water
One of the most pressing challenges of the 21st century is to develop a means of satisfying the water demands of an ever-expanding human population while at the same time protecting the aquatic ecosystems and ecological services upon which all life depends. Achieving Sustainable Freshwater Systems brings together experts from a wide range of disciplines to present key insights and information...
On the occasion of the International Year of Mountains, and in response to the clear consensus reached by the international community regarding the need to ensure harmonious and sustainable development of mountainous areas and watersheds, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and its partners in the subject, undertook a large-scale assessment and global review of...
The policy guidelines were developed as part of the pilot project 'Incorporating Needs and Roles of Women in Water and Energy Management in Rural Areas in South Asia-Capacity Building in Rural Areas of the Himalayas'. Women were provided with hands on training on the management of energy and water using the training manual developed by the project. The experiences gained were...
Long-term monitoring of ecological and hydrological processes is critical to understanding ecosystem function and responses to anthropogenic and natural disturbances. Much of the world's knowledge of ecosystem responses to disturbance comes from long-term studies on gaged watersheds. However, there are relatively few long-term sites due to the large cost and commitment required to establish...
Headwaters are the source of freshwater resources, the margins of drainage basins, and the first and zero order basins that surround every catchment. The challenge is to define appropriate, self-sustainable, management strategies and structures for these lands which meet the needs of the headwater habitat, including its human inhabitants, and the needs of habitats downstream.
The...
The three publications and DVD Film on Women, Energy and Water in the Himalayas "Policy Guidelines, Project Learning, and Training of Trainers Manual" encapsulate the experiences and lessons from a recent project on 'Incorporating the Needs and Roles of Women in Water and Energy Management in Rural Areas in South Asia'. The UNEP and ICIMOD project was supported by...
The world's climate is changing at an unprecedented rate, largely as a consequence of human activity. This paper summarises the predicted impacts of these changes that are of greatest relevance to Oxfam. It focuses on the medium to long-term (25-50 years) dynamics in five key areas: water, food security, health, extreme events and political stability. It explains how the geopolitics of...
The United Nations has described the 2007 flood in India as 'the worst in living memory.' The time is ripe for change. Governments and donors in South Asia need to invest in reducing the risk of disasters as a long-term cure to chronic floods.
While floods are not new, erratic weather patterns wreak havoc. In 2007 the early arrival of the rains, their severity, and the continuous...
Liberia‘s newly approved water and sanitation policy states that ‘water is life‘ and ‘sanitation is dignity‘. At present, however, the dire state of water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) services in Liberia constitutes a public health crisis that is killing Liberians and robbing many more of their dignity: three out of four people have no access to safe water...
During the period 25-30 April 2005, a combination of torrential rains and snow melting caused heavy flooding in the Republic of Georgia. The floods caused massive landslides and mudflows that led to the damage and loss of agricultural land; destroyed homes, livestock and water drainage systems; roads and bridges swept away, isolating many communities in mountainous areas. This six-month...
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