IWMI Journal Articles

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Exploring the significance of treated wastewater reuse in urban agriculture and resilient cities: a bibliometric analysis
(Journal Article, 2025-05) Sei, L. K.; Belle, J.; Mshelia, Z.; Dirwai, Tinashe
The sustainability and resilience of a city rely on its capacity to utilize its environmental resources while maintaining social, environmental, and economic balance. Practising urban agriculture (UA) is a sustainable solution that can offset this balance. Treated wastewater (TWW) generated in urban areas can be used to reduce stress on available water resources. However, the extent of its significance remains unclear. This study used bibliometric analysis to explore the trends in publication and thematic evolution between 2008 and 2024 from the Scopus database. The bibliometrics R-package and VOSviewer software were used for bibliometric analysis and science mapping. A total of 1,208 articles were retrieved from the database, from which 960 were used for analysis after data cleansing. The analysis of the results shows that wastewater (WW) reclamation and treatment were found to have the weakest strength and the least number of occurrences. This suggests that researchers did not seriously investigate the use of TWW for UA, thus suggesting a potential gap in the literature that needs to be addressed. Risk reduction strategies for WW reuse in UA were also discussed. This paper argues that reusing TWW for UA can strengthen urban resilience while protecting environmental resources.
Climate change will exacerbate seasonal flow variability in the Karnali River Basin: implications for water, energy, and agriculture sectors
(Journal Article, 2025-05) Pradhananga, Saurav; Nepal, Santosh; Kamal, S. K.; Hafeez, Mohsin
Climate change impacts water resources in the Himalayan region, with cross-sectoral effects felt across various scales. This study focuses on the Karnali River, which is crucial for livelihoods, agriculture, and hydropower generation in the region, and assesses the impact of climate change on these sectors. We use the SWATþ hydrological model with bias-corrected high-resolution CMIP6 projections to simulate future hydrology. Winter and spring discharge is projected to decrease by 3 (SSP245) to 23% (SSP585), while monsoon and post-monsoon discharge may increase by up to 18 (SSP245) and 51% (SSP585) by the end-century, primarily due to precipitation changes. Wet energy production from the Upper Karnali hydropower project is likely to increase, whereas dry energy may decrease, reducing overall reliability. The highest wet energy increase (9%) occurs under SSP585’s cold-wet scenario, while the largest dry energy decline (16%) is under SSP245’s warm-dry scenario by the end-century. Irrigation water requirements for paddy and wheat are also expected to increase, with paddy’s initial growth stage potentially doubling under warm-dry SSP585 conditions by the end-century. Our findings highlight the need for integrated water, food, and energy management strategies in the Karnali River basin to address the cross-sectoral impacts, particularly considering climate change challenges.
Empowering women in agriculture: critical role of gender-intentional investments in Pakistan
(Journal Article, 2025-09) Begum, Khadija
Despite substantial investments in Pakistan’s irrigated agriculture sector, women’s conditions have seen limited improvement, emphasizing the need for gender-intentional investments. This study aims to provide evidence on the status of women in the marginalized areas of Dera Ismail Khan and Tank to guide more gender-responsive investment decisions that align with gender equality and the Sustainable Development Goals. Conducted in the Gomal Zam Dam command area (comprising District Tank and Dera Ismail Khan (DIK), the study surveyed 122 dual-headed households (households where both male and female decision-makers were surveyed), revealing that only 23 % of women have achieved empowerment, compared to 78 % of men. Women’s disempowerment primarily stems from limited control in leadership and income, while men face constraints related to leadership and workload. Men have greater autonomy over production inputs and income decisions, with indicators of asset ownership and income contributing 0 % to their disempowerment. The study identifies critical barriers to women’s empowerment, such as lack of group membership and control over income and suggests further research into the socio-economic and cultural factors affecting gender disparity. The findings underscore the need for tailored policies and gender-intentional investments to close the gender gap and promote women’s empowerment in agriculture.
Enhancing household food security through soil and water conservation practices: a case study in semi-arid areas of Ethiopia
(Journal Article, 2025-06) Ayalew, M. W.; Teferi, E. T.; Wassie, S. B.; Mhiret, D. A.; Aakle, A. T.; Dagnew, D. C.; Adem, A. A.; Tilahun, Seifu A.
