Paramanantham, a Sri Lankan currently living in Ottawa, was one of two IED representatives at this year's summit. He came with great hopes of being a part of the action, but also to ensure that there had been a "full implementation of commitments made in Rio".

Paramanantham spent much of his time at the Water Dome to better understand and contribute to the water and sanitation issues, which were of special importance at the summit. "In developing and war-affected areas, peoples rights to [water and sanitation] are greatly lacking, which seriously impacts educational development and the quality of life," he said. Hence, it was important to Paramanantham to meet with experts like Professor Albert Wright, Chairman of the African Water Taskforce, and other key policy and decision-makers at the Water Dome. Paramanantham also received invitations to future programs regarding water initiatives.

"I was also able to create synergy with other NGOs," said Paramanantham, who has established contacts with nongovernmental organizations working in related fields to his. "I was able to collect a lot of business cards and contacts and build my rolodex," he said, adding that he had been able to learn from and contribute to a variety of NGOs.

Paramanantham said he has now realized that for his organization there is "a sense of urgency in also focusing on mountain-region educational development." He said that this had emerged after long discussions with Swiss authorities and experts.