It is my pleasure to introduce the Water Institute’s third Impact Report. The report provides examples of scientific and societal impact that our members across the different faculties, schools and departments have made between April 2021 and April 2022. The narratives in the Impact Report complement important performance indicators like the Shanghai Global Ranking, in which the University of Waterloo consolidated its international position in the Water Resources domain for the fifth year in a row. The Impact Report highlights the rich diversity of available expertise that characterizes the Water Institute in addressing water challenges in and outside Canada.

Coming slowly out of the pandemic, various new activities were launched to reconnect people and disciplines across campus and connect with partners around the world. This includes ongoing collaborations with the Waterloo Climate Institute in our annual interdisciplinary Summer School, a new Sustainable Futures initiative together with the Waterloo Institute for Sustainable Energy and Waterloo Climate Institute, a new Seed Grants program with the Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology, and the introduction of a new BlackBerry Water Innovation Challenge. The Water Institute’s Seed Grant program furthermore led to a series of new, highly interdisciplinary, high-profile projects showcased in this Impact Report.

As always, none of this would have been possible without the scientific excellence, hard work, commitment and dedication of our 174 faculty members, the many students coming to Waterloo to study water in all of its multi-dimensional aspects and complexities, and the Water Institute staff. Enjoy reading our 2021/22 Impact Report.