Achieving Climate Resilience through Improved Irrigation Water Management from Farm to Basin Scale
Background
During the past decade we have seen an increasing volume of research on improving footprints of irrigated agriculture like how to use water in irrigation to produce more to meet the adage “more crop per drop” from farm to irrigation system and basin scale, whilst minimizing environmental impacts and dealing with climate change impacts. However, the gap between the current water productivity of irrigated agriculture and future water demand to produce food for growing population by 2050 is ever growing and the impact of climate becomes more evident. Considering the high water demand in other sectors, such as domestic, environmental and commercial use, it is not practically possible to divert more water for irrigated agriculture. There are novel models, tools and approaches to characterize and even recommend potential improvements in irrigation water management at farm scale, but as yet insights on farm level irrigation practices have not landed to translate improvement in water productivity at the irrigation system, basin and national water management scale.
We invite scientific contributions that help to improve our understanding of the interactions between the field/farm scale at which irrigation water application takes place and the irrigation system/basin scale at which water resources are being available and managed leading to build climate resilience for better water adaptations in irrigation sector. Contributions can be related but are not necessarily limited to questions such as:
- What are innovative technical, social and institutional interventions in agricultural water management for improving water productivity and climate resilience at field, farm, scheme and/or basin scale?
- What is the role of indigenous knowledge that may improve water productivity leading to climate resilience?
- What novel tools and approaches can lead to a behavioral change in agricultural water use from farm to basin scale.
- How can we translate the knowledge generated through modeling tools to field level interventions in improving system efficiency and making agriculture climate resilient?
- How can system level modelling lead to improve water productivity and productivity of irrigated agriculture from irrigation system to basin scale?
- What is the role of decision support tools (water accounting, geo-informatics, data mining, artificial intelligence, IoT and ICT) for improving service delivery and irrigation system wide efficiency?
- How can water resource assessments inform development investments and support climate resilient irrigation infrastructure?
- What are the barriers in realization of the true potential of water food energy nexus to inform policy making at the irrigation system level?
- What are technical, economic and institutional impediments in modernization of irrigation infrastructure in developed vs developing countries?
We believe that the special issue will advance fundamental scientific understanding on the interactions across scales, from field to system scale and provide practical recommendations to develop climate resilient solutions leading for improving service delivery and irrigation system wide efficiency in global context. Abstracts should be approximately 500 to 1000 words long and should briefly present the analytical framework, methodology, main findings and arguments.
Guest Editors
- Dr. Mohsin Hafeez, Associate Editor ICID Journal
- Petra Schmitter, IWMI Myanmar
Timeline
- Call for Abstracts: May 20th, 2020
- Deadline for Abstract Submission: June 20th, 2020
- Decision on Abstracts: June 30th, 2020
- Submission of Full Paper: August 15th, 2020
- Review Process: August 16th-September 15th 2020
- Comments to Author: October 15th, 2020
- Paper Acceptance: December 1st, 2020
- Publication of Special Issue: March, 2021
Send your abstract to IWMI-SI.ICID@cgiar.org
Population pressure and increasing water competition in a changing climate require us to take stock of the availability and use of water across scales. Water availability not only influences farmers’ commercial prospects but also irrigation-related enterprises and agri-businesses. Greater water scarcity could jeopardize irrigation and agricultural markets while excessive water use can lead to declining ecosystems, water quality and soil health. IWMI advises development partners and the public and private sectors on all aspects of water resource availability and use through a variety of advanced modeling and remote-sensing products and tools, including 
The ability of farmers to engage in or expand irrigation depends on the prevailing socioeconomic, ecological and political contexts, which are often complex, non-linear and changeable. Overcoming systemic barriers to farmer-led irrigation development while taking advantage of existing opportunities 
A lack of affordable credit, particularly for women and resource-poor farmers, is one of the main barriers to expanding farmer-led irrigation in low- and middle-income countries. But 
Scaling farmer-led irrigation requires strengthening human capacity and knowledge exchange among all actors and stakeholders involved. IWMI takes an action research approach, working with national and international research institutions, governments, extension agents and public and private organizations to co-develop the scaling ecosystem and strengthen capacity to drive scaling networks and collective action. We support the