Over recent decades, Ethiopia has substantially invested in soil and water conservation (SWC) practices, particularly in arid areas to strengthen environmental resilience, maintain agricultural productivity, and improve food security. Despite huge efforts, the impact of practices on improving households’ food security remains unexplored. This study, therefore, examines the impact of SWC practices on households’ food security in the semi-arid areas in Northwestern Ethiopia. The data collected from 546 households was analyzed using an endogenous switching regression (ESR). The findings showed that 52% of the surveyed households implemented SWC practices such as soil bunding, stone bunding, stone-faced soil bunding, and terracing on their farmlands. Adopters of SWC practices consumed more diversified foods with a higher dietary diversity score of 7.3 points and food consumption scores of 18.7 points compared with 0.63 and 4.02 points respectively for non-adopters. Adopters also reported lower scores on the Food Security Scale and Food Insecurity Experience Scale. The results suggest that adopting SWC practices improves utilization and stable access to food through enhancing soil fertility and restoring degraded farmlands to sustain existing and new food and fodder crops. This has led to an improved farm-level productivity and increased production diversity thereby contributing to household-level food security. The overall findings underscore the positive impact of SWC interventions on food security outcomes among adopter households in semi-arid areas of Ethiopia. However, the heterogeneity in treatment effects suggest that policymakers, extension agents, and local agricultural offices should consider individual and context specific conditions to effectively promote scaling SWC practices.
Exploring the smallholder irrigation equipment supply landscape in Zambia: a scoping review
(Journal Article, 2025-12) Choruma, Dennis Junior; Dirwai, Tinashe Lindel; Matchaya, Greenwell; Kasoma‑Pele, Winnie; Mutenje, Munyaradzi
Limited irrigation adoption hinders agricultural production for Zambia's smallholder farmers, despite its potential to mitigate the impact of erratic rainfall patterns. This scoping review investigates the irrigation equipment supply landscape in Zambia, focusing on its capacity to serve smallholders. Using the PRISMA framework, the review explores the range of available irrigation technologies, the technical knowledge of suppliers, and the challenges and opportunities surrounding equipment supply. The review identifies affordability of irrigation equipment, uneven distribution of technical support and spare parts, and limited access to credit and market opportunities as key challenges hindering smallholder farmers’ irrigation adoption. However, opportunities exist through geographic targeting, collaboration with development initiatives and supermarkets, and improved access to financing. By addressing these challenges and capitalizing on opportunities, stakeholders can empower smallholder farmers to adopt irrigation technologies and achieve increased production.
Disentangling community-based resource governance through knowledge systems mapping: insights from Community Fish Refuges in rural Cambodia
(Journal Article, 2025-06) Baldivieso Soruco, C. R.; Bonatti, M.; De Silva, Sanjiv; Ou, P.; Soeun, K. O.; Neth, S.; Sun, V.; Rodríguez, T.; Sean, V.; Sithirith, M.; Dubois, Mark; Sieber, S.
Inland fisheries in Cambodia are of great importance to the livelihoods of rural communities, as they provide sustenance and seasonal income for the local population. Community fish refuges (CFRs) are natural or human-made water bodies that hold water throughout the year, providing a dry-season sanctuary for aquatic life. Managed mainly by the local community, CFRs support diverse ecological and human functions, such as biodiversity repositories, including fish stocks, and provide water for irrigation, livestock, and domestic needs. These initiatives have been promoted by several organizations in Cambodia since the 1990s, showing positive ecological impacts and improving food security, especially for marginalized populations. However, the social dimensions of management, the role of local knowledge, and the underlying knowledge systems remain understudied. The objective of this study is to gain insight into the governance mechanisms of CFRs in relation to the local knowledge of management. Four CFR projects conducted by WorldFish and NGO partners between 2016 and 2021 in Central Cambodia were selected for the analysis. A participatory approach was employed using causal loop diagrams (CLDs) through focus group discussions (FGDs) with local stakeholders (n = 38). The methodological approach was based on three phases: exploratory interviews (n=23), causal-loop FGDs (n=4), and FGDs for data validation (n=4). Our study highlights the importance of context-specific and relational knowledge in CFR management, as well as the importance of institutional structures, power dynamics, and social differentiation in shaping knowledge access, distribution, and management. Social mobilization mainly involves village representatives mediating between villagers and external entities, with a certain degree of concentration of power within groups of stakeholders. Enhancing community governance through more inclusive, dialogue-based communication and potentially leveraging informal networks is recommended to channel social learning, considering the sociocultural context and challenges of decentralization in Cambodia.
