This joint initiative of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and Rotary International, delivered through an online platform, aims to enable community‑led action to protect, restore, and sustainably manage freshwater ecosystems.

Why freshwater ecosystems need local protection

Freshwater ecosystems are increasingly affected by pollution, habitat degradation, and climate related pressures, often driven by land use practices within their catchments. Effective protection and restoration of these systems require local action that accounts for hydrological connectivity, upstream-downstream linkages, and interactions between water quantity, water quality, and ecosystem health.

The Community Action for Freshwater platform

The Community Action for Freshwater (CAFW) platform provides accessible, action‑oriented resources that support the initiative. It features a global project map where local, community‑led freshwater initiatives can be registered and explored, showcasing action from around the world and fostering knowledge sharing across regions. The platform also brings together guidelines, explanatory materials, and practical examples that reflect UNEP’s freshwater priorities and Rotary’s grassroots implementation capacity.

Together, these resources help communities better understand freshwater ecosystems, identify local pressures, and design appropriate actions at the waterbody or catchment level, while contributing to the achievement of UN Sustainable Development Goal 6 on clean water.

How UNEP and Rotary collaborate on the CAFW platform

UNEP contributes to the CAFW platform through the UNEP‑DHI Centre, a partnership between UNEP and DHI, with DHI providing technical expertise. Through this setup, DHI’s Earth Observation Center of Excellence provides the technical backbone of the CAFW platform, overseeing its development, hosting, and ongoing maintenance, with financial support from Rotary. This includes the website and community portal, which enable Rotary clubs to register initiatives, visualize projects, and share knowledge. Rotary leads the initiative’s community-facing efforts, including member engagement, user training, platform promotion, outreach to Rotary clubs, and onboarding of new users.