World Wetlands Day 2026: traditional knowledge and its role in water management

Wetlands as essential natural infrastructure for the water cycle

Wetlands cover more than 12.1 million square kilometres, approximately 6% of the Earth’s land surface, and constitute some of the most productive ecosystems in the world. The Convention on Wetlands distinguishes between freshwater and saltwater wetlands, inland or coastal, natural or artificial, permanent or temporary, all characterized by the central role of water as a regulating factor of the environment and life.

Wetlands play a critical role in reducing hydrological risks by buffering floods, storm surges, and other extreme events

From the perspective of the water sector, these ecosystems perform essential functions. Their role in the storage and regulation of freshwater is particularly noteworthy on a planet where less than 1% of available water is directly usable. Added to this is their capacity to improve water quality, acting as natural filters that retain contaminants, agricultural pesticides, and industrial waste thanks to the combination of silty soils and abundant vegetation.

Wetlands also play a critical role in reducing hydrological risks by buffering floods, storm surges, and other extreme events. In the climate sphere, peatlands deserve special mention: although they occupy around 3% of the Earth’s land surface, they store approximately 30% of terrestrial carbon—twice as much as all the world’s forests combined.

Wetlands, society, and water security: benefits at risk

The relationship between wetlands and human well-being is direct and structural. These ecosystems are a source of freshwater, food, and livelihoods for millions of people worldwide. More than one billion people depend on fish from wetlands as their primary source of protein, and many communities base their subsistence on activities linked to these environments, such as fishing, agriculture, or the harvesting of natural resources.

This social dimension is complemented by their economic relevance. The Global Wetlands Outlook 2025 estimates that the 1.425 billion hectares of wetlands remaining on the planet generate between USD 7.98 and 39.01 trillion in benefits for society each year, by providing essential ecosystem services, employment, and economic opportunities, including those related to wetland tourism.

Wetland degradation reduces their capacity to regulate the water cycle, deteriorates water quality, and increases communities’ vulnerability

However, this ecological and socioeconomic foundation is seriously threatened. Ramsar warns that wetlands have been lost at an average rate of 0.52% per year since 1970 as a result of urban, agricultural, and industrial pollution; urban expansion; infrastructure development; agricultural intensification; and land drainage.

For the water sector, this trend has direct implications for water security. Wetland degradation reduces their capacity to regulate the water cycle, deteriorates water quality, and increases communities’ vulnerability to extreme events such as floods and droughts. It also jeopardizes water-dependent livelihoods and weakens the historical relationship between people and these ecosystems.

In this sense, wetland loss is not only an environmental problem, but also a social and economic one, as it affects access to water, human well-being, and community resilience in a context of climate change and increasing pressure on water resources.

Traditional knowledge and local communities in wetland management

Since prehistoric times, people have coexisted with wetlands, developing knowledge systems closely linked to environmental observation and the sustainable use of resources. Ramsar defines traditional knowledge as knowledge developed from experience accumulated over centuries, adapted to specific cultural and environmental contexts, and transmitted from generation to generation, mainly through oral means.

Indigenous peoples and local communities have historically played a key role in wetland conservation. According to Ramsar, although they represent around 6% of the world’s population, they manage, use, or occupy at least 25% of the Earth’s land surface and contribute decisively to the protection of remaining biodiversity, including that associated with wetland ecosystems.

The focus of World Wetlands Day 2026 highlights that this knowledge does not belong solely to the past, but constitutes living tools that have made it possible to maintain ecological balance, strengthen wetland resilience, and ensure sustainable access to water and other natural resources. Integrating them into contemporary conservation strategies does not mean replacing scientific knowledge, but rather complementing it with local and contextual information of great value for adaptive management.

From a water governance perspective, it is important to recognize and respect these knowledge systems, promoting the effective participation of local communities and Indigenous peoples in decision-making processes. Wetland degradation not only puts ecosystems at risk, but also erodes these collective bodies of knowledge, affecting the rights, livelihoods, and cultural identity of those who have historically been their custodians.

Wetlands and knowledge: keys to water management in a changing scenario

The focus of World Wetlands Day 2026 introduces a framework for reflection that is particularly relevant for the water sector, as it raises the need to rethink the management of these ecosystems from a more integrative perspective—one that takes into account not only ecological and economic values, but also the knowledge systems that have historically contributed to their conservation.

The sustainability of wetlands—and of the hydrological cycle itself—depends largely on the ability to combine scientific knowledge, technical management, and traditional knowledge

In a context marked by climate change and increasing pressure on water resources, wetlands are consolidating their role as strategic natural infrastructure. Ramsar emphasizes that their degradation reduces the capacity to regulate the water cycle, increases community vulnerability, and weakens water security in the medium and long term.

From this perspective, traditional knowledge adds a complementary dimension to modern water management. Without replacing technical or scientific approaches, it provides locally accumulated information developed over generations, which is particularly valuable for the adaptive management of wetlands.

World Wetlands Day 2026 does not propose closed solutions, but rather an invitation to broaden the framework within which decisions are made. For the water sector, it means recognizing that the sustainability of wetlands—and of the hydrological cycle itself—depends largely on the ability to combine scientific knowledge, technical management, and traditional knowledge within a context of cooperation and shared responsibility.