9:30 AM - 9:45 AM
[AHW18-03] Taking a look at hydrological research in the Oceania region
Keywords:island, oceania, hydrology
In the Oceania region (OR), solutions to water issues are often adopted from wealthier nations because island capabilities are often considered inferior. As a result, maladaptive practices and unsustainable solutions are uncritically embraced by island people, but success in one area does not mean the same in another. Additionally, such solutions which are often funded by foreign aid and donor programs, lack community involvement and have been criticized for their agendas that result in longevity and sustainability issues in its funded projects. The economic development status of the region brews a desperate environment vulnerable to such intentions. Furthermore, as climate change is drastically impacting the region's limited water resources, past successful solutions are having adaptability problems. Therefore, there is a need to find effective, sustainable, and adaptable solutions for the OR's water issues.
The problem, however, is the status of hydrological research activity in the OR is unknown; i.e., identifying the major research themes, dominant research approach, collaboration efforts between water specialists, the quality of the research, etc. Hence, by collecting and analyzing the collective literature from three core bibliographic databases (WOS, Scopus, and Google Scholar), the goal of this study was to address the status of hydrological research activity in the OR and articulate some potential research directions unique to the region.
In this study, we found that although local/regional organizations provide some support for self-reliance in solving the region's water issues, due to the pressure of the economic development status of the region, more focus is placed on project-based objectives, rather than research. Therefore, solutions are often technical and immediate fixes with no adaptable countermeasures. In addition to this, research in projects is often unpublished, limiting exposure of its success to the global community. Hence the need for a collective database to house hydrological works in the region, which can help identify or develop suitable and unique solutions to the region, by reviewing the suitability and functionality of the previous works. Ideally, OR solutions would simultaneously need to have instantaneous abilities, given the reactive approach of the region to environmental disasters while also adaptable to changes.
A few other major findings in this assessment are the lack of major research themes apart from groundwater research. There was a poor collaboration between foreigners working in the region and local specialists, or even between local specialists themselves. The quality of research published by locals was substandard. These points to the lack of the ability for locals to perform quality research as well as not being able to lead research as principal investigators. It does not help when there is also a lack of water specialists in the region.
Therefore, a main solution could potentially be the development of a self-reliant base for hydrological research in the region by empowering and improving the capabilities of local citizens. This can be which can be achieved by (1) water governing bodies need to establish research in its core functions, and (2) the education of hydrology must be improved to suit local capabilities while addressing the complex socio-cultural environment with integrated transdisciplinary measures/solutions. This assessment could potentially benefit future management of hydrological services and research improvements and intends to draw the attention of foreign water specialists to the issues in the OR.
The problem, however, is the status of hydrological research activity in the OR is unknown; i.e., identifying the major research themes, dominant research approach, collaboration efforts between water specialists, the quality of the research, etc. Hence, by collecting and analyzing the collective literature from three core bibliographic databases (WOS, Scopus, and Google Scholar), the goal of this study was to address the status of hydrological research activity in the OR and articulate some potential research directions unique to the region.
In this study, we found that although local/regional organizations provide some support for self-reliance in solving the region's water issues, due to the pressure of the economic development status of the region, more focus is placed on project-based objectives, rather than research. Therefore, solutions are often technical and immediate fixes with no adaptable countermeasures. In addition to this, research in projects is often unpublished, limiting exposure of its success to the global community. Hence the need for a collective database to house hydrological works in the region, which can help identify or develop suitable and unique solutions to the region, by reviewing the suitability and functionality of the previous works. Ideally, OR solutions would simultaneously need to have instantaneous abilities, given the reactive approach of the region to environmental disasters while also adaptable to changes.
A few other major findings in this assessment are the lack of major research themes apart from groundwater research. There was a poor collaboration between foreigners working in the region and local specialists, or even between local specialists themselves. The quality of research published by locals was substandard. These points to the lack of the ability for locals to perform quality research as well as not being able to lead research as principal investigators. It does not help when there is also a lack of water specialists in the region.
Therefore, a main solution could potentially be the development of a self-reliant base for hydrological research in the region by empowering and improving the capabilities of local citizens. This can be which can be achieved by (1) water governing bodies need to establish research in its core functions, and (2) the education of hydrology must be improved to suit local capabilities while addressing the complex socio-cultural environment with integrated transdisciplinary measures/solutions. This assessment could potentially benefit future management of hydrological services and research improvements and intends to draw the attention of foreign water specialists to the issues in the OR.