Resilient Watershed Management RWM

Introduction

This course guides the application of resilient watershed management (RWM), combining natural resource management with risk, environment and livelihood considerations to deal with watershed issues in an integrated and multidisciplinary way. Resilient watershed management uses a landscape approach to risk reduction, where competing land-use needs are recognised and balanced in the context of the entire landscape, from the highest mountains to coastal plains.

The ultimate goal of resilient watershed management is a region’s sustainable development, or development that meets the present’s needs, without compromising future generations’ capacity to meet their own needs.

Duration

5 days

Course outline

Module1: Introduction to resilient watershed management

This learning step provides the fundamental principles for integrating the risk and landscape approach into watershed decision-making. It also introduces the case study’s context and characters to take you through the resilient watershed management planning process.

·        Overview

·        Global changes

·        Watershed management approaches

·        Resilient watershed management cycle

Module 2: Enabling environment and engage stakeholders

This learning step describes the first stage in the development of the resilient watershed management plan. The plan begins by assessing if the enabling environment’s different aspects are adequate to support resilient watershed management. It also guides how to involve all interested stakeholders to support a resilient watershed management plan’s overall development and implementation.

·        Analysing the enabling environment

·        Identify the relevant policies, laws and institutions necessary for effective RWM

·        Analyse the policies, laws and institutions identified

·        Conclude the analysis of the enabling environment.

·        Define measures to overcome inconsistencies and incompatibilities.

 Module 3: Perform risk assessment

In this learning step, participants goes through identifying risks based on hazard and exposure mapping, together with vulnerability assessments.

·        Why carry out a climate and DRA within the watershed

·        Definition of risk

·        DRA steps

·        Hazard assessment

·        Exposure assessment

·        Hotspot identification and prioritisation

·        Risk reduction opportunity area identification

·        Vulnerability assessment

·        Disaster risk analysis

Module 4: Identifying measures for resilient watershed management

This learning step reviews how to select and prioritise measures to strengthen risk management in watersheds based on the previous assessments.

·        Climate and DRM and mitigation

·        RWM measures

·        Enabling environment assessment and RWM measures

·        Exposure assessment and RWM measures

·        Vulnerability assessment and RWM measures

·        Prioritisation of measures

Module 5: Develop and implement the resilient watershed management plan

The various assessments carried out during learning modules 1-4 and identifying the relevant risk reduction measures need to be compiled into a comprehensive plan. This learning step reviews how the resilient watershed management plan puts together the various components.

·        RWM plan

·        Content of the RWM plan

·        Scales of implementation

·        Conclusion