Water projects from evidence to implementation.

The UNESCO Chair on Open Water Science and Education uses digital technologies to widen access to hydrological monitoring, analysis and learning.

As project manager, I coordinated work with low-cost soil-moisture probes, water-quality devices, citizen-science tools, digital data workflows and open hydrological platforms. I led the processing, documentation and publication of sensor observations through UNESCO-IHP WINS and supported dashboards that turn spatial and time-series data into usable information.

I also developed open-source SWAT+ learning resources for Climate Risk Informed Decision Analysis and connected digital tools with practical capacity building for students, researchers and water professionals.

Selected outcomes

• Prepared low-cost soil-moisture datasets for publication through UNESCO-IHP WINS.
• Connected low-cost digital devices with open, citizen-led hydrological monitoring.
• Developed SWAT+ training materials, dashboards and reproducible data workflows.

This national study assesses how climate change may alter groundwater recharge across Belgium up to 2100. I drove the mHM hydrological model with projections from ten global climate models under four pathways, from SSP1–2.6 to SSP5–8.5, and evaluated both the ensemble response and the uncertainty between models.

The results show that wetter winters do not translate into equally large recharge gains. Winter precipitation increases by 11.8–28.5%, while winter recharge rises by only 4.0–8.6%. Summer and autumn recharge decline much more strongly—by 11.7–53.8% and 11.6–42.3%, respectively—as summer rainfall decreases, atmospheric water demand rises and soil-moisture deficits persist into autumn.

Recharge therefore becomes increasingly concentrated in winter and spring: their combined share rises from 68.5% historically to 82.0% under SSP5–8.5. The findings help clarify when groundwater systems may be most vulnerable and why adaptation must combine demand management with measures that retain and infiltrate water when it is available.

Selected outcomes

• Evaluated ten climate models across four SSP pathways to 2100.
• Quantified seasonal change, spatial variability and ensemble uncertainty across Belgium.
• Linked recharge changes to precipitation, atmospheric water demand and antecedent soil-moisture conditions.

Ol Pejeta Conservancy needed a long-term plan to improve water security for staff housing, tourism facilities, livestock and wildlife under increasing climate variability and competing demands.

I assessed existing sources, abstraction points, storage, treatment and distribution infrastructure; evaluated current water use and losses; and analysed surface-water availability and dry-season constraints on the Ewaso Nyiro River. The study also considered demand management, wastewater reuse and upgrades that could reduce supply interruptions.

The result was a practical 20-year masterplan that quantified supply-demand gaps under normal, dry and exceptional conditions and organized investments into short-, medium- and long-term priorities. The plan provided maps, designs and recommendations to support implementation and budgeting decisions.

Selected outcomes

• Quantified supply-demand gaps across normal, dry and exceptional scenarios.
• Prioritized critical upgrades for more reliable dry-period supply.
• Developed a phased 20-year investment framework.

The assignment supported revision of Kenya’s Design and Construction Manual for Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Facilities in Primary Schools. I revised technical drawings for sanitation and water-storage facilities and updated the corresponding bills of quantities and cost estimates so the manual could provide consistent, buildable and costed reference designs.