James Clarke

People should be allowed and even, in some circumstances, encouraged to move for work. But the current structure of migration, particularly in the Ganges plains, contributes to the reproduction of rural poverty. 

Publicly accessible satellite data gives water accounting a boost with the ultimate goal of being able to give water managers precise indications of where and when water is being “used” and allow them to plan accordingly.

In the Mekong Region, fast flowing rivers are often the lifeblood of nearby communities. They provide food, transportation, irrigation and spiritual needs. But a fast flowing river is also an opportunity to generate hydropower. To offset the ecological effects, could artificial wetlands benefit dam-side communities?  

Foreign direct investment in African agriculture could bring great benefits, but there are risks too. Nowhere is this more true than in sub-Saharan Africa where, for many, land ownership is still seen as the key to a secure income. 

New innovations are revolutionizing the measurement of water productivity. Farmer Ahmed may not know it yet, but he is a water productivity champion in Morocco. 

Constantly monitoring where and when problems occur allows health professionals to predict potential trouble spots and target their interventions. It is perhaps surprising then, that other challenges to our wellbeing do not always receive such close attention. Take soils for example.

Big dams have been taking a something of a pounding in recent weeks. A recent article in the New York Times by Scudder, an expert on dams and poverty alleviation, concluded that such behemoths were rarely worth the cost.

Integrated business models throughout the sanitation value chain can turn waste into valuable resources such as biofuels or fertilizer and save water, thus leading to even broader livelihood improvements. But why are some models vastly more successful than others?

No country in the world runs its economy without subsidies. Even avowedly free market states, like the US, are awash with financial fillips for everything from agriculture to green energy. Just how effective these cash comforters are at delivering public goods, however, is hugely debateable.

Douglas Varchol shares his experience filming the CGIAR Research Program on Water Land and Ecosystems' three films on the overall program, work in northern Peru, and in the Chinyanja Triangle in Southern Africa.

From Pakistan to Egypt, under-performance of major irrigation networks has become endemic. But now a Dutch technologist thinks he may be able to help solve the problem using a simple smart phone application.

Optimism about the achievability of global food security was tempered by pessimism on man’s ability to achieve this without wrecking the earth’s natural systems at the Stockholm Water Laureate’s Seminar at World Water Week.

If we are to produce enough food for the anticipated 9 billion global population by 2050, achieving improved productivity in rain-fed agricultural systems will be essential.