Open letter: Nature-based water resilience cannot wait We are writing to you as a group of stakeholders, united by our concern for healthy

In the face of more intense and frequent extreme weather events related to climate change, the EU should accelerate its action to address recurrent water scarcity and protect society against the effects of droughts, floods, wildfires and sea level rise. [...] We have just experienced the second warmest year ever in Europe.1 From floods to droughts, sea level rise and wildfires, water-related phenomena and extreme weather events driven by a rapidly changing climate are becoming increasingly severe and frequent, creating major impacts on the health and safety of people, on ecosystems, and on the economy, and critically affecting cities and regions. [...] While existing EU policies and legislation, such as the EU Water Framework Directive, Floods Directive, and Marine Strategy Framework Directive, as well as the EU Biodiversity Strategy are well designed to address the mismanagement of water resources and the protection and restoration of freshwater and marine ecosystems, they are poorly implemented, under-funded and barely enforced. [...] Water resilience must come from maintaining and enhancing the many services healthy and resilient ecosystems provide, such as wetlands which naturally absorb, filter and store water and provide natural buffers against floods and droughts, diverse forests which support the water cycle, deltas which maintain the balance between salty and freshwater conditions, or agricultural systems under organic a. [...] The EU needs to create a framework for transitioning towards a more sustainable use of water for all sectors and citizens, which leaves enough clean water in ecosystems and enables decision-makers and economic actors to plan the necessary investments and ensure that this transition is fair.