South Asia's ecosystems are a net carbon sink, but the region is a major net GHG source to the atmosphere
(Journal Article, 2025-04) Jain, A. K.; Seshadri, S.; Anand, J.; Chandra, N.; Patra, P. K.; Canadell, J. G.; Chhabra, A.; Ciais, P.; Gilani, Hammad; Gumma, M. K.; Kondo, M.; Lokupitiya, E.; Pan, N.; Shrestha, H. L.; Siddiqui, B. N.; Tian, H.; Tiwari, Y. K.
As part of the REgional Carbon Cycle Assessment and Processes‐2 (RECCAP‐2) project of the Global Carbon Project, here we estimate the GHG budgets (anthropogenic and natural sources and sinks) for the South Asia (SA) region as a whole and each country (Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka) for the decade of 2010–2019 (2010s). Countries in the region are experiencing a rapid rise in fossil fuel consumption and demand for agricultural land, leading to increased deforestation and higher greenhouse gas emissions. This study synthesizes top‐down (TD) and bottom‐up (BU) dynamic global vegetation model results, BU GHG inventories, ground‐based observation upscaling, and direct emissions for major GHGs. The fluxes for carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), and nitrous oxide (N2O) analyzed include fossil fuel emissions, net biome productivity, land use change, inland waters, wetlands, and upland and submerged soils. Our analysis shows that the overall total GHG emissions contributed to a net increase of 34%– 43% during the 2010s compared to the 2000s, primarily driven by industrial activities. However, terrestrial ecosystems acted as a notable exception by serving as a CO2 sink in the 2010s, effectively sequestering atmospheric carbon. The sink was significantly smaller than overall carbon emissions. Overall, the 2010s GHG emissions based on BU and TD were 4,517 ± 639.8 and 4,532 ± 807.5 Tg CO2 eq, with CO2, CH4, and N2O emissions of 2165.2 ± 297.1, 1,404 ± 95.9, and 712 ± 466 Tg CO2 eq based on BU models 2,125 ± 515.1, 1,531 ± 205.2, and 876 ± 446.0 Tg CO2 eq based on TD models. Total emissions from SA in the 2010s accounted for approximately 8% of the global share. The terrestrial CO2 sinks estimated by the BU and TD models were 462.9 ± 195.5 and 210.0 ± 630.4 Tg CO2, respectively. Among the SA countries, India was the largest emitter contributing to 80% of the region's total GHG emissions, followed by Pakistan (10%) and Bangladesh (7%).
Unveiling the Potential: is the private sector poised to revolutionize the solar irrigation market in Ethiopia?
(Journal Article, 2025-05) Adamseged, Muluken Elias; Abegaz, Dagmawi Melaku; Minh, Thai Thi
The significance of small-scale solar irrigation is well documented. However, the understanding of its adoption and scaling remains to be seen. Using solar-powered pump technology in Ethiopia as a case study, we aim to investigate the factors influencing technology adoption and the private sector's emergence to take over the market. We used a systemic perspective to analyze the multifaceted aspects influencing the enabling environment. This study shows that actors' engagement in promoting solar irrigation technologies has converged. In particular, the growing and continuous engagement of the private sector with other key stakeholders plays a significant role. These have improved users’ awareness of solar irrigation over the years. However, perceived risk, cost barriers, financial constraints, and pre-and post-sales services remain hindering factors. The findings show that policy initiatives and the private sector's growth can create enabling environments. However, challenges related to limited technology availability, financial constraints, and policy implementation hurdles can impede the process. Addressing these challenges can create an environment that enables the adoption and scaling of solar-powered pumps and private-sector investments in Ethiopia’s irrigation innovations.
Improved performance indicators and institutional setup for more viable compost production from municipal solid waste in Sri Lanka
(Journal Article, 2025-09) Manipura, A.; Drechsel, Pay; Jayawardhana, H. M. L. C.; Shanmugapriya, R.; Mannapperuma, N. R.; Jayatilleke, H. S. I.
