The Thirst Symposium Day Two (in-venue)

Discover the ways water shapes our lives, communities, and environments on day two of ‘The Thirst Symposium’.

There will be talks, discussions, guided tours of ‘Thirst: In Search of Freshwater’ and more throughout the day, as we reflect on how we experience water – not only as a vital resource, but as a powerful connector that brings people together and inspires place-making.

We’ll be exploring how natural processes and human activities shape waterways and the communities that grow around them, and will be tackling important questions about access and control: who governs water resources, and why does this matter for equity and sustainability?

Refreshments will be provided and you'll have plenty of opportunities to engage with experts and fellow attendees.

If you need a break from the action, you can head to our Chill-Out Room to lie down or relax. There will be low lighting, comfortable seating, cushions, mats, ear defenders, earplugs and sensory toys.

Schedule

• 10.00: Opening remarks.
• 10.10: Panel discussion on our relationship with water, from grief and exploitation to joy and community.
• 11.30: Coffee break and tour of ‘Thirst’.
• 12.00: Panel discussion on water access for all, navigating scarcity, injustice and mismanagement
• 13.20: Lunch and two tours of ‘Thirst’
• 14.20: Conversation with Elif Shafak inspired by her book ‘There are rivers in the sky’
• 15.40: Coffee break and tour of 'Thirst'
• 16.10: Panel discussion on water, climate and health
• 17.20: Closing remarks
• 17.30: Drinks reception and tour of ‘Thirst’
• 18.00: Close
• 11:00 – 16:00: Collections material on the theme of freshwater in relation to Climate Action will be on display

Panel discussions and remarks will take place in the Henry Wellcome Auditorium. Tours of 'Thirst' are in Gallery 1, with a display in the Viewing Room.

Spaces are limited on our tours of ‘Thirst’. Sign up at the Information Desk as soon as you arrive to secure your spot.

Need to know

Location

This is an event with several different activities. Check specific sub-events for their locations.

Place not guaranteed

Booking a ticket for a free, in-person event does not guarantee you a place. You should aim to arrive 15 minutes before the event is scheduled to start to claim your place. If you do not arrive on time, your place may be given to someone on the waiting list.

Waiting list

If this event is fully booked, you may still be able to attend. We will operate a waiting list, which opens 30 minutes before this event starts. Arrive early, and we’ll give you a numbered ticket. If there are any unfilled places just before the start time, we will invite you to enter in order of ticket number.

British Sign Language interpreted

This event will have British Sign Language interpretation.

Speech-to-text

This event will be live-transcribed. The captions will be displayed on a screen in-venue.

For more information, please visit our Accessibility page. If you have any queries about accessibility, please email us at access@wellcomecollection.org or call 0 2 0. 7 6 1 1. 2 2 2 2020 7611 2222.

Our event terms and conditions

Image credit: Event at Wellcome Collection, Susan Smart. Source: Wellcome Collection. Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0).