Newsletter March 2022

Hub Director, Professor Richard Dawson, is a co-author on the latest IPCC report, “Climate Change 2022: Impacts, Adaptation & Vulnerability”. The report shows that some losses as a result of climate change are already irreversible, and ecosystems are reaching the limits of their ability to adapt. Water security is the most sensitive risk to climate change, projected to increase both the likelihood and severity of floods and droughts. Sustainable development must include water sensitive planning, and water infrastructure must be built to last so that it does not fail when disaster strikes.

Some of the key focus areas outlined in the report are soil moisture conservation, irrigation management, cooperation with local communities and indigenous people, urban planning and development, improved water use efficiency, early warning systems, nature-based solutions, and improving access to potable water and sanitation systems. Research into all of these aspects is taking place across the Hub.

We’re also working to embed principles of water security and water sensitive planning in higher education, with the first water-planning centre in India recently established at one of our partner institutions. Additionally, a multidisciplinary team of Hub colleagues have put together and delivered an innovative, hands-on educational programme designed to engage school children in climate change and youth action.