Managing municipal solid waste (MSW) is challenging for most local authorities (LAs), especially in urban and peri-urban areas due to increasing waste quantities and decreasing options for safe disposal. Many LAs around the world prefer composting organic waste as a means of waste volume (and transport cost) reduction and cost recovery option within a circular economy framework. To optimize compost production with a focus on cost recovery, a systematic study was conducted at 22 composting stations located in Sri Lanka’s highly populated Western Province. The study examined process management from organic waste collection to product quality and cost recovery via compost sales. Collected organic waste conversion into compost was varied between 1 % and 15 % and time taken for completion of the process varied between 2.5 – 4.5 months. No standard operating procedure was observed though input organic matter was of similar nature. Excess leachate and odour production reported by 59 % of the surveyed stations. Complete analysis of compost quality was hardly reported by any LAs and no sales and marketing strategies were adopted to boost the cost recovery. Poor data management has hindered the identification of improvement opportunities and performance benchmarking of composting stations run by LAs. To address these significant performance variations observed among the stations, a monitoring and evaluation framework is proposed based on four composite key performance indicators (KPIs): General Facility Management Index (GFMI), Composting Process Management Index (CPMI), Compost Quality Index (CQI), and Cost Recovery Index (CRI). These KPIs serve to benchmark performance and identify incremental improvement opportunities at each station. However, to address institutional and human capacity challenges an institutional partnership model is also proposed, which could incentivize the implementation and achievements of the KPIs while reducing the pressure on LAs to reach the compost market.
Assessing the accuracy of satellite radar altimetry for inland water level monitoring
(Journal Article, 2025-11) Camici, S.; Calmettes, B.; Daguzé, J.-A.; Piras, F.; Thibaut, P.; Amarnath, Giriraj; Femenias, P.; Tarpanelli, A.
Inland water monitoring is essential to quantify the available and accessible water resources and to assess the amount that is useful for meeting human needs. It plays an essential role for both society and the environment, and due to the many problems associated with ground hydrological monitoring networks, the measurement of inland waters represents a political and economic challenge. A viable alternative for deriving surface water information on a large scale is satellite Earth Observation, and in recent decades satellite altimetry has become an established method for providing water level measurements. The expansion of satellite constellations guarantees a continuous and comprehensive coverage in time and space, but often the harmonisation between different missions is difficult and mostly reduced to a bias correction. For this purpose, in the framework of the FDR4ALT (Fundamental Data Records for Altimetry) project funded by the European Space Agency (ESA), the Altimetry Fundamental Data Records are generated to produce the Inland Water Thematic Data Products based on the exploitation of the measurements acquired by the altimeters on board the ESA ERS-1, ERS-2 and ENVISAT missions. In this paper, we present the results of the FDR4ALT project for rivers, showing the analysis of the different retrackers (Ice1, Ice3, MLE3, TFMRA, Adaptive) over a one-year period. A Round Robin analysis is carried out to evaluate the performance of each retracker, with the final aim of identifying the best one, able to describe the inland water flow, to be implemented at global level. The validation of the derived altimetric water levels is carried out for three large basins in the world by comparing the altimetric data against external measurements obtained from both reliable ground-based measurements and other altimetry sources freely available on the web (Theia Hydroweb, Dahiti, HydroSat). In general, quite accurate long time series of altimetric water levels have been reconstructed from 1993 to 2010 by merging ERS-1, ERS-2 and ENVISAT data.
Closing yield gap for sustainable food security in Sub-Saharan Africa – progress, challenges, and opportunities
(Journal Article, 2025-05) Ongoma, V.; Brouziyne, Youssef; Bouras, E. H.; Chehbouni, A.
Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) remains food insecure despite having a climatic and biophysical potential to grow the crops to meet its growing food demand. Closing yield gap presents an opportunity to increase agricultural productivity in SSA for food security and economic stability in line with SDG 2 and 1. This work looks into the three main drivers of yield gap in SSA: water, fertilizer, and management practices, pointing out the challenges and opportunities for closing the gap. Rainwater is a good source of water, especially in tropical areas, and there is a need for its harvesting and conservation. Fertilizer use is still low (~20 kg/ha), and has to be increased while managing fertilizer nutrients effectively supported by locally developed computer-based decision support systems, for high crop yields. Latest commitments by African Union to increase local production, and supply, and reduce fertilizer costs is commendable. Adopting new crop varieties that are adapted to local conditions and resistant to drought and diseases, as well as improving good management practices backed by extension services are essential to maximizing crop yield and strengthening resilience in the face of environmental challenges. This calls for good leadership, backed up with good policies and political goodwill.
The impact of expanding eucalyptus plantations on the hydrology of a humid highland watershed in Ethiopia
(Journal Article, 2025-05) Fenta, H. M.; Steenhuis, T. S.; Negatu, T. A.; Zimale, F. A.; Cornelis, W.; Tilahun, Seifu A.
