Book on Central Asian Waters

Our project book and information about its contents are available in electronical form here . The sincere hope of the editors is that the book will lubricate and bring new insight into the discussion of water management in Central Asia. Learn more...

Water as an institutional and political element

How to develop international water policies? What are the building blocks of good water governance? For background information, see e.g. UNDP's Water Governance Facility and IUCN's publication on sharing the benefits in transboundary basins. How can toolboxes like IWRM be best implemented - do they fit for every occasion and basin? Have a look at the page of London Water Research Group too - how to analyse transboundary political interaction? Join the discussion!

Ecosystems as water users and providers

Ecosystems have a key role in sustaining water supply, but their water needs are often neglected, find more info from Millennium Ecosystem Assessment. Environmental management should be linked to water resources management. How to value ecosystem services, how to increase the understanding of the interlinkages between ecosystem functions and human welfare? How to guarantee the well-being of the most vulnerable biotypes or restore already damaged ecosystems? Join the discussion!

Sanitation

2008 has been the international year of sanitation, find more info here. Lack of acces to safe sanitation and poor drinking water quality are still problems facing millions of people, also in Central Asia. What is needed for sustainable sanitation? Join the discussion!

Water rights and freedom to choose the form of water use

Who has a right to water? How to improve the water rights and equal sharing of the resource? Many social problems are connected to unequal acces to water resources, more infro can be found e.g. from WHO and UNDP's Mainstreaming Gender in Water Management guide - how to empower the users in the weakest position? Especially in agriculture in Central Asia farmers have little freedom to choose their crops. Cultivating water hungry cotton decreases soil quality. Revenues gained from the production could be much higher if the products were further prosessed instead of dumping them to world markets. Besides, the industry represses women and children working in the fields. What is needed - alternative crops, new forms of production; pressure from the markets, democratization processes, something else? Join the discussion!

More efficient water use

Central Asia does not really suffer from the lack of water - inefficient use of the resource is the real problem. See e.g. GIWA Regional Assessment on the Aral Sea Basin. How to improve the efficiency of water supply and use? Focus on demand management is needed. Basin-wide monitoring, new facilities, less water consuming crops and cultivation methods, benefit sharing instead of quarelling about regional water allocations - what do you think of these proposals, who could make the difference? What else is needed? Join the discussion!

Climate change impact to water resources and their use

What are the biggest challenges climate change will pose on the sustainable use of the water resources in the region? What kind of responses will they demand? See e.g. UNDP's backgroundpaper. Join the discussion!

Invitation to contribute

Dear all,

If you wish to be invited to write to the blog and for some reason you are not in yet, send your e-mail address to me and I'll add you to the list of contributors.

You are welcome to start new discussion topics or comment on the ones which will be added here soon. If you have presentations or pictures, or would want to suggest relevant links, feel free to suggest them to me.


Best regards,
Suvi
suvi.sojamo@gmail.com
Project assistant
Water and Development Group
Helsinki University of Technology

Experiences from Dushanbe

We are just now having a nice meeting at the Agrarian University of Dushanbe. Let's hope our communication with the students of this university will continue.

Welcome

This site is created to provide a platform for young water professionals/students who are interested in Central Asian Water Development and Management issues. Everybody is welcome to participate and kindly remember that the keywords for discussions are: Water, Central Asia, Development and Management.

The initiative is originated from the motivated researchers/students involved in a project (2008-2009) on "Integrated Water Resources Development and Management in Central Asia" coordinated by Water and Development Research Group, Helsinki University of Technology (HUT).

The project is funded by Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Finland, as part of Finland’s continuous support to Global Water Partnership’s Central Asia and Caucasus (CACENA) program. Learn More....