Water4All - Kooperationsprojekt DEMOTAPE: Design multidimensionaler Wissensprotokolle zur Transformations grenzüberschreitender politischer Entscheidungen im Umgang mit hydoklimatischen Extremen

Hydroclimatic extremes have resulted in serious impact to people and the economy around the world. Floods and droughts have affected over 200 million people and have cost USD 86 billion in economic losses in the last decade. Climate change projections indicate that these extreme events will be more frequent and severe in the future. Increased water variability may risk instability and tension in transboundary rivers basins, many of which are facing major floods and droughts. To deal with hydroclimatic extremes, a suite of actions is needed, including further investment in technology and infrastructure, improved forecasting and early warning systems, use of financial tools for climate resilience and increasing natural infrastructure. Furthermore, as argued by the United Nations Global Commission on Adaptation, there is an urgent need for a “fundamental transformation in how water is managed” by improving collaboration between stakeholders and strengthening transboundary water cooperation.
Successful water diplomacy can result in cooperation between countries. However, water diplomacy needs to contend with hydroclimatic uncertainty and cross-sectoral implications that are unique to each context, rendering no generalised solutions. Crucially, there are major gaps in technological capacity for adaptation planning and regulation in transboundary basins. Furthermore, there is a lack of institutional capacity of river management institutions, which, for example, have hitherto given little attention to transboundary flooding. To overcome these challenges, there is a need to improve environmental intelligence through data processing to provide evidence for action that is embedded in a multi-layered governance framework. Shared knowledge systems need to be designed in a way that is sensitive to context and meets the informational needs of stakeholders, beyond environmental impact analysis or environmental and social governance.