Changes in climate and land use significantly impact downstream water availability. Quantifying these effects in the Ethiopian Highlands is crucial, as 85% of the transboundary water in Egypt and Sudan originates from these highlands. While the impact of climate change on water availability has been widely studied, few experimental studies have examined how it is affected by eucalyptus reforestation. Therefore, the objective was to investigate how eucalyptus expansion impairs water availability in the Ethiopian Highlands. The study was conducted in the 39 km2 Amen watershed, located in the upper reaches of the Blue Nile. Rainfall data were collected from local agencies from 1990 to 2024, while streamflow data were available only for 2002–2009 and 2015–2018. Actual evapotranspiration was obtained using the WaPOR portal, and land use was derived from Landsat 5 TM and Landsat 8 OLI. The satellite images showed that the eucalyptus acreage increased from 238 ha in 2001 to 799 ha in 2024, or 24 ha y−1 . The actual evapotranspiration of eucalyptus was up to 30% greater than that of other land uses during the dry monsoon phase (January to March), resulting in decreased water storage in the watershed over a 23-year period. Since runoff is generated by saturation excess runoff, it takes longer for the valley bottoms to become saturated. In the 2002–2009 period, it took an average of around 160 mm of cumulative effective rain for significant runoff to start, and from 2015 to 2018, 274 mm was needed. Additionally, base flow decreased significantly. The annual runoff trended upward when the annual rainfall was more than the additional amount of water evaporated by eucalyptus, but decreased otherwise.
Evaluation and mapping of snow characteristics using remote sensing data in Astore River Basin, Pakistan
(Journal Article, 2025-05) Khan, Ihsan Ullah; Iqbal, M.; Ali, Zeshan; Arshed, A. B.; Wang, M.; Adnan, R. M.
Being an agricultural country, Pakistan requires lots of water for irrigation. A major portion of its water resources is located in the upper Indus basin (UIB). The snowmelt runoff generated from high-altitude areas of the UIB provides inflow into the Indus river system that boosts the water supply. Snow accumulation during the winter period in the highlands in the watershed(s) becomes a source of water inflow during the snow-melting period, which is described according to characteristics like snow depth, snow density, and snow water equivalent. Snowmelt water release (SWE) and snowmelt water depth (SD) maps are generated by tracing snow occurrence from MODIS-based images of the snow-cover area, evaluating the heating degree days (HDDs) from MODIS-derived images of the land surface temperature, computing the solar radiation, and then assimilating all the previous data in the form of the snowmelt model and ground measurements of the snowmelt water release (SWE). The results show that the average snow-cover area in the Astore river basin, in the upper Indus basin, ranges from 94% in winter to 20% in summer. The maps reveal that the annual average values of the SWE range from 150 mm to 535 mm, and the SD values range from 600 mm to 2135 mm, for the snowmelt period (April–September) over the years 2010–2020. The areas linked with vegetation experience low SWE accumulation because of the low slopes in the elevated regions. The meteorological parameters and basin characteristics affect the SWE and can determine the SD values.
Conservation tillage-based Arundo donax agro-geotextiles enhance productivity and profitability of sloping croplands in the Indian Himalayas by reducing soil erosion and improving soil organic carbon
(Journal Article, 2025-03) Singh, R. J.; Kumar, Gopal; Sharma, N. K.; Deshwal, J. S.; Mishra, M.; Roy, P.; Bhattacharyya, R.; Madhu, M.
