Water tech: how big data can help us to achieve SDG6

Water is necessary for the survival of all living things on Earth. It is an integral part of the ecosystem, covers over 70% of the planet and helps to regulate the Earth’s temperature. It is also an integral part of human beings—the body is made up of around 60% water, and it is impossible for us to live more for more than a few days without it. It’s hard to think of a resource more vital to the wellbeing of the planet and its human communities than water.

The UN’s Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights has stated that "the human right to water is indispensable for leading a life in human dignity. It is a prerequisite for the realization of other human rights" and defined the right to water as the “right of everyone to sufficient, safe, acceptable and physically accessible and affordable water for personal and domestic uses”. Yet, the fresh water we need is also in short supply. With the vast majority of the world’s water salinated or frozen in ice caps and glaciers, only 1% remains to satisfy all of humanity’s water needs, not only for consumption but also irrigation and use in manufacturing. These needs continue to grow in combination with urbanization and population growth, creating mounting demand for the Earth’s limited supply of fresh water.

To add to this tension, the ability to access clean and safe potable water is deeply unequal around the globe, and sources become more precarious (especially for vulnerable populations) as extreme weather events and other compound effects of climate change become more severe and frequent. As of 2021, it is estimated that at least 2.2 billion people—about one in three—use a contaminated drinking water source. Contaminated water can transmit diseases such as cholera, dysentery, typhoid, and polio and is estimated to cause 485,000 deaths each year.

The sixth Sustainable Development Goal (SDG 6) aims to ensure the “availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all.” Access to affordable and reliable sanitation services also an international human right, and clean water and sanitation are deeply interlinked. The lack of effective waste disposal and sewage systems can contaminate water sources, so the goal of improving access to safe drinking water can only be realized in tandem with access to sanitation.

Where to begin?

A necessary first step toward achieving the formidable goal of ensuring access to water and sanitation for all is to understand and analyze the current state of people’s access to clean water and sanitation in the parts of the world where the situation is most dire. An initial hurdle for this vital step has been the lack of resources in the parts of the world most effected by water stress to provide adequate data on their own populations and the conditions of their water and sanitation systems. This state of affairs, which was further complicated by the onset of the pandemic in 2019, prompted the formation of the UN’s 2020 Data Drive.

Data Drive

The Data Drive involves countries collecting and reporting data on various indicators related to SDG 6 (water use efficiency, water stress, ecosystems, etc.) to multiple UN agencies. This will require a massive, coordinated effort involving multiple stakeholders over an extended period of time. In a recent publication on the matter the agency urged that “credible and timely data are essential to the realization of the SDGs, as they help decision-makers to identify countries, people and sectors that are left behind, and set priorities for increased efforts and investments.”

How data science can help

In honor of SDG 6, we spoke with Professor Giuseppe Italiano— Director of Luiss’ Master in Data Science and Management, Master in Cybersecurity and the Master in Big Data and Management at the Luiss Business School—about what data science can do to help with the objective to ensure access to water and sanitation for all.

MF:  I know that a big priority for the UN related to this goal is the improvement data collection and analysis for monitoring and reporting, can you tell us something about how data science can help with this process?

"Without data we risk making decisions in the dark, which will not obtain much progress towards SDG 6."

Professor Italiano: “Data science can be very important for SDG 6, as it has the power to analyze data, discover patterns and extract information from the vast amount of data that can be made available, which can be very helpful and crucial in many aspects. First, it can allow us to understand and monitor the current state of water and sanitation worldwide, which is an important prerequisite for tracking progress towards achieving the main SDG 6 objectives. Furthermore, analyzing and extracting information from this huge amount of data can help decision makers from each country to plan effective strategies to improve the main indicators for SDG 6. In particular,  a careful data analysis can suggest ways to improve many issues which are at the heart of SDG 6, such as water resource management and water use efficiency.”

MF:  What is at stake if data related to water and sanitation is not gathered and analyzed efficiently?

Professor Italiano: “As clearly indicated by the recent SDG 6 UN Progress Reports so far not all the Member States were able to collect and report to the UN their data and indicators. Since the availability of clean, timely and credible data is very important, there is a serious risk that this lack of data could jeopardize many activities in this area. As a result, unfortunately we are still very far from ensuring water and sanitation for all by 2030, as envisioned by SDG 6.”

MF:  Can you tell us more about how data science might factor in to help achieve the Sustainable Development Goals 2030 target?

Professor Italiano: “To accelerate our progress on the Agenda set for 2030, we need to move faster towards a data science approach. Today, data are the driving force of decision making, and without data, we cannot make fully informed decisions. On the contrary, we risk making decisions in the dark, which will not obtain much progress towards our sustainable goals. With a data science approach, we can understand better what is happening today, what could happen tomorrow and how to make strategic decisions that make substantial progress on water and sanitation. In a world of scarce resources, we can put our efforts where they are most needed, and set up credible plans to invest natural, human and financial resources where they are likely to return the most benefits for all.”

Data Science at Luiss

These days there is a lot of buzz about data science. Much of the excitement surrounds the rapid expansion of this field, as businesses from start-ups to multinationals seek out the services of experts in data analytics. The ability to convert raw data into information—a precious commodity in today’s economy—is becoming absolutely vital to companies’ success, so it’s no wonder that data scientists are in such high demand in the business world.

Yet, as the case of the Sustainable Development Goals makes clear, the analysis of large amounts of data can contribute to a variety of other sectors and provide innovative solutions to longstanding problems at all levels of society. Even in the context of sustainable solutions for water management, there are various situations in which big data analytics can be extremely helpful. Water waste (and pollution) occurs frequently in high growth industries, like the textile industry, and even the sanitation and sewage systems of the world’s wealthier nations may operate inefficiently, leading to unintended waste and pollution. Monitoring and providing solutions for these problems will involve massive volumes of data that are well beyond the comprehension of human individuals, and will require sophisticated algorithms and machine learning implemented and monitored by data science engineers.

Standing as it does at the nexus of statistics and computer science, data science has vast applications ranging from advertising and marketing, to finding sustainable solutions for a better future.

If you are interested in a career as a data scientist, Luiss offers several programs in this field, including the cutting-edge new master’s degree program in Data Science and Management.