Chula President Celebrates 420 Years of Thai-Dutch Relations and Signs LOI on Sustainable Water Management 

On September 24, 2024, at the Narathip Room, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Prof. Dr. Wilert Puriwat, President of Chulalongkorn University, participated in the signing ceremony of a Letter of Intent (LOI) for research and development of innovations in sustainable water resource management. The event was part of the celebration of 420 years of diplomatic relations between Thailand and the Netherlands (Water Diplomacy: 420 Years and Solutions to Future Flood Prevention), co-organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the National Water Resources Office, and the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The event is aimed to exchange knowledge on water management, an area in which Thailand and the Netherlands have collaborative projects, and to explore future cooperation strategies and goals. 

As part of the collaboration with Chulalongkorn University, research institutes in the Netherlands have invited the university to participate in a Joint Research Partnership, led by the Department of Water Resources Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Chulalongkorn University. The partnership is coordinated by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Aksara Putthividhya to promote knowledge exchange in research and innovation for sustainable water resource management. 

The celebration of 420 years of Thai-Dutch diplomatic relations also featured a special lecture on the topic “Dutch Engineers and the Development of Irrigation and Bangkok during the Reign of King Rama V,” by Asst. Prof. Dr. Pirasri Povatong, from the Faculty of Architecture, Chulalongkorn University. There was also a panel discussion on “Water Diplomacy: 420 Years and Solutions to Future Flood Prevention,” featuring water management and ecology experts from abroad and speakers in related fields.