Very few soil erosion studies have investigated the effectiveness of conservation tillage (CT)-based agrogeotextiles (AGTs) on rainfed sloping croplands of the Indian Himalayan Region (IHR) for intensifying unremunerative double cropping (maize-wheat) to sustainable remunerative triple cropping (maize-pea-wheat). This study assessed surface runoff, soil, and nutrient losses during the rainy season in maize crops to evaluate the impact of eight conservation practices on post-rainy season soil moisture content, productivity, and profitability of the crop rotation, and soil organic carbon (SOC) accumulation over a six-year period (2017–2023) on a 4% sloped natural runoff gauge plots (100 × 20 m2 ). The conservation practices involved a combination of rainfed maize-wheat and rainfed maize-pea-wheat crop rotations, utilizing two thicknesses (5 cm and 10 cm) and two configurations (0.5 m and 1.0 m vertical intervals) of Arundo donax (AD)-agro-geotextiles (AGTs), with comparisons drawn against the standard farmers’ practice of bench terraces (BT). In the treated CT fields, the highest amounts of residues (6.0–7.1 t ha- 1 ) were recycled by applying 5 and 10 cm thick AD-AGTs at a 0.5 m vertical interval (VI). Approximately 1100–1300 mm of rainfall per hectare per year was retained as soil water, and soil erosion decreased by 80–90% in the treated AD-AGT CT fields compared to the non-treated CT fields, which experienced a loss of 8.5 tonnes per hectare per year of soil. In the AD-AGT CT fields, the highest wheat equivalent yields (12.0–13.6 t ha- 1 year- 1 ), profits (2332–2477 US$ ha- 1 year- 1 ), and SOC build-up (1.16–1.20%) were recorded. In the treated fields, an average of 32–108 kg organic carbon, 3–6 kg nitrogen, 1–3 kg of phosphorus, and 8–37 kg potassium per hectare per year were retained, preventing their loss as pollutants through surface runoff water. The research provided scientific evidence indicating that triple cropping of maize-pea-wheat in a pure rainfed condition of IHR can be achieved without compromising wheat yields, provided that farmers apply CT-based AD-AGTs at the appropriate rate and configuration, i.e., emplacement of 5 cm thick biomass @ 1.1 t ha- 1 on a 0.5 m vertical interval. From a sustainable practice point of view, the study proposes a valorization for AD biomass that contains no economic value. Future soil and water conservation research should examine the impacts of AD-AGTs on soil and water conservation across a diverse range of rainfall and field slope conditions.
Assessment of soil vulnerability to erosion in different land surface configurations and management practices under semi-arid monsoon climate
(Journal Article, 2023-06) Kumar, G.; Kurothe, R. S.; Viswakarma, A. K.; Mandal, D.; Sena, Dipaka Ranjan; Mandal, U.; Pande, V. C.; Dinesh, D.
Soil erosion leads to reduction in land productivity. Concentrated rainfall under monsoon climate increases the erosion vulnerability of poor soils of semiarid regions. Soil vulnerability is the response to impact of slope and land management practices. Assessment of soil vulnerability to soil erosion is crucial for devising an effective soil conservation plan. Therefore, a 7-year long experiment has been initiated for assessing vulnerability to soil erosion for a sandy loam soil using Pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum) as the test crop in a typical semiarid monsoon climate. In case of runoff, samples were collected and measured every 24 h. These samples were analyzed for sediment, clay, organic carbon (OC), and nitrogen content. A positive linear relation between rainfall and runoff at 2% slope (R2 : 0.58–0.72), curvilinear relation at higher slope (R2 : 0.81–0.86), and positive linear relationship between runoff and soil loss (R2 : 0.47–0.64) were observed. An increase in slope length from 11 to 66 m increased runoff and soil loss by 1.62 times and 1.72 times, respectively. Similarly, an increase in slope steepness from 2% to 9% increased runoff and soil loss by 1.84 times and 3.84 times, respectively. In response to the 56.4% of the total rainfall received, the contribution of runoff and soil loss during the initial 30 days of the crop growing period to the total runoff and soil loss was 68–74% and 80–90% respectively. Sediments were enriched with organic carbon (1.62–3.12) and clay content (1.14–1.55), however, enrichment ratios reduced with the increase in slope. The total loss of nitrogen through erosion had a positive correlation with the sediment loss. Manure and mineral fertilizer application in pearl millet reduced the mean seasonal runoff by 14.4–24.8% and soil loss by 22.7–32.6%. Under bare soil conditions, application of manure and fertilizers reduced runoff by 6.4–8.7% and soil loss by 6.5–7.8%. The knowledge derived from this study can thus improve our understanding of hydrological responses and erosion process of both land configuration and land management practices. The data generated in the study is an important starting point to develop concepts for better management and effective mitigation of land degradation. The findings also suggest the need of initial soil cover, minimum soil disturbance at steeper slope (>3%) and need of conservation measures even on the milder slope (= 3%).
Remotely sensed high-resolution soil moisture and evapotranspiration: bridging the gap between science and society
(Journal Article, 2025-05) Huang, J.; Sehgal, V.; Alvarez, L. V.; Brocca, L.; Cai, S.; Cheng, R.; Cheng, X.; Du, J.; El Masri, B.; Endsley, K. A.; Fang, Y.; Hu, J.; Jampani, Mahesh; Kibria, Md. G.; Koren, G.; Li, L.; Liu, L.; Mao, J.; Moreno, H. A.; Rigden, A.; Shi, M.; Shi, X.; Wang, Y.; Zhang, X.; Fisher, J. B.
