Over the last decade attention and resources have been devoted to the documentation and prediction of climate variability and change. Simultaneously, there has been rapid development in advanced data capture and transfer technologies. Substantially less progress, however, has been made towards translating technical and scientific advances into information useful to water managers and policy makers worldwide. Water resource systems are still generally managed under a “business as usual” framework. Hydrology for the Environment, Life, and Policy (HELP) will complement the global data that will be provided by the Global Energy and Water Cycle Experiment (GEWEX) and the Climate Variability and Predictability programme (CLIVAR) of the World Climate Research Programme by providing simultaneous, in situ hydrological observations in representative research watersheds around the world. A particular focus of attention will be on extreme events (floods and droughts). An education programme is also required, to promote the use of modern hydrological monitoring and data transfer techniques and to disseminate the understanding and application of the relationship between global processes and regional hydrology.

Contact:  S. Demuth, Senior Programme Specialist, SC/HYD

Related links:
::  HELP website (More)