Coping with Drought Risk in Agriculture and Water Supply Systems Drought Management and Policy Development in the Mediterranean

Dr. Ana Iglesias is a Research Scientist at the Universidad Politecnica de Madrid in Spain and previously in the Goddard Institute for Space Studies at Columbia University in New York. Her research focuses in understanding the interactions of global change with agriculture and water resources. Scientific advances include national and regional evaluations of adaptation strategies, focusing in the risk of vulnerable populations. She has contributed to programs of the U.N. Environmental Programme, UNESCO, U.S. Agency for International Development, and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. She leads the development of Drought Management Guidelines within the MEDA program of the European Union. Prof. Luis Garrote is a Professor of Civil Engineering: Hydraulics and Energetics at the Universidad Politecnica de Madrid in Spain and received formal training at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA. His academic and scientific contributions to planning and management of hydrological systems include development of hydrological models, flood forecasting, reservoir management, and intelligent decision support systems. His distinguished professional record in the integrated water resources management includes collaborations with National and International Administrations. He has developed widely applied projects financed by the programs of research and development of private companies, the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, and the European Union. Prof. Donald Wilhite. The ongoing challenge of Dr. Wilhite's work is convincing policy makers of the advantages of drought preparedness plans and mitigation actions and programs, in contrast to the more typical crisis management approach. Policy makers often do not understand drought climatology, and scientists have trouble providing probability-based information in a format that non-scientists can comprehend. Risk-based drought management can eliminate or reduce many of the impacts associated with drought-induced water shortages. Governments at all levels should take a multidisciplinary, interagency approach to drought planning as pressure on water and other natural resources increases as a result of increasing and shifting population and many other factors. Dr. Wilhite directs the National Drought Mitigation Center and the International Drought Information Center. He is a professor in the School of Natural Resources at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, where he has been on the faculty since 1977. His research centers on drought management and preparedness, the policy implications of climate variability and climate change, and the effects of climate on society. In conjunction with this research, he has conducted training seminars and workshops in developing and developed countries to help governments create drought plans.