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UNU-INWEH -
UNESCO International Workshop
Water and Ecosystems:
Water Resources Management in Diverse Ecosystems and Providing for
Human Needs
UNU-INWEH, Hamilton, Canada
14-16 June 2005
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Background
Freshwater resources available to the
inhabitants of diverse ecosystems vary considerably and so
do the basic water needs according to the level of
development of the societies of the respective areas. As
poverty and under-development have been identified as
fundamental developmental challenges, the UN, in its
Millennium Declaration and at the 2002 World Summit on
Sustainable Development (WSSD), called on the world to make
explicit, time-bound commitments to face critical freshwater
issues related to development and social equity.
To date, a systematic and integrated review of the human,
technological, managerial and institutional skills needed to
improve water management, particularly in developing
countries has not been done, but is needed. Therefore, in
this workshop, the first session will deal with concepts and
frameworks of water management in selected ecosystems and
its implications in covering human needs. Then, a variety of
selected case studies will be examined in order to
strengthen the scientific discussion and knowledge base on
this topic. Emphasis will be given to those case studies
involving World Heritage Sites, Ramsar Sites, Biosphere
Reserves or similarly managed areas.
Workshop Objectives
The purpose of the meeting is to open
a discussion on conceptual models for water management in
ecosystems and to present case studies on hydrological and
ecological resources in different ecosystems and their
impact on human beings. More specifically, the objectives of
the workshop are:
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Discuss current understanding of water
related processes in various ecosystems and their
relationship to developmental issues;
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Focus on integrated
assessment of water resources, ecosystems, human
well-being and ecosystem services; |
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Present case studies
comprising national or regional-scale evaluations to
better understand their needs and challenges; |
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Draw conclusions and
formulate recommendations on further conceptual
development of integrated and comparative approaches in
water sciences and management in different ecosystems,
particularly considering society’s water demands.
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Develop interregional
partnerships and collaborative initiatives, focusing on
assessment and best practices from different regions of
the world. |
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Suggest specific actions in
specific areas, which are managed under integrated
conservation and development schemes, such as World
Heritage Sites, Ramsar Sites Biosphere Reserves or
similarly managed areas.
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Workshop Publication
Water and Ecosystems - Managing Water in Diverse Ecosystems
Edited by Caroline King with Jennifer
Ramkissoon, Miguel Clusener-Godt, and Zafar Adeel
Workshop Report
click here for a PDF file (130 kb)
Workshop Program
click here
List of Workshop Participants
click here
Workshop Format
The workshop is an output-oriented
initiative meant to discuss models and frameworks and to
present concrete case studies in order to generate
recommendations for a specific view on water resources and
its related ecosystems in well-determined sites as pilot
activities as well as to suggest measures to improve the
living conditions in the respective regions. It will
comprise the following elements:
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Keynote presentations on
sustainable use of water resources in well defined
ecosystems; |
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Keynote presentations,
highlighting the settings in some selected regions of the
world; |
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Presentations of case
studies with national and regional views and needs;
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Interactive discussion
sessions to develop output to meet workshop’s objectives;
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Brainstorming sessions to
develop a concrete course of action for future activities.
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