This paper reviews the current state of high-resolution remotely sensed soil moisture (SM) and evapotranspiration (ET) products and modeling, and the coupling relationship between SM and ET. SM downscaling approaches for satellite passive microwave products leverage advances in artificial intelligence and high-resolution remote sensing using visible, near-infrared, thermal-infrared, and synthetic aperture radar sensors. Remotely sensed ET continues to advance in spatiotemporal resolutions from MODIS to ECOSTRESS to Hydrosat and beyond. These advances enable a new understanding of bio-geo-physical controls and coupled feedback mechanisms between SM and ET reflecting the land cover and land use at field scale (3–30 m, daily). Still, the state-of-the-science products have their challenges and limitations, which we detail across data, retrieval algorithms, and applications. We describe the roles of these data in advancing 10 application areas: drought assessment, food security, precision agriculture, soil salinization, wildfire modeling, dust monitoring, flood forecasting, urban water, energy, and ecosystem management, ecohydrology, and biodiversity conservation. We discuss that future scientific advancement should focus on developing open-access, high- resolution (3–30 m), sub-daily SM and ET products, enabling the evaluation of hydrological processes at finer scales and revolutionizing the societal applications in data-limited regions of the world, especially the Global South for socio-economic development.
Vulnerable area identification of a coastal river basin of India using SWAT model
(Journal Article, 2025-02-22) Mandal, U.; Sena, Dipaka R.; Kumar, Gopal; Roy, T.; Singh, R. K.; Madhu, M.
The soil and water assessment tool (SWAT) was employed to evaluate hydrological fluxes in the Subarnarekha river basin, a coastal tropical region in India. The study utilized a spatially explicit approach, dividing the area into discrete sub-basins (166 units) and subdividing them into hydrologic response units (HRUs) 1335 units, based on exclusive combinations of slope, land use, and soil combinations. With an area of 2 26105 km and surface elevations ranging from 0 to 1172 m above mean sea level (amsl), the basin predominantly features less than 8% slope (81.43% area of total basin area). The soil composition varied between loamy, clay loam, and clay. The SWAT model underwent calibration (2000-2007) and validation (2008-2012) using observed monthly average river discharge data from four gauging locations on the Subarnarekha and Budhabalanga hydrologic reaches. The sequential uncertainty fitting 2 (SUFI-2) framework with 22 parameters yielded model efficiencies (NSE) greater than 0.5 for all gauging locations in both periods. Sensitivity analysis identified the curve number (R_CN2.mgt) as the most sensitive parameter among the 22. The runoff and sediment yield data for each sub-basin were normalized to fit into a scale of 0 to 1. An equal weightage of 0.50 was assigned to both the parameter runoff and sediment yield to identify the hotpots area in the Subarnarekha river basin. The basin was divided into five vulnerability categories: slight, low, moderate, high, and extreme, covering 63.27%, 26.40%, 5.58%, 2.21%, and 2.52% of the total basin area, respectively. Subbasins 38, 40, 126, 148, 142, and 125 exhibited high and extreme vulnerability, respectively. Approximately 10% of the total area fell under moderate to high to extreme vulnerability, emphasizing the need for priority for soil and water conservation measures. The developed methodology can be replicated to delineate vulnerable zones in other river basins to prioritize natural resource management.
A multi-dimensional framework for responsible and socially inclusive digital innovation in food, water, and land systems
(Journal Article, 2025-04) Opola, Felix Ouko; Langan, Simon; Arulingam, Indika; Schumann, C.; Singaraju, N.; Joshi, Deepa; Ghosh, Surajit
Digital innovations can offer solutions to various food, water, and land systems challenges globally. However, there are concerns on the ethical and social inclusivity aspects of these innovations, particularly for marginalized groups of people in less industrialised countries. In this article, we describe the design and development of a digital inclusivity framework, which builds from a detailed synthesis of inclusivity in digital literature. Key insights from the review were collated into five dimensions: risk mitigation, accessibility, usability, benefits, and participation. These dimensions can be assessed by means of twenty-one concrete and measurable sub indicators. Our focus was to enable a more holistic approach to the usually technocentric design of digital innovations. The framework, including the associated indicators, lays the groundwork for the development of a digital inclusivity index, a tool for assessing and fostering the inclusivity of digital innovations in food, water, and land systems.
