29 Oct 2012 00:00 — 14 Jan 2013 00:00

Lecture Series // "The Water-Energy-Food Security Nexus", Cologne/Germany

The Lecture Series addresses these key issues by bringing scientists and experts from many disciplines together. It wants to contribute to the current global dialogue regarding the future of our planet. Organised by German Development Institute / Deutsches Institut fÃ¼r Entwicklungspolitik (DIE-GDI), Institute of Geography/University of Cologne, Institute for Technology and Resources Management in the Tropics and Subtropics (ITT) of the Cologne University of Applied Sciences.

The Lecture Series is open to the public and particularly invites post-graduate students of the University of Cologne and the Cologne University of Applied Sciences. Some contributions are made available as a webinar offered through the Alumni Portal Deutschland for remote guests.

Background

By 2030, population will grow from currently 7 billion to almost 8.5 billion, the world will need around 40% more energy, 50% more food, and 30% more water. Thus, achieving water, energy and food security for the world's growing population will be one of the grand challenges ahead of us. Water as a multi-functional natural resource plays a key role as it is a fundamental ingredient to almost all human activities like energy generation, food and fibre production, industrial production and to sustain the health of humans and ecosystems. Worldwide trends influence the water sector but are beyond its boundaries and the water managers' control. Pressures on water are related to energy and agricultural policies, land use and urban planning, international trade policies and come from within the water sector. The Water, Energy and Food Security Nexus describes these many complex relations, the trade-offs, and the opportunities. How policies should look like and be coordinated to address these issues is as yet not fully understood, and there is an urgent need for new approaches beyond the confined borders of sector policies.

Lectures

-29 Oct 2012 "Eco-Innovation for Greening Growth" Prof. Dr. Harald Sander, Fachhochschule KÃ¶ln -12 Nov 2012 "Rainwater Harvesting: Climate Change Adaptation Strategy for Food Security" Prof. Dr. Clement Dorm-Adzobu, TU Braunschweig -26 Nov 2012 "Biomass for Energy: The Water Footprint for Biodiesel" Dr. Winnie Gerbens-Leenes, University of Twente -10 Dec 2012 "The Role of Scarcity in Global Virtual Water Flows" Dr. Anik Bhaduri, Global water system project (GWSP), University of Bonn -14 Jan 2013 (postponed to March 2013) "Large-Scale Land Acquisitions: Can We Manage the Trade Offs Between Land, Water and Energy?" Dr. Waltina Scheumann, DIE-GDI