Seven new research projects Urbanising Deltas in the World

National research council of the Netherlands NWO has recently awarded funding to seven proposals within the research programme Urbanising Deltas of the World.

A total amount of 5.5 million euros will be invested in research that aims to increase water safety, food security and sustainable economic development in river deltas.

The proposals have been awarded by NWO's WOTRO Science for Global Development programmes that fund and monitor innovative research on global issues, with a focus on sustainable development and poverty reduction.

Delta and water related issues
The seven projects focus on deltas and water related issues in India, Bangladesh, Vietnam, the Netherlands, Indonesia and Mozambique. Each awarded consortium receives up to 750,000 euros for a research project of four to five years.

Consortium members contribute between 5 to 25 percent of the total budget in-cash or in-kind. The exact amount of co-funding depends on the total budget that a consortium receives from NWO.

Seven awarded research projects
The awarded projects are:
● Shifting Grounds
Institutional transformation, enhancing knowledge and capacity to manage groundwater security in peri-urban Ganges delta systems Research consortium led by Prof. Wil Thissen of Delft University of Technology
Other consortium members are: Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology, Both ENDS, Jagrata Juba Shanga, SaciWATERs and The Researcher

● Rise and Fall
Strategies for the subsiding and urbanising Mekong Delta (Vietnam) facing increasing salt water intrusion
Research consortium led by Prof. Piet Hoekstra of Utrecht University
Other consortium members: Can Tho University, Deltares, Division of Water Resources Planning and Investigation for the South of Vietnam, Geological Survey of the Netherlands (TNO) and Southern Institute for Water Resources Research

● Strengthening strategic delta planning processes in Bangladesh, the Netherlands, Vietnam and beyond
Research consortium led by Dr Wim Douven of Unesco-IHE Institute for Water Education
Other consortium members: Bangladesh University of Engeneering and Technology, Centre for Environmental and Geographic Information Services (CEGIS), Delft University of Technology, Deltares, IUCN Bangladesh, PBL Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency, Vietnam National University And Wageningen University

● Delta-MAR
Governance and hydrogeological prerequisites for sustainable water supply through MAR systems in urbanizing deltas, applied to Bangladesh
Research consortium led by Dr J. Groen, VU University Amsterdam
Other consortium members: Acacia Water, Delft University of Technology, UNICEF-Bangladesh, University of Dhaka and Utrecht University

● Adaptive delta management
Development, acculturation, and dissemination in Bangladesh and Indonesia
Research consortium led by Prof. Wil Thissen of Delft University of Technology
Other consortium members: Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology, Center for Environmental and Geographic Information Services, Deltares, ITB Bandung, PUSAIR Bandung, University of Twente and Utrecht University

● Sustainable freshwater supply in urbanizing Maputo, Mozambique
Research consortium led by Dr Luuk Rietveld of Delft University of Technology
Other consortium members: Fundo de Investimento e Património de Abastecimento de Água, Unesco-IHE Institute for Water Education, Universidade Eduardo Mondlane and Vitens Evides International

● Hydro-Social Deltas
Understanding flows of water and people to improve policies and strategies for disaster risk reduction and sustainable
development of delta areas in the Netherlands and Bangladesh
Research consortium led by Dr Michelle Kooy of Unesco-IHE Institute for Water Education
Other consortium members: Bangladesh Centre for Advanced Studies, Deltares, Flood Hazard Research Centre and Wageningen University

This news items was originally published on the website of NWO/WOTRO.

More information
NWO
WOTRO Science for Global Development programmes
The Hague, the Netherlands
+31 70 344 07 63
www.nwo.nl/en/wotro