Changing the decision context to enable social learning for climate adaptation
(Journal Article, 2025-06) Colloff, M. J.; Gorddard, R.; Munera-Roldán, C.; Locatelli, B.; Lavorel, S.; Allain, S.; Bruley, E.; Butler, J. R. A.; Dubo, T.; Enokenwa Baa, Ojongetakah; González-García, A.; Lécuyer, L.; Lo, M.; Loos, J.; Palomo, I.; Topp, E.; Vallet, A.; Walters, G.
1. Successful adaptation often involves changes to the decision context to enable new ways of thinking and acting on climate change. Using 16 adaptation initiatives the authors were engaged with, we analysed how and why decision contexts changed to identify ways to improve adaptation as a process of collective deliberation and social learning. 2. We used the scope of the adaptation issue and governance arrangements to classify initiatives into four types and scored changes in the decision context using three frameworks: (1) the values, rules and knowledge (VRK) perspective to identify changes to adaptation decision-making; (2) the five dimensions of futures consciousness to identify the building of adaptation capabilities and (3) the social learning cycle to reveal evidence of reflexive learning. 3. Initiatives using novel governance arrangements for discrete problems (‘problem governance’) or complex, systemic issues (‘systems governance’) scored highest for influences of VRK, futures consciousness and the social learning cycle on the decision context. Initiatives using existing management for discrete problems (‘problem management’) scored moderately for change in the decision context, while those using existing management for systemic issues (‘systems management’) scored low because change was often impeded by existing rules. 4. All three frameworks influenced decision contexts in systems governance initiatives. Problem governance initiatives revealed interactions of VRK and futures consciousness but limited influence of VRK on the social learning cycle. Scope and governance arrangements differ with the adaptation issue and initiatives adapt over time: some small-scale ones became more systemic, developed novel governance arrangements and changed the decision context. 5. Our findings do not show that some adaptation initiatives are better or more transformative than others; just that their scope and appropriate governance arrangements are different. This questions the notion that successful adaptation requires building generic transformative adaptation approaches and capabilities. There is a diversity of arrangements that work. What is important is to align the approach to the adaptation problem. We suggest two directions for improving adaptation initiatives: first, by influencing how they can shift between problem and systems focus and between standard management and novel governance, and secondly, by using methods to diagnose and direct change in the decision context.
Unpacking innovation demands for climate-resilient mixed farming systems in Sub-Saharan Africa: a case of northern Ghana
(Journal Article, 2025-04) Ofosu, Abena; Minh, Thai Thi; Birhanu, Birhanu Zemadim
According to the United Nations (n.d.), climate change is the long-term shift in temperatures and weather patterns due to natural changes, such as the sun’s activity and significant volcanic eruptions, or human activities, such as burning fossil fuels like coal, oil, and gas. The effects of and challenges caused by climate change on farmers’ ability to manage mixed farming systems in sub-Saharan Africa are well documented in the literature. However, the synergies among mixed farming systems’ components and farmers’ innovation demands and responses to climate change impacts remain fragmented. Using a case of mixed crop-livestock-tree (MCLT) systems in northern Ghana, this paper examined farmers’ responses, their innovation needs, and how these innovations can be catalyzed to enable more farmers to adopt similar climate change adaptations. Our findings show that climate change impacts mixed farming systems in several domains, with these impacts being more visible in some domains. Significant productivity declines are observed in crops, livestock, and the whole mixed farming system. Productivity declines lead to decreased incomes, food availability, and household food security. Female farmers’ access to production factors, resource management, and market participation is reduced. Farmers make technical, managerial, and business changes in response to climate change impacts. Such changes are dominated by technical changes, including using highyielding, disease-resistant, and early-maturing crop varieties, crop and animal pest and disease management, agricultural water and land management, and wind and bush fire control. Interconnections between the MCLT system components include cross-component investments, additional income generation, animal feeding and healthcare improvement, nutrition exchanges, and family nutrition improvement. These interconnections generate income and cash flow and support food and nutrition security, enabling farmers’ adaptation. Climate-resilient innovation bundles to enable farmers’ adaptation include good agricultural practices, circular farming techniques, irrigation packages, information services, and value-chain linkages. Scaling climate-resilient innovations in northern Ghana and other sub-Saharan African contexts require multiple pathways, including innovation platforms, innovation bundling, multi-actor partnerships, inclusive finance, and multistakeholder dialogues to support farmers’ adaptation to climate change.

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