PUNE, 10 October 2026 — Closing water and nutrient loops and reconnecting sanitation with natural systems were the central themes of the International Conference on “From Circular Economy to Ecological Sanitation: Re-centering Nature in Urban Water Systems”, held on 9 & 10 October in Pune.
Organised by Ecosan Services Foundation (ESF) together with the Symbiosis Centre for Waste Resource Management (SCWRM), Symbiosis International (Deemed University), and supported by ICLEI South Asia, the conference programme examined the relevance of ecological sanitation to water stress, flooding, groundwater depletion, nutrient loss and climate uncertainty across cities in the Global South.
Held at the Sandipani Leadership Development Center at Symbiosis International University, Lavale, Pune, the conference was designed to connect policymakers, municipal officials, engineers, researchers and practitioners with industry, civil society and students.
The programme also recognised 20 years of EcoSan’s foundational principles—closing water and nutrient loops, working with natural systems and aligning sanitation with ecological cycles—within the wider debate on circular urban development. Its stated objectives included linking disciplines, sharing municipal-scale implementation experience and enabling practitioners from the Global South to exchange locally relevant lessons.
The programme opened with a welcome address by ESF Director Dr. Dayanand Panse on ecological sanitation and circular economy where he stated, “Ecological sanitation offers an opportunity to rethink how cities manage wastewater, recover resources and build more sustainable water systems.” Dr. Arne Panesar, Former Senior Country Manager, South Asia Division, GIZ, delivering the keynote speech said, “Sustainable urban water management requires sanitation and water supply to be planned together, with greater emphasis on resource efficiency and long-term resilience. The challenge is to move ecological sanitation from isolated demonstrations to practical solutions that can be adopted at scale.”
A context-setting plenary, From Infrastructure to Ecosystems: Reframing Urban Water Systems, anchored the first day. Subsequent sessions addressed how ecological systems can move from pilots to policy and questioned what it means for urban sanitation to be genuinely circular.
On the second day, the programme shifted its attention to implementation through parallel sessions on Evidence from the Field: Closing Loops in Practice. The theme covered decentralised wastewater treatment and reuse, nutrient recovery innovations, and the institutional and financing models needed to support implementation.
The sessions included discussions on climate adaptation case studies and city sanitation planning. For water and wastewater professionals, these themes linked treatment technologies to questions of operation, financing, and their place within wider urban systems.
Mr Depinder Kapur, formerly with the National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA), a panellist on the topic, Closing Loops in Practice, said, “Climate resilience, flooding, city sanitation planning, and connecting wastewater management must become an integral part of the wider needs of urban development.” He said urban water systems need to be planned as connected ecosystems, rather than as separate infrastructure for water supply, wastewater, and sanitation.
Day two also saw parallel workshops by Symbiosis Centre for Waste Resource Management on urban waste management discussions on sanitation with emerging contaminants, antimicrobial resistance and public health. The workshop agenda also included circularity, resource recovery, and nature-based solutions.
The conference largely emphasised on governance and institutional models that added dimension to the technical discussions. Alongside treatment and reuse, the panels also discussed how to incorporate ecological approaches into city planning and support beyond individual pilot projects.
A session on climate crisis, water stress and urban futures places ecological sanitation within the broader challenge of adapting cities to changing environmental conditions. The agenda also includes an MoU signing ceremony for the SENSEI Program involving academia and industry, and a meeting of the Sustainable Sanitation Alliance India Chapter.
Meanwhile, Bedoshruti Sadukhan in her presentation, focused and stated “Scaling sustainable sanitation requires stronger collaboration between government, academia and industry, supported by institutional commitment and practical implementation models.”
The interaction with delegates from varied backgrounds – industry, utilities and research kept the two day’s discussions in momentum. Ms. Vaishali Patkar of Ground Water Mission, a Pune-based non-profit organisation and also a social entrepreneur, stated, “Decentralised wastewater treatment and reuse can help cities address local water needs while reducing pressure on conventional water and sewerage infrastructure.”
The conference concluded with deliberations on objectives and the development of a forward-looking plan for climate-ready urban water and sanitation systems, intended to culminate in a public declaration and policy brief. The proposed outputs offered a route to carry the programme’s technical and policy discussions into subsequent action.
Taken together, the agenda placed sanitation within a larger urban resource cycle, connecting wastewater management with water security, nutrient recovery, ecosystem health and resilience.