Summit. The first was held in Sarajevo, Bosnia-Herzegovina in 2018 and the second in Lisbon, Portugal in 2021.

European Rivers Summit 2018

Sarajevo was the centre of European river activism in September 2018 for the inaugural European Rivers Summit. 250 people from over 30 countries came together to discuss how to stop the destruction of Europe’s rivers from hydropower, protect the last free-flowing river jewels and restore degraded rivers. See the programme

Participants formulated a list of demands addressed to relevant decision makers in politics and industry. In this declaration, Europe’s river conservationists called upon the European Commission, the Energy Community, international banks and national governments to stop promoting and funding hydropower projects as green and renewable energy sources and to tighten environmental criteria. These demands aimed to help the successful implementation of the EU Water Framework Directive to bring rivers back to a good ecological state by 2027.

European Rivers Summit 2021

3 Days for All River Lovers, Activists, NGOs and Experts

Lisbon was at the centre of the second edition of the European Rivers Summit, which took place in November 2021. More than 300 activists and experts from across all Europe and the world attended the Summit in person and online, to share knowledge, network and plan together to defend and protect rivers.