Held from 11-14 May 2004 in Cairns, Australia, the H20 Partnership Conference, organized as part of the Hilltops-2-Oceans (H2O) Partnership Initiative, launched at the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg in September 2002, was attended by policy makers, industry representatives, nongovernmental organizations, and academics.

These experts gathered to share expertise, experience and solutions to the problems of marine pollution, with a view to developing a multistakeholder programme of work to protect the marine environment from land based activities. Participants also discussed the links between integrated water resources management and integrated coastal area management.
Major outcomes of the conference included: a Ministerial Communiqué on managing water from the Hilltops to the Oceans; published proceedings outlining the latest developments in methodology and practice for addressing the harmful effects of land-based activities on coastal and marine environments; and a series of recommendations and a Programme of Work for the international community to accelerate national and regional action to protect the marine environment from land-based activities. The conference also saw the launch of a UNEP-sponsored campaign on “Wastewater Emission Targets – Water, Sanitation and Hygiene for All” or WET-WASH. More information is available at: http://www.hilltops2oceans.org/conference.html