Water Values

Title of session: Water Values – Big Data and transdisciplinary research for water use sustainability in the Danube basin and beyond

Organizers:

Kremena Burkhard          Leibniz Universität Hannover, Institute of Environmental Planning, DE

Christina von Haaren      Leibniz Universität Hannover, Institute of Environmental Planning, DE

Co-organizers:

Wolfram Mauser        Ludwig-Maximilians Universität, Department of Geography, München, DE

Dan Balteanu             Institute of Geography of the Romanian Academy, Bucharest, RO

Diana Dogaru            Institute of Geography of the Romanian Academy, Bucharest, RO

The integrative assessment of water resources is crucial in supporting resource policies and decision-making and in advancing transformations towards sustainability. Within this context, this session is organised within the framework of the collaborative project ViWA (Virtual Water Values, ViWA.GEOGRAPHIE-MUENCHEN.DE): multiscale monitoring of global water resources and options for their efficient and sustainable use. The main target of the project and the session is to create opportunities to build a water research network to support the implementation of the water-related UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Accordingly, monitored high resolution data based on remote sensing along with specific SDGs indices and indicators allow the consideration of both the global and the local perspectives in addressing the respective targets. Such data is of high importance for developing, formulating and analysing the trade-offs of practice-relevant solution options for more sustainable and efficient use of water resources, including more environment-friendly trade with virtual water. The complexity and volume of the data sets requires its management and processing in Big Data environment.

Through sustainability assessment of the data and the present water use practices, the hot-spot areas of unsustainable water use can be located and potential institutional obstacles can be identified. It is important that the solution scenarios and their trade-offs are identified and evaluated within certain case studies with the involvement of local stakeholders. For instance, the transboundary relations between Bulgaria and Romania (which are also selected case studies in the ViWA project), in the context of the Danube river basin, provide unique example of mismatch between natural and administrative boundaries and the ways in which the countries are addressing the arising issues and sustainability targets.

The transdisciplinary character of the session provides wide range of possible topics for your contributions. Some examples include studies and experience on:

• Remote sensing and monitoring techniques for water use sustainability assessment;
• Modelling approaches based on ensemble simulation and methods for determining water use efficiency in various cropping systems;
• Data and model based sustainability assessment of water use in different sectors and land use systems;
• Problems of spatial fit – water management issues as result of mismatch between natural and administrative borders;
• Sustainable water governance systems;
• Stakeholder involvement in the development of sustainable water use scenarios and their trade-off analysis;
• Transboundary relations of the countries in the Danube river basin;
• The Bulgarian-Romanian example and experience;
• Local studies from Bulgaria, Romania and other Danube countries.

Planned output:

We will use the platform to build a collaboration network between scientists and practitioners for knowledge and data exchange within the Danube river basin and beyond.

Looking forward to welcoming your innovative research to this session!